Crisis shelter workers want Google Maps to hide the locations of their shelters

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Crisis shelter workers want Google Maps to hide the locations of their shelters

Selena Larson reports at The Daily Dot:

Crisis shelters provide a safe haven for victims and their families; they are a refuge away from abusers. By publicly listing shelter locations online, Google is endangering victims of domestic abuse, says Jeremy Janice, a facilities coordinator at a Louisiana crisis center.

It’s yet another example of my white American cis-male privilege that it never even occurred to me that this is problematic. I hope Google comes up with a solution that helps keep people safe. I’m not sure how effective Change.org petitions really are, but you can sign the one relevant to this issue here.

The image is a blurred Google Maps image depicting domestic violence shelters in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.

#Links #Law #Link #google #Change.org #domestic violence #family law #Google Maps