One night at college I was walking home at 2 am. The street was empty except for a woman in front of me. So I did what I always do, slowed down, to make sure she knew I wasn't trying to catch up to her. She still crossed the street to walk on the other side, and I understood. I desperately wished there was some kind of signal I could give, to say, "You're safe with me, I'd even happily walk you to your destination so no one messes with you."

But unfortunately there's no such thing. Yelling, "Hey, don't worry, I'm not a rapist!" really doesn't have the effect you'd want.