Women in martial arts

Whole Earth Review, Spring, 1989 by Lisa Geduldig

Guys have John Wayne, and who do we have? Wonder Woman? But she isn't even real!" pointed out one martial artist. Women and girls up in this society are exposed to few powerful role models. They're j typically taught to be physically strong. They're told that being str acting like a boy" or acting like a man." Many women are unlearning a challenging the false images and myths that women should not be physic powerful, verbally assertive, nor able to protect themselves. A growi of these women are choosing to train in the martial arts. Who are the women who train in the martial arts, and why do they choos so7 Their backgrounds vary just about as much as their reasons for tra Their ages range from five to ninety-one years old; they are Black, Wh Latina and Asian, able-bodied, in wheelchairs, blind and deaf, lesbian straight, short and tall. They began for self-defense purposes, for self-development, for physical conditioning, and for the spiritual asp the martial arts.

There are many different styles of martial arts. Training usually c practicing basic techniques (kicks, punches, rolls, falls and/or throw (a choreographed set of moves designed to deal with an imaginary attacker or group of attackers), and sparring ( free-fighting exercise combining the skills learned from techniques an Martial-arts training draws on the spiritual and mental as well as phy aspects of the body. It strengthens one's inner self. Its practice t in a training hall called a dojo" in Japanese and a kwoon" in Chin

I came across many recurring themes in the interviews I conducted. women pointed out that movies and television rarely show a woman succe escaping an attack situation. Maria Doest, a fourth-degree black belt martial art Shorin-ryu and head instructor at Karate Women, a school i Angeles, California, stressed that violence is even glorified in movies and television shows. "We're sho being beaten, murdered, raped or slandered all in the name of entertai How can that be entertainment?" And how often is a woman shown success warding off an attacker in all of these violent shows? The viewer typ sees women as weak and unable to protect themselves.

On rare occasions do we see a woman who can protect herself. "I kin to admit it, but one of my role models when I was growing up was Emma "The Avengers." I thought she was great! I watched a rerun the other her karate is horrible. She punches with her wrists bent, her kicks a wimpiest things in the world, when she rolls she somersaults. But I s her a great deal of credit because she was the only competent woman I seeing on TV," commented Pat Murphy, a brown belt at the Kenpo Karate Women in San Francisco, California.

A COOMMON misconception about martial arts is that the student is pr the art in order to go out and kick some ass. The sensationalized por martial-arts movies can be thanked for that image. Countless times pe commented to me when I've told them that I train in Kung Fu, "Oh, I'd watch out, you might beat me up." Maybe in some schools that's the int as a student of a feminist approach to martial arts, I am taught the a for defensive purposes, not offensive. After all, martial arts were d by oppressed peoples to defend themselves from attackers. They didn't looking to kick butt either.

Before beginning training, I didn't realize how important it was to defend myself, to know some techniques I could use in case I was attac the beginning, the spiritual aspects of the martial arts were appealin had to be convinced that learning how to make a fist and throw a punch valuable skill. One of the first times I had to punch, my instructor pointed out to me that my shoulder was raised back so as not to deliver a fully committed technique.

Other women interviewed, like Pat Murphy, began for self-defense pur had been traveling by myself and invariably when doing so I get myself situations I probably shouldn't be in, like being at a train station a the morning waiting for a four o'clock train. One of the things I was for in the martial arts was a feeling of confidence, the feeling that be an immediate victim, that I would be able to do something. People you think you'd be able to fend off any attacker?' No, but I'd be able something. I would be able to react rather than freezing."

Maria Doest began her training at her local YMCA, in Houston, Texas. approach was twofold, for self-defense purposes and for exercise. "I training sixteen years ago. In that era there were very few women training. The attitude was, Why don't you ballet instead7' There were very few women in the class. At that time something that women really did. Another woman and I became really de and started changing the way women viewed what they were doing at the lot of times the men tended to ignore the women ... and I was there t Because I was there to train and didn't fool around, it made the other also train hard. I think my attitude helped change my instructor's at about the women who were training, that women can punch, that women ca He, in turn, made them start training harder."