Defend Yourself

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

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

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Bystander intervention

Photo: Allison Shelley/The Washington Post

Active Bystanders: Learn to stand up for others


Covid-19 update: We’re offering free online workshops on Wednesdays and Sundays on Active Bystander Skills for Stopping Anti-Asian Hate.

Click here for details and to register.


Are you concerned for those who face hate speech and violence? Unsure how to respond if you witness verbal or physical hate?

We all have opportunities to interrupt potentially harmful situations. And we all have concerns that can prevent us from stepping up. We may fear for own safety, worry about being embarrassed, think it’s not our business, be afraid of escalating the situation, or something else.

Skills are the antidote to those concerns. In our training, you’ll develop skills to assess a situation and choose a response. We teach creative strategies for responding to harassment and ways to de-escalate aggressive behavior.

In our workshops, you’ll engage in hands-on practice that builds on what you already know. We focus on:

  • A social-justice framework for understanding the role of bystanders in interrupting oppression
  • Reasons to intervene when you see a problem, and reasons not to
  • Overcoming barriers to intervening
  • The 5 Steps of Bystander Intervention
  • 4 Tools for Intervening
  • And lots of practice!

When you leave the training, you’ll be more able to overcome the barriers to stepping up and have practical skills for doing so.

We believe in building a culture of active bystanders through whose actions we reduce verbal and physical violence and oppression, while promoting community and respect.

Get trained and equip yourself with ways you can play a role in stopping harassment and violence.

Defend Yourself has more than 20 years of experience training some 25,000 people in protecting themselves against harassment and abuse and in training people to defend others.

Want to learn more? Contact us to gain skills you’ll use for the rest of your life.


Image result for washington post logosWant to know what a Defend Yourself

bystander intervention training is like?

Read all about it here,

in the Washington Post!


What people are saying

After seeing a verbal assault on the Metro, one student took steps to deescalate the situation, and told us: “Really grateful for your training!”

“After this class, give myself permission to speak up, I have plans of action, and feel confident to engage.”

“Inspiring! She makes me feel comfortable addressing scary & uncomfortable situations.”

“After taking the bystander intervention class, I feel a lot more confident that I could deescalate a dangerous situation.”

“I feel more safe and proud when I walk down the street. When I see a potentially unsafe situation up ahead, instead of just getting nervous, I can make a plan.”

“It’s apparent that you’re genuinely concerned about each student learning the techniques and becoming more confident in verbal confrontations. It’s nice to be the recipient of that level of dedication.”


Bystander intervention in action! (Watch and learn)

  • Potato chip man
  • Fearless woman stops racist rant
  • 3 brothers, masters of de-escalation brothers
  • TEDx on the ‘bystander effect’

Image may contain: 27 people, people smiling, people sitting and indoor

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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

The teachers role-modeled being strong women.
Lauren is very encouraging and patient. An excellent teacher, she makes everyone feel comfortable.
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 has given me a powerful toolkit and the confidence to yell “NO” and know I have every right to say it. It’s helped me rethink my personal boundaries and feel good about maintaining them.
Bothering leads to dangerous things and situations if we aren’t careful. We want to try to stop the situation before it gets really dangerous+ACE There are bullies that can start at just being annoying by talking and saying those mean things but it can turn into something very dangerous if you are not careful. So the key is to be very smart and think before you ac– from the book by our students at Jump Start Girls/Adelante Nias
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.
This class opened a door for me that I didn’t know existed. I know exactly what I would do if I needed to. It was the first time in my life that I felt that. Even if something happened, I would still feel safe in myself.
Thank you for a wonderful class. I will spread the word around my high school and to every interested girl/woman I know!
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.
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.
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Based in Washington, D.C., serving the world

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