When you’re performing as a belly dancer, you have a lot on your mind!  You might be thinking about your choreography, concentrating on the music, gauging audience reactions, or just trying to enjoy the moment.  With everything that’s going on, it’s easy to forget about your personal safety and security.  However, it’s important to remember that, while the majority of audience members are supportive and appreciative of your art form, there are predators out there who, if given the chance, will inappropriately touch you, harass you, stalk you, and worse.  And, as a belly dancer, you may make a particularly tempting target for these individuals.

There are some simple steps you can take to dramatically reduce your risk of becoming a victim.

• When performing at a club or restaurant, or if you’re attending a belly dance event, let the manager or organizer know if someone behaves inappropriately or makes you feel uncomfortable, or if you recognize someone from a prior incident.  Unwanted/inappropriate touching or lewd/inappropriate language directed at a dancer should result in the immediate ejection of the perpetrator.
• Have someone walk you to your car when leaving a gig or event.  If performing at a club or restaurant, you can always ask one of the staff members to accompany you.
• When dancing in a restaurant, decide in advance whether or not you will permit body tipping (i.e. allowing customers to place tips on the side of your hip belt or the back of your shoulder).  If you’re not comfortable with body tipping, consider placing a clearly labeled tip jar in a prominent place or carrying a tip purse with you while you are dancing (or both).  There’s an excellent article on tipping available on samiraonline.com.
• Bring security with you, particularly when performing solo at a club, restaurant or private event.  Something as simple as bringing a student, friend or partner can act as a deterrent to unwanted attention.  You can even get your “spotter” a t-shirt with the word SECURITY written on it. 
• Try to de-escalate the situation before it gets out of hand.  Read Samira’s hints on de-escalation here.
• Be wary of accepting private gigs, especially if the audience will be all men.
• Check out additional resources such as the safety and security page on  shira.net.