Osheaga announces new measures to protect women, LGBTQ concertgoers

Evenko, the promoter behind Osheaga and leSoniqmusic festivals, said Thursday it will follow in the footsteps of the Montreal Jazz Festand bring in theHirondellesa trained safety teamto help protect women and otherconcertgoers.

This is the first year the Quebec event promoter and producer is usingthe Hirondelles to helpvulnerable people at the festival.

The focus on security measures for women and vulnerable people at festivals hasincreased over the past year, as more women have come forward about their negative experiences.

In response, women'sorganizations called on promoters to work harder to prevent sexual assaults.

Earlier this year,a survey by theConseildesMontralaises, or Montreal Women's Council, found that 56per cent of women who attend festivals said they'd been sexually harassed.

Last year a Montreal woman said her drinkwas drugged at Osheagaand when she told security staff about her concerns, she was brushed off.

• Osheaga attendee claims she was drugged and no one helped
• Osheaga incident highlights sexual assault problem at festivals

Project Souncheck, an Ottawa-based group that trains festival staff and volunteers on preventing sexual assaults, said last yearthat festivals have a responsibilityto try to prevent assaults.

"The safety and well-being of everyone has always been at the heart of our concerns when organizing all of our events," saidJacques Aub, the executive vice-president and chief operating officer of Evenko, in the release.

Roaming security teams

The Hirondellesare mobile teams of women who are specially trained to helpvulnerable people at concerts. They wear armbands with a pair ofswallows, or "hirondelles"on them.

The teams roamed the crowds at the Montreal Jazz Festival this year, and will now be part of Osheaga andleSoniq.

In a statement, Evenkosaid it is also partnering with GRIP Montreal, a group that focuses on harm reduction for people who take psychoactive substances.

GRIP will have a quiet relaxation space set up, along with support workers, to help people who need it.

There will be first aid teams on hand, as well as "monitoring teams" who will looking for festival attendees who appear to be in distress, according to the release.

Also new this year,there will be a psychologist/clinical sexologistto help people in need of care, and concertgoers will be able to include information like allergies and emergency contactswhen they register their RFID wristbands, which allow them site access.