Tuesday, November 17, 1998
Women learn defense techniques
WORKSHOP: Seminars teach effective methods of overcoming
attackers
By Barbara Ortutay
Daily Bruin Staff
When a firm "no" and a friendly shove just don’t get the message
across, women may need stronger and more convincing ways to protect
themselves from rape.
"Grab his ear, grab his hair, grab his hair!" yells Oren
Guttman, a fourth-year neuroscience student, in his women’s
self-defense class.
Surrounded by 14 female students, Guttman and co-instructor Som
Kohanzadeh demonstrated how to fend off an attacker while being
shoved down to the ground as part of their women’s self-defense and
rape prevention class.
Sponsored by the Undergraduate Students Association Council’s
Student Welfare Commission, the class runs free of charge every
Sunday night in the John Wooden Center.
"Only women are allowed to take this workshop," said Kohanzadeh,
a fourth-year cybernetics student. "We’re teaching women rape
prevention techniques, so if a guy is in here, that kind of defeats
the purpose."
While some students have been taking the class all quarter,
there are always drop-in visitors, according to organizers. The
class is designed so students can join any time.
In addition to teaching martial arts techniques, instructors
also educated students about date rape by role playing real-life
scenarios.
Guttman emphasized the importance of prevention and being aware
of one’s surroundings.
"Rape can happen by people you know," Guttman said.
But rape is rape no matter who does it. According to 1997
university police crime statistics, all four reported cases of rape
at UCLA that year happened while the victim was on a date or at a
party.
Acquaintance rape, also known as date rape, is prevalent on
college campuses, according to Guttman, and students need to be
aware of it.
Brett Wheeler, the men’s education and outreach coordinator at
the Women’s Resource Center, said while rapes reported to UCPD
range from zero to six each year, the Women’s Resource Center alone
sees about 90 people each year who were sexually assaulted or know
someone who was.
This number doesn’t include students who go to Student
Psychological Services or other counseling services to report
sexual assault, according to Wheeler, so the number may even be
higher.
"We see a lot of people about this, a lot more than you hear
about it on campus," Wheeler said. "And I’m sure there is a lot
more going on that we don’t hear about."
Kohanzadeh said the class emphasizes raising awareness about
acquaintance rape.
"We talk a lot about the date-rape situation. For example, when
you’re standing up against a wall (at a party) and a guy corners
you – how to get out of it," he said.
But many students who took the class seemed more concerned about
getting attacked while walking home in the dark.
"I walk home from studying in the library late at night," said
Tweedy Tran, a second-year biology student. "I want to be able to
protect myself in any situation."
Lindsay Shaw, a third-year psycho-biology student, said her
boyfriend encouraged her to take a self-defense class.
"I’m a 100-pound girl walking around L.A. in the middle of the
night," she said. "I know some things from kickboxing class, but
wanted to learn something practical."
The class emphasizes using women’s natural strengths for
self-defense, as well as specific techniques for every possible
situation.
One choking technique, for example, is especially useful when
someone is attacked low, from below the shoulder.
Students stood around gasping and giggling as Guttman, firmly
holding Kohanzadeh’s head under his armpit, demonstrated how to
choke an attacker.
"If you didn’t get his neck, the face is OK too," he said.
Some of the techniques, while not fool-proof, can badly injure
or even kill someone, according to Guttman. But, in a potential
rape situation, any form of self defense is fair game.
"When it’s that situation, you have no choice, and you have to
do anything you can to get out of that situation," Kohanzadeh
said.
"It’s either you or them," Guttman added.
Wheeler said a good self-defense class should emphasize rape
prevention, in addition to what to do when someone is attacked.
"Since a lot of rape is acquaintance rape, that person you’re
kicking in the groin may be someone you know," he said.
Wheeler emphasized that rape is not just a women’s issue.
"Rape is a men’s issue. They are also victimized by it, when
they or someone they know gets raped," he said. "Not all men are
rapists, in fact most of them aren’t. But men need to take an
active role in stopping rape."BAHMAN FARAHDEL/Daily Bruin
Erin Renna, a first-year physics student, participates in a
self-defense class sponsored by the Student Welfare Commission.
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