Empowerment/Self-Defense Program

SASS's self-defense program continues the tradition of teaching and empowering women and girls with skills for boundary setting and self-protection in the Eugene-Springfield area (and beyond). We teach physical and non-physical self-defense strategies for responding to assault and harassment, as well as for use in everyday life.

Our philosophy of self-defense is based on Nadia Telsey's Self-Defense from the Inside Out workbook and curriculum, which encourages women and girls to break down internal barriers to self-defense (such as fearing being judged as rude or impolite) while affirming and developing assertiveness, awareness, and confidence and decreasing fear and self-blame.

We teach a combination of verbal, mental, and physical skills to use for self-protection and reducing the risk of assault, such as:

• Learning how to yell effectively and confidently

• Gaining self-worth and confidence in our physical and mental abilities

• Emphasizing our rights to be safe, and that we are all worth defending

• Working to undo the victim blaming myths about abuse and sexual assault which are common in our culture

• Basic introduction to physical strikes to use against an attacker

• Assertive communication skills

• Learning about the dynamics and realities of violence against women/girls

Training we provide:

• Ongoing Self-Defense Classes: Classes (totaling 10-20 hours of instruction) are for girls/young women ages 11-18 or adult women.

• One-time workshops: Workshops are interactive, basic introduction to self-defense and can range from 1-4 hours and are tailored to the needs and interests of specific groups.

• Speaking engagements or presentations: Depending on availability, we can speak to groups about self-defense strategies and provide basic information in a presentation form (without teaching verbal or physical skills).

FOR FULL UPCOMING EVENTS & CLASSES CHECK OUR EVENTS CALENDAR!

Fall Self-Defense for Young Women/Teen Girls (13-17)

Wednesdays, 4-6PM

Starts November 16th- please register by November 14th

Registration forms here FALL 2011 self-defense class forms.pdf

For more information, to be put on a contact list to be notified of new events or to request/register for a workshop or class, please contact:

Self-Defense Program Coordinator

selfdefense @ sass-lane . org
541-484-9791, x319