On Monday, November 14, the Women Empowerment Club and Principal Marc Escareno hosted a self-defense class in fine arts black-box studio from 4:15-5:15 p.m.

“It’s really cool because it’s free and open to everybody,” Women Empowerment Club President Amalia Cabrera said.

Cabrera has been planning this class with Principal Escareno, for some time now. She feels that it is necessary to have someone teach women how to defend themselves.

“It’s unfortunate, but women are victims to a lot of things that they need to defend themselves in,” Cabrera said. “My dad has always told me, ‘It’s unfortunate, but you can’t get gas at night, walk with pepper-spray, don’t run with headphones on.’”

Now more than ever, women are victims to many situations in which someone can attack or harass them, and they have no way of protecting themselves because these types of classes have never been offered to them.

“The aggression towards women has become very obvious that we have to do something to step up,” Vice-President of Women Empowerment Club, Alexa Guzman said. “Since a lot of us high school girls are typically not going to these self-defense classes, it seemed very beneficial for everyone.”

Guzman feels that these classes will help women feel more secure in their community and benefit them if they ever come find themselves in a dangerous situation.

“While I believe people are generally good in nature, there are people in this world that have evil intentions and look for people that are easy targets,” Principal Escareno said. “Some of the most important things I teach are situational awareness and to present an attitude of confidence.”

The classes are a joint effort between Principal Escareno and Women Empowerment Club Sponsor Penny Berry.

“I asked Ms. Berry if she wanted me to offer classes for our students, and she thought it was a good idea,” Mr. Escareno said. “I am a Black Belt and used to own tw karate schools several years ago, so I’ve always thought self-defense is very important.”

The Women Empowerment Club is devoted to helping girls feel safe in their own skin and in the outside world. These ongoing classes will contribute to the safety of everyone at school. The next self-defense class will take place next Monday, December 5^th in the black box after school from 4:15 to 5:15 p.m.