As an international student, I like to connect with other students through stories about how we arrived to Canada. We share airline horror anecdotes and tips for future journeys. It was in one of these conversations where I became aware of the glaring difference between traveling as a woman and traveling as a man.

Aside from my bad luck with airplanes, I shared all my concerns and precautions during my trip. To which my friend asked: Why do you worry so much?

In another conversation with my friends Imesha and Hamza, we talked about the same topic. On one hand, Hamza was worried about staying in Germany due to Canadian COVID regulations. On the other hand, since Imesha was coming from a red-listed country, she worried about having problems with her transition from England to Canada. She concluded that since she was traveling internationally (through flights), she felt much safer than traveling inside her country. Hamza agreed, saying that where he comes from, women wouldn’t be able to travel as freely or safely as he does.

I related to her statement as well. Although I was a little concerned with traveling alone, I felt safer traveling out of the continent than I would feel traveling to other cities inside my country. Whenever I watch the local news, there’s always a story that follows a girl going missing, or getting murdered, or being sexually assaulted.

So, why do I worry so much? Because I can’t not worry about things like these. Because women go missing. Because women get murdered. Because I was going to be alone in a place I didn’t know and where no one was going to check if I made it to my destination safely. Because I’ve seen these stories more closely than I should have. Because it’s not unusual for things like these to happen to women and girls.

The violence women suffer when they travel is a topic that is not talked about enough. And at the same time we have to think where this problem comes from. It comes from the lack of attention given by the authorities and the public. I worry because I’ve been taught to worry since I was a kid. And now I worry about seeing too little done for stories that we see way too much.

You should worry too.