Mother-daughter safety day!
Last chance to sign up... coming up soon! Middle school can be tough. We can teach you how to stop someone who's bothering you, how to make them go away with your words, and the best way to kick or hit if you absolutely have to. @ Crofton Yoga, Sat., March 3, 1:00-3:00pm /For girls age 11 and up and their moms (or sisters, cousins, etc.). For more info or to register, go here.
People are talking about Defend Yourself workshops
- Cathie Reid and Lauren Taylor demonstrate ways to handle harassment at the book release for Stop Street Harassment
- Tips on dealing with street harassment at Holla Back DC!
- Improve your skills with quick video lessons from instructors Lauren Taylor and Sarah Trembath
- See Takoma Park teens break a(n imaginary) attacker's nose!
- Unlearn the 'rules of rape' with Examiner Tiffany Hearsey
Who's learning to
defend themselves?
Some places Defend Yourself has presented recently:
-Fort Belvoir/Family Support Program
-The Mautner Project
-Feminisms Without Borders (U. Md.)
-Council of Chief State School Officers
-Girls Inc.
-AAUW-DC "Convo and Cocktails"
-Golden Triangle Business Improvement District
-Trinity College
-Asian Pacific Islander American Health Program
-Our Streets Too! Anti-street harassment march
-Asian Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project
-School for Tomorrow
-Asian Pacific American Bar Assn. of DC
-Barrie School
-Oneness Family School
-Metro Teen AIDS
-Alpha Delta - Alpha Delta Pi GWU
-American Institute for Cancer Research
-Discovery Communications
-Delta Sigma Theta alumni chapter
-Girl Scout troops (several!)
-Mary House
-Returned Peace Corp Volunteers-Washington
-Children's Hospital Girls Clubs & Boys Clubs
-World Bank
-U.S. Transportation Dept.
-World Vision
-The Female Experience
If you want to organize a workshop for your school, community group, workplace, or whatever, contact us.
When YOU'RE
the bystander
Pretty much everyone is horrified at the Apple store employees who ignored the sounds of someone being murdered at Lululemon next door. And no one can understand how you can know that kids are being abused—even raped—and do nothing, or just report it to your boss and wash your hands of it.
So how can you be ready when your help is needed? Here are some ideas about being a good bystander:
1—Safety first. If you feel you can’t intervene without becoming a target yourself, put your safety first. Stepping away and calling the police is often an option. (The Apple store workers and the Penn State coaches get no pass on this one. They were not in danger.)
You can also call a security guard, or report the incident to Human Resources, to a teacher, or to another responsible body.
Later, you might ask what action they took. If you don't like the way they handled things, you can go to the next level, or you can tell someone else. With kids, talk about telling till you get the help you need. It’s the same for grownups. more>>
Why self-defense?
Whether or not you live in a high-crime area, attack is an unfortunate possibility. For women especially, most assaults don't come from strangers in parking lots: They come from friends, acquaintances, romantic partners, or family members. more»
What is
self-defense?
Many people think of self-defense as what they would do if someone jumped them in a parking lot or dark alley.
We do teach ways to fight off an attacker. But self-defense is much more than that! It is a set of skills--verbal, emotional, mental, and physical--that you can use to keep yourself safe, claim your space, set limits, say no, heal from abuse or attacks, and live the life you want to live. more»
