Is Dillingham & Anchorage Safe for girls? (home, rent)

[Lanesuzza]

I am looking at an opportunity to relocate to either Dillingham or Anchorage. One concern is the very high rape rates in Alaska. I am the father of two beautiful blonde pre-teen girls (they get their looks for their mother) should I be concerned in these two communities?

[Rance]

Anchorage and Dillingham are two totally different places. Pretty extreme differences. But I can't say if one would be safer than the other when it comes to rape.

[seekingadvice]

I haven't lived in Dillingham, but I have lived in Anchorage (and vicinity) and in rural Alaska. I would suggest trying to get more detailed information on the number of rapes in both communities. The reason I say this is because I worked for a probation office and nearly all of the cases I worked on were rapes that occurred within families or were committed by close family friends. Alcohol was almost always involved, in a big way. Domestic violence is a major problem in Alaska, so it would be good for you to have those statistics separated from the others. I hope that makes sense!

[KWBoyd]

I live in Anchorage and have 13 year old very attractive twins. We have strict rules in place about the girls staying in groups any time they are out on their own, where they can go, and when. I am comfortable about their safety as long as they follow those rules. They accuse me of being more protective than a lot of their friends parents, but they know why I am the way I am. I used to be involved in the criminal justice system and agree that the majority of rape and other violence related cases that make it to the court system involve alcohol.

[flu189]

We left Anchorage two years ago and to this day I am finding out more and more from my son what routinely went on with high school age kids up there (and this was at what was considered the best and safest school in the district). I am fortunate that my son had good common sense and instincts to avoid major trouble, but many of his peers did not. Treat Anchorage like any major city and make sure your kid is street smart. The incidence of crime from my experience was vastly under reported in Anchorage, however, if one is observant to his or surroundings and stays out of risk laden places you can minimize your chances of becoming a victim.

[Lanesuzza]

Thank You all for your input. We currently live in Phoenix which has a very high crime rate and huge illegal alien problem. We almost never let our kids out of our sights, which I feel is robbing them of part of their childhood. I can remember riding my bicycle from sun up to sun down as a kid only coming home to get lunch. I would never let my kids do that here!

[seekingadvice]

I remember that kind of freedom when I was a kid too... and that was in Lake Tahoe! But, even though Anchorage is safer that Phoenix, it is not a place I would let my daughter ride her bike alone. In fact, I live in an even smaller community than Anchorage, and she isn't allowed to go very far by herself. Like others have mentioned, keeping very close tabs on your kids and making sure they are "street smart" is important here as well. That said, I think you would be able to relax a bit in Alaska.