According to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, one in every six American women will be the victim of an attempted or completed rape at some point in her lifetime.
Yasmine Mustafa felt compelled to do something about this, so she created Athena — a bluetooth-enabled alarm that resembles a piece of jewelry.
"It is worn as a clip, magnetic so it can be activated by both hands," unlike pepper sprays and tasers, which Mustafa says can be cumbersome. "You still have to pull it out of your pocket or your purse for them to be useful."
If a woman feels unsafe or is in trouble, with a push of a button, she can alert family and friends who can call for help.
There are two modes: Alarm, which is roughly the same noise level as a garbage disposal. The second mode is silent, which sends a distress message without the alarm.
Your chosen contacts will get a map showing your location, directions and the opportunity to call you or 911.
"Choose someone or three contacts who share the same schedule so if you're a bartender and you finish work at 2 a.m., for example, you select someone who will be awake at the time."
Athena is still just a band-aid, says Mustafa. "While Athena is short term," addressing the behavioral causes of violence against women is the long-term solution.
"If you educate young children when they're most impressionable about respect and healthy relationships, there is a direct correlation between decreasing harassment, abuse, and attacks against women."
From PRI's The World ©2017 PRI
