The Free Press, Mankato, MN

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September 30, 2006

Self-defense knowledge key to safety

Fight Like a Girl seminar one of many attractions at Women’s Show 2006

By Dylan Thomas

MANKATO — In a far corner of the bustling Midwest Wireless Civic Center floor Saturday, Sam Murray showed a group of about 20 women how to gouge eyes, punch ribs and break free of a bear hug.

The tae kwon do instructor got a few attendees of Women’s Show 2006 to giggle when he demonstrated effective groin attacks. But his self-defense message was deadly serious.

Murray startled some of his audience when he told them one out of six women in the United States is the victim of rape or attempted rape, according to national surveys.

“A lot of people become victims because they just don’t know what to do,” he said.

Murray’s goal Saturday was to share a few simple techniques to fend off an attacker.

The Fight Like a Girl seminar was just one of many attractions at the show, which featured everything from food samples to free massages to health-care information. The annual event is put on by the Immanuel St. Joseph’s Hospital Auxiliary, a volunteer group that raises money to benefit the hospital and community health.

Lori Vetter of Kasota said she was glad to pick up a few tips about pressure points and releases.

“Hopefully you’re never in that situation where you have to use them,” Vetter said.

But Murray said, from his experience, many women do end up in dangerous situations. The vast majority of women who attend his seminars at American Academy of Tae Kwon Do in Mankato have been sexually assaulted themselves or know someone who has.

He said women should not underestimate their strength or physical ability. Working with the mentally ill and dangerous at the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter for 18 years, Murray saw small but determined patients fight off three or four large security counselors.

“Everyone has the ability to get their adrenaline going and defend themselves,” he said.

When attacked, it is important to throw an attacker “off his agenda,” Murray said.

“They tell you to be quiet; yell,” he advised. “They tell you to cooperate; don’t cooperate.”

One of the women watching Murray’s presentation was a visitor from the United Kingdom who is staying with a friend from the area. Joann Squirrel said she would not be able to attend one of Murray’s classes but planned to tell her friend about them.

Like many of the women in the audience, Squirrel said she thought the self-defense techniques were something all women should learn.

In the case of an attack, when panic is often the first response, a little bit of knowledge can prevent serious injury or worse.

“It’s just a matter of knowing what to do,” Murray said.

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