Young people feel unsafe in Groningen nightlife; Night mayor blames lost knowledge

63 percent of people who go out in Groningen feel unsafe in the nightlife. Among young people aged 18 to 25, this figure rises to 80 percent. According to the night mayor, Misha Pchenitchnikov, today’s young people never learned how to party safely due to the lockdowns in the coronavirus pandemic, Trouw reports.

The figures come from recent research commissioned by the municipality, which combined previous studies with information from the nightlife crowd, the hospitality industry, and the police. Since the pandemic, nights out have escalated more often, the researchers found. Hospitality entrepreneurs and the police report more disrespectful and aggressive behavior, often linked to alcohol and drug use.

According to Pchenitchnikov, the cause lies in a missed learning experience. “Normally, older partygoers pass on behavioral norms to young people - via brothers and sisters, older housemates. After all, there is no handbook with nightlife norms. But when nightlife came to a standstill for two years, this transfer was lost,” he told Trouw.

Young people had to figure out for themselves how to interact with each other, and that caused standards to shift. “The number of incidents has not increased, but they have become more intense. Where in the past, a few blows were thrown during a fight, the police and enforcement officers now see more groups beating and kicking one person, sometimes with stabbing weapons.

The researchers attribute the increase in drug use partly to higher alcohol and cigarette prices. Pchenitchnikov thinks the pandemic played a role here, too. An extensive house party culture emerged during the lockdowns. “Some nights, you could count three or four house parties on every street in the city center. Different standards applied there than in regular catering establishments. Young people got used to open drug use and took those standards with them to regular bars.”

Based on this research, Groningen mayor Mirjam van ‘t Veld presented a package of recommendations to increase safety in the city’s nightlife. Pchenitchnikov is particularly excited about the new standards for going out that are part of that package. It encourages people in the nightlife to engage in critical discussions, he said. “How do we resolve conflicts? What do we think about drug use? Is it okay that so many women and men are assaulted?”

He also thinks a collective ban from the catering industry for misbehaviors will be effective. “Anyone who misbehaves now is thrown out of the pub and can often just go to the neighbors. Absolutely crazy,” Pchenitchnikov said. In the new measures, misbehavers won’t be welcome in any catering establishment for the entire night.