1) No one asks for, causes, invites or deserves to be assaulted. Women and men
sometimes exercise poor judgement about safety behavior but that does not make
them responsible for the attack. Attackers are responsible for their attacks and their
use of violence to overpower, control and abuse another human being.
2) Whatever a person’s decision in a given a self-defense situation, whatever action a
person does or does not take, the victim is not at fault. A person’s decision to survive
the best way she/he can must be respected.
3) Self-defense is actually self-assertiveness. Good self-defense courses do not “tell” an
individual what “should” or “should not” be done. A course should offer options,
techniques and a way of analyzing situations. A course may point out what
USUALLY works best in MOST situations but each situation is unique and the final
decision rest with the person actually confronted by the situation.
4) Empowerment is the goal of a good self-defense course. Pressure should not be
brought to bear in any way to get a person to participate in an activity if the individual
is hesitant or unwilling.
IS SELF-DEFENSE A GUARANTEE?
There are no guarantees when it comes to self-protection. However, self-defense training
can increase your choices/options and your preparedness.
