Fight club for feminists

By Emma Goldberg

When I was 13, my mother taught me that if I was ever attacked on the street while walking home I should yell, at the top of my lungs: “I have rabies, and I’ll bite!” Thankfully, I’ve never had cause to put her suggestion to the test. But her warnings about the perils of New York City streets, especially at night, didn’t leave me. Sadly, the fear of being assaulted is grounded in fact. According to a survey by Stop Street Harassment, a non-profit organisation, 81% of American women have experienced some form of sexual assault or harassment. This year I decided to add to my protective arsenal, by signing up for a workshop called “Feminist Self-Defense”.

When I walked into the fluorescent-lit studio in downtown Manhattan on a recent Saturday afternoon, I joined a group of nine other women, our ages spanning from middle school to mid-50s. Rachel Piazza, who also runs sessions in workplaces, said that many of her students are young women influenced by media coverage of violence against women and the #MeToo movement; others are survivors of abuse who turn to self-defence to heal. She began training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu ten years ago, after ending a toxic relationship with a boyfriend who’d discouraged her interest in mixed martial arts. Demand for her services has grown substantially since she founded her workshop in 2014.