Crime pushed to West Campus since start of SXSW: SafeHorns

AUSTIN, Texas - The leader of a University of Texas student safety group said crime has been pushed to West Campus since the start of South by Southwest in Downtown Austin.

SafeHorns President Joell McNew said students shouldn’t have to feel like they need to have their head on a swivel while walking on and around campus.

"This location is the heart of the campus community," McNew said.

McNew said she is concerned for students’ safety, especially after her experience on Thursday afternoon.

"There were multiple people all acting aggressive, erratic," McNew said. "One was just wearing a wrap, but he had a fanny pack that had a large knife, he was screaming, yelling."

She said about four hours later she was riding in the car with her husband on West 23rd Street again.

"Now this other man out of nowhere, he comes up to my husband’s side of his truck, then comes around in front, hits the top of the truck, then comes around to my side like he’s going to come into my door, so we lock the door, then he picks up a lime scooter, I think he’s going to throw it into the car," McNew said.

McNew said her husband told him to stop, and he did, but then, "he walked up on the sidewalk and defecated, it was so disgusting, there were students everywhere."

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She said she is seeing more homeless people in the area while South by Southwest is going on.

"They clean up downtown, so we can be a good host, a safe host, and make everything look great in Austin and what does it do? We just push the problem," McNew said.

McNew said she’s working to fix the problem and transforming a space in the basement of the former Congregational Church near campus which used to be utilized as a homeless resources center. It will soon be called SafeHorns Place.

"Our goal is to revitalize the artist market, to bring student artists, makers into that space,’ McNew said, ‘We’ll host self defense workshops, we’ll do community engagement with law enforcement, the West Campus Ambassadors."

McNew and her husband weren’t hurt during the incidents, but McNew said it’s only a matter of time before someone is.