What do you hear people say when a woman is the victim of sexual assault or abuse?
This?: “She was wearing promiscuous clothing. She drew attention to herself.”
Or this?: “The odds are not in a woman’s favor. According to statistics, both you and I have at least one woman in our lives who is a victim of sexual assault.”
Do you hear this?: “She was drunk, and she shouldn’t have been at that party.”
Or this?: “Young men need to be taught better than to take advantage of drunk girls. College students are at a particularly elevated risk for rape and sexual assault.” **
Do you hear this?: “She pushed her boyfriend/husband/partner too far, and she had it coming.”
Or this?: “The most common types of violence against women come from an intimate partner. Men and boys need to be taught not to treat women that way.” ***
People come up with all kinds of excuses for faulting a woman for sexual assault. It’s typically the woman’s fault for falling victim to the crime rather than the assailant who committed it.
Not very empowering is it?
Be Part of the Warrior Woman Movement
What is empowering are the communities of women who want to stand in their power back with Straight Blast Gym’s Warrior Woman Self Defense Seminar.
SBG’s self-defense seminars throughout the country pack the house with women who choose to stand firm in their power: SBG Montana, 100 women; SBG Portland, 150 women; and SBG Idaho, 60 women including a Girl Scout troupe.
At SBG Missoula we hosted our first ever seminar on Saturday, January 20th, and 60 women and teenage girls attended on a day when many of them also attended the Women’s March.
Each and every one of these women shows up to change the narrative around sexual assault.
Each of these women is making small changes to shift the power in the other direction.
Each and every one of these women is changing the stories we tell about sexual assault.
Each of these women is a Warrior Woman.
One person making one change may not seem like much, but 100 women making 100 changes in communities across the country is a movement.
*1 in 6 women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime. (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence)
**College students between the ages of 18-24 are at a particularly elevated risk for rape and sexual assault. (Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network)
*** 1 in 3 women has been victims of physical violence by an intimate partner within their lifetime. In a typical day, more than 20,000 calls are placed to domestic violence hotlines nationwide. (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence)