As Empowerment
Self-Defense (ESD) instructors talk more about their work, other self-defense
practitioners and students raise questions. ESD Instructor Clara Porter answers
some of those questions below.
Is any self-defense training better than no self-defense training?
No. If you are taught physical self-defense in an
environment where success means being able to fight through something every
time and being able to power over another person every time, it is unrealistic,
doesn’t address the realities of violence that women face, and it can damage
women’s self-confidence.
Teaching solely physical skills does a disservice. From
street harassment to sexual assault by strangers or familiars, physical tools
are not always the best or safest option. There are many reasons women may
choose not to fight back physically, particularly in situations with people they
know and love. Women who have had a self-defense course with a narrow approach
to every situation are not realistically prepared. Failure in the real world after taking such a
self-defense course can result in self blame causing psychological, emotional,
and physical damage that is more harmful than if they had not taken a
self-defense course.
By promoting Empowerment Self-Defense, are you disrespecting other
systems of self-defense?
Promoting one thing is not necessarily tearing down
something else.
Most self defense systems do not have the data to support
their approach. We have the data to show empowerment self-defense works and is
rooted in knowledge and experience built over the last 40 years. There is a
basis for the claims we make.
The ESD model can be achieved by anyone who wants to teach
self-defense and whose goal is to make people’s lives truly safer.
What are the benefits of Empowerment Self-Defense?
What I find most compelling is that after taking an ESD
program, people experience increased confidence and feelings of self-efficacy
and are more likely to intervene early in situations. They are also more likely
to use their voices, to de-escalate, and to interrupt inappropriate behavior.
Further, people with ESD training are more likely to report and are less likely
to blame themselves.
One of the things I find very fascinating and we need more
data to understand is the dramatic reduction in attempted sexual assault when
comparing college women who have had ESD training with those who have not. What
are the particular ways that women are embodying their ESD training that reduce
attempted assault?
Clara Porter is the
Director of Prevention. Action. Change in Portland Maine. She is certified by
the National Women’s Martial Arts Federation and the Center for Anti-Violence
Education. She is also a member of the Empowerment Self-Defense Alliance.
