During the spring of 2003 I volunteered with my freshman floor to participate in Relay for Life. That morning I went to the business school lounge to study for a chemistry test that was scheduled for later that week. I sat in the room, alone most of the time, while groups of student came in out out to meet for their classes. As I sat there looking down at my books, I felt a person come in. I actually smelled a person come in. My sense of smelt is my strongest sense. I remember people more for their smell than for their name, or their face for that matter. This person had very strong smell of men's cologne. But not the nice kind. The cheap bad kind. And this guy had practically taken a bath in it. I thought this was weird so I looked up. He was a black, tall male with short hair, wearing white shorts, a bright orange shirt, white socks, white sneakers, and a backpack. He sat on the table across from me. From the corner of my eye I saw he had a calculator and a cell phone. No notebooks. I thought it was weird but continued on with my studies. I hear he starts pressing buttons on his calculator. I'm wondering what he's calculating without a pen or a pencil and paper to write stuff down. But I continue on with my studying. Suddenly I hear that his breathing is getting heavier and he starts panting. I start to look up. The guy was masturbating. I quickly look back down and stare and my book. It felt like years passed while I stared at my book trying to decide a course of action. Suddenly he gets up and leave. I take my first breath in what felt like forever. I figured it was over. But no. He comes back. I took this as my signal to pack my bags and leave. As I'm leaving the building towards the student center, I frenetically called my mom who frenetically asked me to hung up and call the police. So I did. I described what happened and gave them a physical description of the guy. Continued my way to the student center and decided to hide in the girls bathroom. I called a friend to come get me. I didn't want to be alone. But my phone had no signal in the bathroom. So I walked towards the cafeteria. The guy was sitting there now. I quickly turned around, my friend was still on the phone and I hung up. Called the police to tell them the guys new location. As I left the student center a crew of police officers ran towards me into the building. I ended up back in the business school where I called my friend again to take me back to my room. Once the guy was caught I had to go back to the station and identify the subject, from every darn angle. That was weird. They had the guy handcuffed, standing by a police car. I was sitting in a van with tinted windows a few feet away. I was scared to look up and face this guy again. They assured me that with my description they were sure they had the right guy. They just needed me to look up for one second. Later that semester I got a called to testify in court. Thankfully I didn't have to do it. A written account of the incident that I gave to the police that day was enough. There was another girl on campus that had been a victim of this guy before but they were not able to get him.
I think back to this moment now, almost 5 years later. If I had not noticed his smell and felt something was weird about it, I would had never looked up to notice what this guy was wearing, what he looked like. And even after the incident, in my ignorance, I didn't call the police right away. I wasn't sure what was the right thing. I still don't know if I was followed to the student center or if it was all a coincidence. I like to think it was just a coincidence. I wish i had trusted my first impression. I thought he was weird and I stayed there. And the guy took advantage of this opportunity.
Basically that's the main focus of the RAD self-defense program. Take away that opportunity. Move away if you don't feel safe. If you feel something is weird. Trust your senses. They are probably right. Be confident. Look at people in the eye when you walk past them. You'll remember them later if you have to. Look around you. Pay attention to your surroundings.
On Saturday they thought us some 'moves'. Basic punches in case you are attacked. There's the straight punch, to the face. The palm to brake the nose or dislocate jaw. The spear to the eyes or throat. and the extended knuckles to hit the throat. These moves target some of the more sensitives areas in the body. Also, if you hit the radial nerve, that runs from your thumb to your elbow it hurts a lot. So if someone is holding you and you have one free hand, hit that area as hard as you can. And finish the punch like you are breaking the arm. Don't let the impact kill your momentum. Of course the groin area is also very sensitive and the top of your foot. So, as much as you want to target this areas on your aggressor you also want to protect them. So as much as you can, stand with your side facing the aggressor, not your stomach.... I hope that make sense.
So, thats my personalized recap of Saturday's lesson :)
Showing posts with label Self Defense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Self Defense. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Monday, October 08, 2007
Getting Defensive.
I work at CID which has direct access to the pedestrian bridge across US Hwy 40 (I-64), south of MedSchool. To avoid parking fees, everyday I park in the residential area across the bridge and walk to my building. I've always been paranoid about walking across the bridge, specially during the winter months when the sun goes down earlier. Two consecutive incidents during the month of September make me more worried about my daily routine. So, I signed up to this RAD Women's Self-Defense class. I wasn't really sure about how much this class would help, but after my first session I feel a lot more confident. Not necessarily about my ability to defense myself if I'm attack, but in my ability to prevent an actual attack. We did a lot of theory stuff on our first day. I think I'm pretty aware of my surroundings most of the time and I have pretty good 'street smarts', but I don't necessarily know the resources available for me. So here I've included the best tips I got at my first session:
1. Program 911 on #5 on your cellphone. #5 is the only number on your keypad with a little dot on it so you can find it easily.
2. Yeah, police officers get free donuts and coffee at your local gas station. Well, by doing this gas stations and convenience stores also reduce their risk of getting robed. And if you find yourself on the road late at night and need some gas, get a repair, or have an accident stop by a Quick Trip. Most stores are also police substations, so they have a little room in the back were police officers can file reports. The chances are a policeman will be there.
3. Screaming 'NO' feels good. Try it. And if you can look someone in they eye while you are it, it feels even better. Or do it in front of a mirror. But do it from your gut. I found it very empowering. In this course I'm taking they teach us that outsiders are more likely to respond to a call of "NO" instead of "Help".
One in three women will be raped or sexually assaulted. The chance that one of us or one of our friends is at risk is pretty high. Three elements need to combine for an attack: a victim, an offender, and an opportunity. If we take away the opportunity, crime cannot happen. So inform yourself about ways to prevent an assault. I'll keep you updated with whatever I find interesting at my class.
Below are the two robbery alerts at the pedestrian bridge across highway 40 as posted by the medical school:
1.
On 09/05/2007 Protective Services was advised that a medical student was robbed at approximately 6:30 pm on 09/04/2007. The incident occurred just a few feet off the south end of the pedestrian (foot) bridge that spans U S Hwy 40 (I-64), south of the Medical School campus. The assailant grabbed the victim from behind, placing her in a choke hold. He then placed a hard object to her back and demanded money. The victim was able to give the suspect the cash from her backpack, then escape. The victim was able to see the assailant long enough to offer this description: An approximately 16- to 17-year-old, African-American male, wearing a white tanktop shirt and black or dark blue shorts. The victim was not injured. St. Louis City Police were notified of the incident.
2.
On 09/28/2007 Protective Services was advised that a School of Medicine employee was the victim of an armed robbery at approximately 8:12 PM that evening. The incident occurred just a few feet south of the pedestrian bridge that spans U S Hwy 40, south of the Medical School campus. The assailant walked up behind the victim and placed a hard object into his back. The victim identified the object as a black .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol. The assailant demanded money and requested the victim not turn around. The victim immediately ran from the scene, toward the campus. The assailant was described by the victim as a dark skinned African-American male, approximately 16 years of age, 5' 06" to 5' 07" in height and weighing approximately 125 pounds. He was wearing a large white T-shirt and dark jeans. The victim was not injured. St. Louis City Police were notified of the incident.
1. Program 911 on #5 on your cellphone. #5 is the only number on your keypad with a little dot on it so you can find it easily.
2. Yeah, police officers get free donuts and coffee at your local gas station. Well, by doing this gas stations and convenience stores also reduce their risk of getting robed. And if you find yourself on the road late at night and need some gas, get a repair, or have an accident stop by a Quick Trip. Most stores are also police substations, so they have a little room in the back were police officers can file reports. The chances are a policeman will be there.
3. Screaming 'NO' feels good. Try it. And if you can look someone in they eye while you are it, it feels even better. Or do it in front of a mirror. But do it from your gut. I found it very empowering. In this course I'm taking they teach us that outsiders are more likely to respond to a call of "NO" instead of "Help".
One in three women will be raped or sexually assaulted. The chance that one of us or one of our friends is at risk is pretty high. Three elements need to combine for an attack: a victim, an offender, and an opportunity. If we take away the opportunity, crime cannot happen. So inform yourself about ways to prevent an assault. I'll keep you updated with whatever I find interesting at my class.
Below are the two robbery alerts at the pedestrian bridge across highway 40 as posted by the medical school:
1.
On 09/05/2007 Protective Services was advised that a medical student was robbed at approximately 6:30 pm on 09/04/2007. The incident occurred just a few feet off the south end of the pedestrian (foot) bridge that spans U S Hwy 40 (I-64), south of the Medical School campus. The assailant grabbed the victim from behind, placing her in a choke hold. He then placed a hard object to her back and demanded money. The victim was able to give the suspect the cash from her backpack, then escape. The victim was able to see the assailant long enough to offer this description: An approximately 16- to 17-year-old, African-American male, wearing a white tanktop shirt and black or dark blue shorts. The victim was not injured. St. Louis City Police were notified of the incident.
2.
On 09/28/2007 Protective Services was advised that a School of Medicine employee was the victim of an armed robbery at approximately 8:12 PM that evening. The incident occurred just a few feet south of the pedestrian bridge that spans U S Hwy 40, south of the Medical School campus. The assailant walked up behind the victim and placed a hard object into his back. The victim identified the object as a black .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol. The assailant demanded money and requested the victim not turn around. The victim immediately ran from the scene, toward the campus. The assailant was described by the victim as a dark skinned African-American male, approximately 16 years of age, 5' 06" to 5' 07" in height and weighing approximately 125 pounds. He was wearing a large white T-shirt and dark jeans. The victim was not injured. St. Louis City Police were notified of the incident.
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