My former girlfriend was murdered during an hitchhiking trip, nine years ago (sadly, it is almost unnecessary to specify that the sorry coward provided to rape her, previously).
I’m not used to chat about it on the socials: SE is the only place on the Internet where I feel comfortable talking of it, and this is the very first time I do.
You can imagine how mixed my feelings are, about this issue. But she was so positive —and assertive— about hitchhiking, that I owe her to keep alive a similar perspective. I guess.
It could definitely be dangerous, especially for a girl traveling alone, and you must consider its risks; but hitchhiking is still a beautiful, factual affirmation towards a culture of peace, and its level of danger is inversely proportional to its diffusion.

My ex girlfriend used to hitchhike the west coast. At the time, she was age 17, 5'2" and 110lbs. The only one time she ever had an incident, was 3 years ago when she picked up her first hitcher. He got handsy and she stabbed him in the leg and made him exit her vehicle.

Prior to this she used to defend hitching and believed it to be ridiculously safe.

Did she quit, after the incident?

She wasnt hitching at the time, but rather picked up her first hitch hiker. She felt obligated since she had received so many rides during her time on the road.

She has stopped hitching since she owns a car, but she is now more wary about whom she picks up

That's awful.

From a disinterested point of view, I can assert that taking a small level of extra risk results in a richer experience of life, but that's little comfort if the unlikely worst does happen. No matter how rarely that happens, it's still 100% when it's you.

There are pros and cons. Particulary if you start at 4:30 in the morning.