We are changing the way we report real incidences and cases here on the Women's Self-Defense Community blog.
We've always respected the confidentiality of our students and others who share their stories with us. I've always declined to reveal names when relating these cases. I've been contacted by major magazines who wanted to interview some of these students after seeing what they've endured which I posted on the older websites. We have, and will always, hold the trust of those who confide in us.
On the other hand, we felt strongly that you would benefit from real-world cases to see how attacks can happen and to discuss that was -- or was not -- done by the defenders in these cases. These were publicly reported and we used real names of both the victims and the attackers.
That's changed. The emotional trauma that hits victims and family members surrounding these heinous attacks is immense. Even when celebrating the heroic efforts women have made to defend themselves, friends and family have expressed how painful it is to see their loved ones' names in print. This is understandable and we have taken steps to avoid using names taken from cases, reports, and media.
We are also extending this policy to the names of attackers as well. On one end of the spectrum, early reports that are not confirmed need to note those who are accused of allegedly committing these crimes. In the U.S., our justice system should look at all accused as being innocent until proven guilty. On the other end are the truly evil people who have proven they have no humanity. I will not give them the satisfaction of seeing their names in print or somehow glorify criminals who take some sort of perverse pleasure in being "known".
Empowering You
I want to emphasize the main objective of including real cases is to learn from the participants so we can better prepare for, and execute, our self-defense strategies techniques. The names themselves becomes secondary to this main objective.
Let's take this real world knowledge and turn it into a force of good so we can empower women everywhere to be able to fight back and win.