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Personal Safety
Street
Smarts: Self-Defense From a “new” Perspective
The Beverly Police Department
currently utilizes the “Street Smarts” Self-Defense Program
which is designed strictly for the self-defense needs of
women. This program, which consists of 18 hours of
self-defense instruction, covers the following topics:
1. The Psychology of
Self-Defense:
-
Four-Part Strategy
-
Pyramid
of Personal Safety
-
5
Stages of a Violent Crime
-
The
Triangle of Crime
-
Profile
of a Sexual Offender
2.
Personal Safety Awareness:
3.
Self-Defense Tactics:
-
Self-Defense and the Law
-
Defensive Tactics
Prior to
taking any course in Self-Defense, you should ask yourself
the following questions:
How do I find a good women's
self-defense class?
Ideally, a good self-defense
program should reflect these philosophical points:
1. Women do not ask for,
cause, invite or deserve to be assaulted. Women and men
sometimes exercise poor judgment about behavior, but that
does not make them responsible for the attack.
2. Whatever a woman's decision in a given self-defense
situation, her decision to survive the best way she can must
be respected. Self-defense classes should not be used as
judgment against a victim/survivor.
3. Good self-defense programs do not tell an individual what
she "should" or "should not" do. A good program offers
options, techniques, and a way of analyzing situations,
including a full range of strategy-building. A program may
point out what usually works best in most situations, but
each situation is unique, and the final decision rests with
the person actually confronted by the situation.
What is self-defense?
Self-defense is a set of
awareness, assertiveness, verbal confrontation skills,
safety strategies, and physical techniques that enable
someone to successfully prevent, escape, resist and survive
violent assaults. A good self-defense course provides
psychological awareness and verbal skills, not just physical
training.
Does self-defense work?
YES! Self-defense training
increases your options and helps you prepare responses to
avoid, slow down, de-escalate, or interrupt an attack, and
also empowers one to prevent violence. It is important that
the strategies and skills deal with the potential violence
from acquaintances and intimates, not only strangers. Women
usually know their attackers; therefore it is essential that
a person is training in how to deal with the violence that
can come from someone you know.
Is self-defense training a
guarantee that you will be safe?
NO. There are no guarantees
when it comes to self-protection. Be aware of advertising
hype, or exaggerated claims of success from marketers of
guns, alarms, devices, and self-defense training programs.
Be a smart consumer and find a self-defense training program
that increases your choices/options and preparedness and is
committed to helping you develop a wide range of strategies.
Must I train for years to
learn to defend myself?
No. A basic course can offer
enough concepts and skills to help you develop
self-protection strategies that you can continue to build
upon. Self-defense training is not karate; although some of
the techniques are derived form the martial arts. The skills
and techniques do not require years to perfect. Certainly,
practice is important and investing the time to review and
perfect your skills can build confidence and increase your
abilities. The key is to make a commitment to participate in
your own safety and to do what is necessary to reduce risk
and become empowered to act, rather than to be acted upon.
What is the role of Mace,
Pepper Spray or other devices as self-defense aids?
Any device is useless to you
unless you understand how to use it, and you have it ready
to use at the time of the attempted assault. There is
NOTHING guaranteed about any of these devices. None
are foolproof, and none of them can be counted on to work
against all possible attackers.
Realize that anything you can
use against an attacker can also be used against you. While
some of the devices can be helpful in some situations, it is
best not to depend on them and to be aware of their
limitations. Your brain and your body are the best
primary weapons that you have with you at all times.
Everything else is a weapon of opportunity.
Should I get a gun?
NO. It is not advisable for
anyone to "just go out and get a gun." Guns are often
presented as the 'equalizer,' but actually guns can provoke
more unintentional injury, accidents and unnecessary deaths
than random car accidents. Ten children a day are killed by
handguns, and several studies show that the most likely use
of a firearm in the home will be against a family member or
an individual known to the gun owner. There is a lot of
debate surrounding the use of firearms as an effective
self-defense tool, with little data available to support
their effectiveness. Owning and operating a firearm should
not be taken lightly, and if you are a person who is looking
for a shortcut to self-protection, and are not sure about
investing time in self-defense training, then gun ownership
is certainly not for you. There are no shortcuts to self-
protection, and guns are not a risk-free solution.
Next Scheduled Class:
Date:
pending
Location: pending
Time: pending
Contact Information: Brian Long (978-922-1212)
Street Smarts Manual |
