Why I don't go to Arisia (or Readercon) anymore

[eredien]

When I used to live in Boston (2005-2011, more or less), people used to ask me almost every winter why I didn't go to Arisia. People occasionally still ask me if I'm planning on commuting there, as it's a large con and the drive from where I currently am to Boston is not too bad--I make it at least once a year anyway to visit friends. The answer I

Comments

[signy1]

I only made it to Readercon once, and had, on the whole, an utter blast. Unfortunately, one of the most vivid memories I took away was of the wolf-pack-type strategy employed by a small group of guys I met there. We were chatting about... well, I don't recall. Nothing romantic, and definitely nothing flirtatious on my part. What I do recall was how they kept edging closer, moving slightly to flank me, as I kept edging further away. They ended up chasing me up a small flight of stairs. Do you know how hard it is to walk up a flight of stairs, backwards, without looking, while still making it look completely casual

[shatterstripes]

Arisia isn't to blame for this fan. But I never went back, because my experience with one fan was so bad that I was terrified to run into him again at the same con. Even though the con was not to blame and I had a great time there. I still hope I never see him again.

Am I missing some subtext here? Because "I never go to Arisia, ever" seems like a completely over-the-top overreaction to "a male fan awkwardly tried to talk to me, and maybe hit on me on the subway home from Arisia". Nothing you related here sounds like something that can't be solved by maybe just giving him the cold shoulder if you run into him at the con next year.

[astaraelweeper]

I think that the subtext is that she was afraid that he was following her home with the intent of sexually assaulting her, or more

[arcturax]

Oh this stuff is epidemic at conventions. And sometimes they don't take no for an answer. I'm a guy and I've run into con creepers too including a fat bearded man who started fondling my side in a crowd at a con one year. I drove him off with a rather loud, "Can I help you?" and a dark look but women generally don't have that intimidation factor or it doesn't work as well if at all.

Here are some creeper stories from E3 for example and I'm sure this is just the tip of the iceberg. Other cons get this too obviously. http://kotaku.com/the-creepy-side-of-e3-513484271

And I can see why this would be upsetting and offputting. Yeah the con itself isn't at fault, but something like this is very scary. You never know what these people are capable of, especially if they catch you or convince you to go with them.