As part of Crime Prevention Month, Department of Public Safety Deputy Chief Paul Shanley led a self-defense workshop for women in the Olney-Margolies Athletic Center Dance Studio last night. Over the course of the training, Shanley, who was assisted by Director of Public Safety and Chief of Police Mark Porter, taught six young women how to protect themselves and escape in case of an attack.
Shanley has been training in the art of Jiu-Jitsu, which encompasses a number of other martial arts such as karate and kung fu, for the past 18 years and is a third-degree black belt. He has been teaching self-defense for a number of years and said that he has always found these workshops to be effective because students learn practical techniques, have the opportunity to try them out and feel more confident about their ability to stand up for themselves. Porter helped Shanley demonstrate techniques by playing both attacker and victim.
Shanley first taught the women how to get to the ground safely after being pushed down by an attacker, stressing the fact that "nobody likes falling" but "with a little bit of practice it will come naturally." The girls - hesitant at first - were soon dropping fearlessly down on the mat, making sure to keep their heads up and arms in front of them.
Once on the floor, Shanley demonstrated two different techniques that can be used to take out an attacker. One method focused on blocking the "bad guy's" knee, and the other featured an explosive kick to the attacker's stomach. It is crucial to "put your body into everything you do," he said.
The second technique aimed to immobilize an attacker from the front. This move draws on the attacker's momentum to block the arm and kick the leg. Shanley said it can be used in a variety of situations, such as if the assailant is throwing a punch, attacking with a knife or choking the victim.
Next, Shanley demonstrated the rape technique, which can be used to escape from what he said was the "worst-case scenario." In order to disable the aggressor straddling and strangling them, the young women were told to dig their fingers into the assailant's throat, lift their legs and twist their bodies around. According to Shanley, when doing these moves, "You have to be vicious. You will not get a second chance."
Shanley and Porter also demonstrated how to prevent an attacker from kicking a victim in the stomach and how to flip an attacker coming from behind. As Shanley and Porter were teaching these techniques, Shanley made it clear that these were effective moves that could harm a person if done correctly.
Shanley and Porter ended the workshop by stressing the importance of remaining aware at all times. "This is the most powerful muscle," Shanley said as he pointed to his head. When walking around campus, Shanley advised students not to look like victims, to pay attention to their surroundings and to "keep an eye on each other." Shanley and Porter also reminded students of the safety resources around campus, such as the blue light phones, safeRIDE and Safewalk.
The women attending declined to comment for this article.
