In the News
This page contains links to media resources of long-term interest. For more timely commentary on current events, please visit my Blog.
Beacon Hill News/South District Journal, Wednesday February 27, 2008: Article on free self-defense classes for women at Van Asselt Community Center and Jefferson Community Center during the first half of March. Taught by Strategic Living. Driving these classes are recent assaults on women around bus stops. Read this article here. For a recent news article on these attacks, click here.
KUOW's Sound Focus, Thursday January 17, 2008: Nancy Murphy of Northwest Family LIfe and A New Yarn talks about domestic violence and outreach to faith-based communities. Listen here.
KUOW's Weekday, Thurs Dec 27: How Safe are Tasers? Good selection of perspectives. Most interesting to me is that Tasers are now marketed to women the way pepper spray was. Are they a realistic substitute for learning self-defense, or a worthy addition to your toolkit? Listen here.
The Seattle Times, Mon Oct 8, 2007: Article on the University of Washington's efforts to remove sex offenders on probation from housing just north of campus. Is this really effective safety planning? Read the article here. This was also the topic on KUOW's The Conversation on Monday--click here to listen. The Seattle Times, Dec 15, 2007: Follow-up on the University of Washington's efforts to rid the "north of campus" neighborhood of sex offenders. Click here to read.
Crosscut, Sept 27, 2007 article on the Seattle Police Department's aparent failure to follow through in reporting hate crimes. Click here to read the article.
Seattle Times, Sept 27, 2007 article about how violent incidents in Seattle public schools are often not reported to the police. This is, unfortunately, an issue too familiar to some of my clients, who come to me after struggling with their schools' administration to keep their children safe. Click here to read the article.
Seattle Weekly, Aug 1-7, 2007 is the Best of Seattle 2007 issue. I am now officially the "Best Feminist Butt-Kicker" for this year!
The Olympian July 23, 2007: Click here to read about a self-defense workshop I taught for the Olympia YWCA's Girls Without Limits program. And click here to view the video.
KUOW's The Conversation May 30: We all like to think we would never fall for a scam. We think we know enough about finance so we'll never get fooled. Surprisingly people with the most investment savvy can be most vulnerable to fraud. That's because we don't have persuasion savvy. By the way, financial scammers' persuasion techniques are remarkably similar to those who mean more physical harm. Guest Doug Shadel is the AARP Washington State director. He's a former investigator with the attorney general's office. He's written a book about persuasion called Weapons of Fraud (visit the AARP website for info on getting a free copy). To listen, click here.
A Report Card on Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence in the Seattle Area: This May 24 panel discussion was hosted by Seattle NOW, and the speakers were Merril Cousin from the King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Lindsay Palmer from the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center. For an overview (PDF file) of services available for domestic violence and sexual assault victims, click here.
KUOW's The Conversation May 21: This program really gets to the point about fears and facts. Guest speaker David Ropeik is right on when he talks about perceived control and risk. Most female students take my classes because of fear of assault from strangers. In fact, most women are assaulted by acquaintances, friends, or intimate partners. Even when women "know" and acknowledge that real risk, they are still predominantly concerned with stranger danger. Maybe we all feel we have more control over who we let into our lives, so it feels less dangerous; fear of the unknown is a great magnifier of perceived risk. Listen here.
KUOW's Weekday May 14: Crime and race are discussed with Dr. Lawrence Bobo and Dr. Katherine Becket. What are the effects of tougher penalties, on individuals and communities, and are they having the long-term effects we want? Listen here.
KUOW's The Beat May 10: Self-defense is not just a skill, it's a world view. When you put on a seatbelt, when you choose an outfit, when you speak your beliefs, you are defending the life you choose. Seattle-based novelist Nicola Griffith bases her life and those of her fictional characters in the new book, Always, on that philosophy. She shares the personal experiences that led her to see life as an attack waiting to happen. Listen here.
KUOW's Weekday April 11: A failed relationship and failed domestic violence protection preceded the murder-suicide on the University of Washington campus last week. The death of Rebecca Griego made headlines, but domestic violence is not as rare as you might believe. In 2005, fifty percent of women murdered in Washington State were killed by a current or former partner. What our local government and community organizations are doing to stop domestic violence? Listen here.
KUOW's The Conversation on Monday April 2: Host Ross Reynolds speaks with Kelly Starr of the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence. The topic is Monday's murder/suicide on the University of Washington campus. What steps can be taken to get out of an abusive situation? Listen here.
Broadcast Nov 20 on KPLU: Preschoolers and Agression. Read the article and listen to the mp3 file here. Imagine how much better our world will be when the vast majority of interpersonal violence can be eliminated by good early childhood training, as described here.
Podcasts from KUOW's Weekday with Steve Scher, Nov 3, 2006 was crime in Seattle (listen here), and Nov 16 was an interview with author Scott Turow on murder and capital punishment (listen here).
Click here for the recent report on bias crimes in Seattle--there are more than you'd think. Or find out how prevalent domestic violence in our area: click here for Group Health's survey results--it ain't pretty at all.