The Benefits of 'Living Grey': At Home

Scott Stewart, Vice-President of Security and Risk Mitigation firm TorchStone Global, examines how athletes can present themselves as less vulnerable targets at home.

The goal of being grey is to present a neutral façade to outside observers so that you are perceived as neither a valuable nor a vulnerable target. Being grey is something anyone can do with a little research, thought, and effort.

Understanding the Environment

One key to staying grey while at home is understanding your environment. Sadly, many people put more effort into researching a place they will be visiting for a two-week vacation than they do for the environment where they live for the other 50 weeks of the year.

At home, people generally do not need to do the type of social and cultural research they do for overseas travel because they have a fairly sound understanding of their baseline home environment. However, people should make an effort to develop a detailed understanding of the crime environment in their home cities, as crime is not just something that happens abroad.

Crime rates vary greatly across a city, and criminals will operate more brazenly in some sections of a city than others. Therefore, it is essential to understand where, when, and how criminals operate in the place you live.

Useful tools widely available on the internet provide access to crime statistics and reports. Some of these websites are published by governments and local police departments; others are provided by real estates or alarm companies. And while the sites with this information may vary, simple searches of your location and ‘crime statistics’ should yield relevant results.

Reading the local newspaper and following local police social media feeds will also be informative and useful. As neighbourhoods change, so do crime trends. It is important to re-check these sites periodically to watch for new criminal trends and tactics.

Clothing and Accessories

Across the globe, wearing clothing with political or offensive messages can draw hostile attention. We have seen people assaulted for wearing hats or clothing with a political message. While one surely has the freedom to wear such items, one should also be aware that this freedom may have a price.

I would also apply this to political yard signs and bumper stickers because people’s homes and vehicles have been vandalised for displaying them. Is a public display of your political affiliation worth the potential risk it could create?

Like travelling abroad, avoid hot, attention-grabbing colours on the street at home. If you do decide to wear them, understand that they will draw more eyes than neutral colours. People who dress all in black or wear tactical clothing also draw attention to themselves.

Beyond clothing, what you carry with you on the street at home can also bring the wrong kind of attention. If you are wearing a watch or tennis bracelet worth several months of someone’s rent, people are sure to notice – and some of them are likely to have bad intent. But flashing cash and expensive accessories are not the only things that can draw untoward attention.

Vehicles

Personalised number plates can also draw untoward attention. Not only because of the information they typically provide, but also because they are unique. There may be 10 black Mercedes S model cars in your city, but yours will stick out like a sort thumb from the flow of traffic. A vehicle with no bumper stickers and a plain license plate is the best way to stay grey while you drive.

Demeanour

Just as important as what you wear, and carry is how you behave – your demeanour. Being loud, brash, or aggressive can draw hostile attention. Conversely, looking like you are lost or frightened can also draw a predator’s attention. Added to this is when and where you are displaying demeanour. Very little good will happen to people who are drunk on the street at 3am, especially in the wrong part of town.

Situational Awareness

Situational awareness helps you be grey by behaving in accordance with the environment around you. It also allows you to see potential threats. Criminals are lazy and prefer easy prey. All things being equal, criminals and other hostile actors prefer to prey on people who are oblivious to their surroundings because it provides them the element of tactical surprise. They frequently avoid a target who had recognised them and instead focus their attention on a less aware target. U

“Just as important as what you wear, and carry is how you behave – your demeanour. Being loud, brash, or aggressive can draw hostile attention.”