When you’re a little girl, being afraid of the dark is to be scared of monsters under the bed, or a ghost howling in the loft.

When you grow up, the night still brings fear. But it’s a fear of something corporeal, something far more terrifying: a fear of a certain kind of man.

Because for every throng of good men – and most are – there are the few bad ones who threaten, stalk, harass and attack women, oftentimes choosing the darker hours to do so. And it sucks.

Our fears lead us to take desperate measures to stay safe: not walking alone at night, paying for taxis, clenching keys in our fists, buying pepper spray. We’ve seen conversations about this play out in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement, and following the murder of 22-year-old Eurydice Dixon as she walked home through a Melbourne park on a Tuesday night.

These precautionary steps are ones we shouldn’t have to take. Rather, men should stop raping and murdering.

But the sad reality is, right now, we don’t feel safe.

And a viral tweet has captured exactly this sentiment.

Ladies, a question for you:

“What would you do if all men had a 9pm curfew?”

Dudes: Read the replies and pay attention. #metoo #Kavanaugh #Cosby #feminism #maleprivilege #privilege

— Danielle Muscato (@DanielleMuscato) September 25, 2018

The timing is poignant. Danielle Muscato, a US civil rights activist, fired off her question in the same week Bill Cosby was sentenced for sexual assault, and Christine Blasey Ford bravely gave testimony accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual abuse.

‘What would you do if all men had a 9pm curfew?’

The answers to this hypothetical question have been heartbreaking in their simplicity. Because the truth is, we just want to be able to do completely ordinary things after dark, without the weight of our normalised, gendered anxieties.

Here are just a few of the responses.

Running with headphones, music as loud as I want, on a trail with dense trees if I so choose, without getting a little panicky every time I’m alone on a stretch with a guy who’s behind me.

— MCG (@McGilly07) September 26, 2018

I’d run at night.

I ???? would ???? run ???? so ???? much ???? at ???? night ???? https://t.co/ToE2odrFAq

— Kat(her)i(n)e Riley (@KatherineERiley) October 1, 2018

Long, calm, solo nighttime walks. That would be amazing.

— Bronwyn Harris (@BronwynAnn) September 25, 2018

Also I would go out dancing, drink and dance and not constantly monitor myself? And not wait up for everyone to text back that they got home okay? Just to see what it’s like, just once.

— Erynn Brook (@ErynnBrook) September 26, 2018

Right?! And to look away from the drink and know that no one slipped drugs in it!!!

— Cait (@caitRgateR) September 26, 2018

I’d walk a city in peace. https://t.co/EhnQY2JI2T

— Sonja Yoerg (@SonjaYoerg) September 27, 2018

I just booked an airbnb for a work trip which will have me out late into the evenings. Took me an hour of google mapping to see how I’d approach different properties, whether streets were lighted or populated. So, for starters, I’d book any damn place I wanted to, without worry.

— Let’s Scare Jessica Shortall To Death (@jessicashortall) September 25, 2018

I’d go for a walk in the dark without leaping out of my skin at little noises. Just thinking about going somewhere alone without anxiety seems like a dream. Is this how guys feel all the time?

— Emma Smart (@IMEmmaSmart) September 25, 2018

Sit on the beach at night. https://t.co/MEAMr4R91I

— authentiKAYLI (@KayliVee) October 1, 2018

Oh my god. The mind reels. Go dancing? Take a walk? Open the front door without fear? https://t.co/v66MM38Btf

— Emily L. Hauser (@emilylhauser) September 30, 2018

It’s hard not to feel a simmering rage upon reading these tweets. The point they’re all making is simple: we just want tolivewithout fear.

And right now, a male curfew is just as much a fantasy as feeling safe at night is.

But, at the very least, these discussions are giving men a chance to see the world through our eyes.

Wow, I feel horrible right now. None of this has ever occurred to me as an issue. I run, I go do whatever I want whenever I want.

Why aren’t women filled with uncontrollable rage all the time?

— Houston Wolf (@houstonwolf) September 26, 2018

And that’s some comfort, because if we someday want to achieve equality, we all need to be on the same side.

What you do if all men had a 9pm curfew? Tell us in the comments below.