When are we ever gonna use this in real life? Never will I need to find the height of the Empire State Building based on the shadow of a nearby tree. Never will I need to show my future employer that I understand the green light in “The Great Gatsby.” But unfortunately, I may need to use the skills I learned in self-defense.
When I first signed up for Girl’s Basic Self Defense, I thought it would be a rehash of the stuff I’d been taught for the past 18 years. This is how you hold your keys, how to dress appropriately, and how to cover your drink from creepy dudes at the bar. But it was so much more than that. In Basic Self Defense, the first thing we learned was the importance of our voice. Although it was initially quite embarrassing yelling “STAY BACK” and “STOPPP” at full volume in front of 30 strangers, it became empowering. We watched testimony from survivors who said they were scared to yell or talk back; they didn’t want to offend someone or didn’t want to hurt someone’s feelings. After days of practice, it didn’t feel so hard to yell or shout. We started yelling “stay back!” at our classmates when we saw them in the hallways. Whether in the locker room, hallways, or even at Homecoming, we shouted bodly.
After we learned about our voice, we learned about how we could use it along with skills. As someone who just stood and talked in the outfield during kickball and failed to ever be on beat during dance fitness, I thought I would immediately be overpowered and fail. But what I came to realize was that none of that mattered. No matter what new skill we learned, the teacher ensured that the teachings met us where we were at. Self-defense is catered to and flexible to everyone. Girls from all walks of life came into that class every day and left all able to do the same skill. And after a while, we learned what worked best for us and when we felt the most confident. We learned how to punch, kick, get back up, and (a fan favorite) hammer fist. Day after day, we learned skills and techniques,but more importantly, we learned about empowerment. We were taught that we were worth defending and worth learning skills for. We learned that we had each other’s backs and could lift each other up. Those skills and bonds were put to the test during simulation day.
Simulation day was a two-hour extravaganza where all students in Self Defense put on pads from head to toe so that we could be attacked. Our aggressors weren’t strangers at a club or at a bus stop, but male staff who volunteered to play the role. Before the simulation even started, I was wracked with nerves. Sure, we had practiced the skills hundreds of times, but on our classmates, not adult males. I had heard horror stories of girls who sob and panic during the test, and I was anxiousthat the same thing would happen to me. Because, as many girls try to project that situations like this would never happen to them, we all fear it. We fear getting into a situation where we don’t have control over ourselves. All of the girls in that room were worried that our fear would paralyze us. But that wasn’t the case. With my entire class cheering me on, I was able to break free from my “aggressor.” And while the empowerment of saving myself was strong, it was seeing the girls I had learned with for the past semester cheer each other on and create a supportive environment.
I believe that all students should take Self Defense, and while I can’t speak to Boys’ Self Defense, I can say that Girls’ Basic Self Defense is the class I believe will stick with me the most. I think it is the kind of class that everyone should take, as it could quite literally save a life.