Defend Yourself

More safety, more confidence, more freedom, more fun!

Based in Washington, DC, serving the entire U.S.

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We offer training online! Check out our workshops here.

Defend Yourself empowers people

–especially women and LGBTQ+ people—to end violence and create a world where they can be fully themselves.

In our classes you’ll learn skills to help you prevent, interrupt, heal from, and end violence and abuse. You’ll leave better equipped to deal with everything from annoying people to full-on attacks.

Defend Yourself’s experienced instructors know self-defense theory and techniques, the facts about violence, trauma, and healing, and effective teaching methods. And our students love them!

SIGN UP FOR A WORKSHOP

Join us for online workshops that will support you, your family, and your community during the pandemic and more.

  • Home for the Holidays: Difficult Conversations with Family
  • Safe Bars: De-Escalation for Hospitality Staff
  • Active Bystander Skills for Interrupting Racism
  • Empowerment and Self-Defense for BIPOC
  • Get Empowered! A Self-Defense Happy Hour

Want a workshop just for your group? Contact us.




Buy a gift certificate for yourself or someone else you love.

Find out more about our classes for everyone.


What can we do for you?

Join a class that Defend Yourself has set up, or create one just for your group! Check out our Safe Bars program, Defend Yourself’s bystander intervention program for bar, club, and restaurant staffs. Or just one click and you can learn something now!

To my surprise, I found the verbal parts of the class the most beneficial. Instead of just preparing us for the chance of an all-out attack, we learned skills that have been helping me to navigate more assertively through everyday situations. You helped all of us to view self-defense holistically, and asked us to question our role in making this world less violent.
This class not only showed me how to defend my body, but it taught me how to express myself as well. It nurtured my soul and showed me that to be a woman does not mean that I am physically helpless.
Lauren is very encouraging and patient. An excellent teacher, she makes everyone feel comfortable.
This class showed me that . . . I have every right to defend myself and take care of myself the best way I know how. My first responsibility is to myself.
When I took my [previous self-defense] class, I learned how to fend off physical attacks, but it took me much, much longer to learn how to develop and maintain healthy relationships. I spent too many years in an abusive relationship . . . Now I’m a lot more careful about defending myself – which is why your class was so important to me.
The teachers role-modeled being strong women.
This class exceeded my expectations! I looked forward to class and the chance to practice my skills. I enjoyed the supportive environment and the space to develop strategies for confronting harassment.
Inspiring, caring, understanding, strong, and self-assured.
I feel more confident, yet not complacent. I am learning to incorporate no into my everyday life.
Everybody needs this!

Get our newsletter!

Sign up now for the monthly newsletter and you’ll also get our e-book with stories of real-life people standing up to harassment, abuse, and assault!

Read our latest newsletter here

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Meet Lauren

Teacher, resister, advocate, warrior princess. Passionate about a world free of gender-based violence and people becoming their full selves. Loves chocolate, justice, and cats (not necessarily in that order).

Click here to find out more!

Classes for everyone

Defend Yourself has classes for everyone, no matter what your age or ability. Whether you're dealing with street harassment, going off to college, healing from abuse, or any other challenge, we offer skills you can use.

Click here to see some of what we offer!

National Street Harassment Hotline

Call toll-free: 855-897-5910
(English + Spanish. 24-7)
Find out more!

More safety, more confidence, more freedom, more fun!

Get our newsletter!

Sign up now for our monthly newsletter and you’ll also get our e-book with stories of real-life people standing up to harassment, abuse, and assault!

Read our latest newsletter here
 

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Learn something now

  • Run,Yell,Tell, Hit, + Go Along
  • My journey to assertiveness
  • Strategies for safety
  • Should I yell FIRE!?!?
  • #9 Making self-defense a part of your life
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What people say

Thank you for such an empowering, confidence-inspiring class. When you first announced that the class would teach both verbal and physical defense, I was a bit hesitant – I presumed I already knew how to verbally defend myself, and thought I was ready to get down to more hard core self-defense moves.
Her calm, steady energy felt reassuring.
I wish other women/girls could experience THIS feeling of girrrrlpower, instead of listening to Cosmo and Glamour to tell them where their power lies.
Everybody needs this!
To my surprise, I found the verbal parts of the class the most beneficial. Instead of just preparing us for the chance of an all-out attack, we learned skills that have been helping me to navigate more assertively through everyday situations. You helped all of us to view self-defense holistically, and asked us to question our role in making this world less violent.
What an empowering, enlightening class! You gave me a wonderfully empowering gift – the ability to speak! You helped take away some of the fear that I had by having me realize that I have some power within.
I feel more confident and like I can get through anything.
This class not only showed me how to defend my body, but it taught me how to express myself as well. It nurtured my soul and showed me that to be a woman does not mean that I am physically helpless.
I unfortunately had to use some tactics I learned from the workshop, as I was assaulted at the beach this summer. I honestly believe that I avoided a rape because of your training.
This class was a springboard. Now I know where I need to go in the rest of my life.
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Based in Washington, D.C., serving the world

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