Cost: $15.00
Time: Mondays 7:30p – 8:30p & Saturdays 9:30a – 10:30a
@ Studio 6 Ballroom: 2608 6th Avenue, Tacoma, WA 98406
Tasha Ina Church, Co-Founder of Ladies First, is teaching Introductory Aikido self-defense classes at Studio 6 Ballroom focusing on: body movement, joint manipulation, pressure points, and joint locks. This low impact style is great for people of all genders and people of all ages. It is open to the public.
Knowing basic self-defense skills is an empowering experience for yourself and all those around you. It allows you to have the most safe and healthy lifestyle. The goal for teaching self-defense to youth is to empower them to make educated decisions surrounding confrontation, bullying, and personal safety. Self-defense training for young women especially is important. The most common crime to happen to a woman is rape, but it is more about a feeling of dominance from one person over another rather than actual sex. According to statistics, the majority of rapes are perpetrated by men who women know. Assault on women is also a common crime because assailants assume women will be more passive and not fight back; this has to do with stereotypes of women. The best way for women to fight back against crime is to prevent it from happening. However, getting into such situations is sometimes inevitable.
The majority of rapes occur in the victim’s home. According to the Bureau of Justice, almost 40 percent of all rapes take place in the female victim’s home. In the event that rape prevention fails—such as by avoiding problem areas or making sure a woman is never alone—the best chance for survival is to fight back. Fighting back is not just necessary, but it is a moral right because protecting one’s self is paramount. (Information found on: http://www.datehookup.com/content-a-free-guide-to-womens-self-defense-and-self-protection.htm)
Shocking Statistics You May Want to Know about Sexual Assault
- In 8 out of 10 rape cases, the victim new the perpetrator.
- Nearly 1 in 4 women may experience sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
- The cost of rape and sexual assault, excluding child sexual assault, per criminal victimization is $87,000 per year. For the victim, the average rape or attempted rape costs $5,100 in tangible, out-of- pocket expenses.
- 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually assaulted by the age of 18.
- Many long-lasting physical symptoms and illness have been associated with sexual victimization including chronic pelvic pain; premenstrual syndrome; gastrointestinal disorders; and a variety of chronic pain disorders including headache, back pain, and facial pain.
- Rape victims are more likely than non-victims to smoke cigarettes, overeat, drink alcohol, and are not likely to use seat belts.
- Of adult American women who are raped, 31.5 percent are physically injured, but only 35.6^ of those who are injured received medical care.
- Each year, it is estimated 25,000 American women will become pregnant following an act of sexual violence.
(More statistics are found at: http://www.ncdsv.org/images/sexualassaultstatistics.pdf)
Aikido History
Aikido is a Japanese Martial Arts form developed by Morihei Ueshiba. He combined his martial arts studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs. The term Aikido came mainly from the martial art of Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu, but began to diverge from it in the late 1920s, partly due to Ueshiba’s involvement with the Ōmoto-kyō religion. Today Aikido can be found all over the world in numerous styles, with a wide range of interpretation and emphasis. The word “aikido” is formed of three kanji:
合 – ai – joining, unifying, combining, fit
気 – ki – spirit, energy, mood, morale
道 – dō – way, path
The term “aiki” does not readily appear in the Japanese language outside the scope of Budo. “ki” is often used to express a feeling, ‘I feel’, as in terms of thinking. The term dō is also found in martial arts such as judo and kendo, and in the more peaceful arts such as Japanese calligraphy(shodō), flower arranging (kadō) and tea ceremony (chadō or sadō). From a linguistic point of view, Aikido is ‘Way of Combining Forces’. The term aiki refers to the martial arts principle or tactic of blending with an attacker’s movements for the purpose of controlling their actions with minimal effort.
Ladies First 