When I first heard the news about Salman Rushdie being violently attacked while on stage at a conference, I was horrified. How could something like that happen?
I mean, this man has been under threat of attack for decades. Surely he had bodyguards or something, right?
Well as we’re learning now, security at the event was practically non-existent. But is it really all that surprising? In spite of rising threats of violence, events in general seem in no great hurry to take action to protect attendees.
Sure, we hear all kinds of excuses – “we have no budget” or “our event is a minimal risk” – but what will it take for organizers to step up and provide greater security for all attendees?
Skift Meetings did a lengthy post on what should be done to protect high-profile speakers in particular, but those same measures will also help protect all attendees. What if the attacker had shown up with a gun instead of a knife? Things could have gone so much worse for everyone at the event! MeetingsNet has a thought-provoking article on the topic of firearms at meetings.
We’ve also covered the topic of event security in previous posts here:
- Weekly Insights: Trade Show Safety & Security
- Weekly Insights: How Secure is Your Trade Show?
- Weekly Insights: Safety First
How are you rethinking security at your events? Please share your ideas in the comments.
