One of the things that particularly gained steam last summer was the issue of safety when dealing with contra dance, especially when it came to members of the community feeling harassed. This seems to have been covered quite a bit in other communities, but less so in the contra community as a whole. (There were some resources out there -- of which that link is an example -- but very few were directed at contra dancers specifically.) Fortunately, since then, there seems to have been an increased awareness of dancer safety and policies intended to protect dancers from harm. There are also communities, such as this one on Facebook, that have sprung up online to discuss this important topic, which affects all of the contra community whether they're dancing to traditional music or techno.
Interestingly, other communities seem to have had more experience dealing with this directly; creepers are not exclusive to the contra dance community, but perhaps in this case we can work with other communities to be less naive.
(I also find the creeper link interesting because contra culture has folks looking into your eyes frequently, which is described as possible creeper behavior in the swing community...but this, too, ought to be negotiable if it makes your partner feel uncomfortable...look at their ear, or their forehead....)
Interestingly, other communities seem to have had more experience dealing with this directly; creepers are not exclusive to the contra dance community, but perhaps in this case we can work with other communities to be less naive.
(I also find the creeper link interesting because contra culture has folks looking into your eyes frequently, which is described as possible creeper behavior in the swing community...but this, too, ought to be negotiable if it makes your partner feel uncomfortable...look at their ear, or their forehead....)
