Last year while making her way to work at 8 am in the morning, a young woman fell victim to an unprovoked attack on Dublin’s Grafton Street. One startling comment she made following the assault was her surprise at how many people rushed past her pretending not to notice what was happening! It took a couple of minutes before a guy finally stepped in to assist her.
It might sound counter intuitive, but a fight club at a gym in Co Dublin is offering a new course aimed at preventing people from engaging in violent altercations and making them streetwise.
“Know Fear”, a six-week non-physical self- defence course at Hard Target Self Defence Academy in Donabate, is for women and men. It combines role play with lectures on body language.
Participants are taught how to avoid dangerous individuals, nullify the effects of stress and say “no” confidently.
How relevant is body language in preventing being selected as a victim for attack?
The Hard Target Self Defence Academy has trained and interviewed hundreds of people over the years. As part of our research we have also interviewed dozens of active and (so called) retired criminals to find out why they chose their victims.