THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 9, 1996 TAG: 9606070177
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Susie Stoughton
LENGTH: 78 lines
Perhaps I've been lucky so far, but I've never been the victim of a violent crime.
OK, chalk it up to dumb luck.
My car was stolen from my driveway once, and, a couple of years ago, my train case was snatched from me on a trip.
The suitcase incident I labeled just plain dumb.
I could have been assaulted just as easily, standing on a street corner and looking like a tourist. Many women have become targets of crime, and more than luck is required to avoid becoming a victim.
Just don't show up, say two men who want to help. That's the best way for a woman to prevent being assaulted or raped.
Avoid dangerous places, say James Britt and Mark Foster.
We must be aware of our surroundings and prepare ourselves for possibilities of danger. If trouble breaks out, be prepared to get away quickly.
``Our key goal is to teach awareness,'' said Foster, who has teamed up with his long-time pal to lead a workshop to help women avoid becoming victims.
``We never advocate standing and fighting somebody,'' said Foster, a Portsmouth native with a black belt in martial arts. ``We're telling you not to be there to begin with.''
The workshop, which will be held June 24 at Tidewater Community College in Suffolk, is ``not a kick-and-punch martial arts class,'' said Britt, also a black belt and a Portsmouth resident.
Instead of teaching women how to fight, he and Foster will help women be alert so they won't have to fight.
They've written a booklet, ``Crimes Against Women,'' that includes some statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The numbers shocked them.
``I had no idea that one in four women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime,'' said Foster, who's been a geophysicist for several major oil companies.
Together, the two men have about 40 years' experience in martial arts.
``We found very quickly that the educational part is much more important,'' said Foster, 42. ``And it has more impact than teaching somebody how to punch and hit.''
Fighting back can get you killed, he said.
``Basically, our message is awareness,'' said Britt, 41. ``Studies show that 80 percent of the women who reacted immediately were not harmed.''
They hope to talk to the other 20 percent, said Britt, a former customer service agent for the Federal Express Corp. who's job-hunting.
``It doesn't matter where you are,'' Britt said. ``The statistics show that the crime rate is the same in a rural area as an urban.''
Crime just may have more impact in the country where folks are more likely to know the crime victim down the road.
But if we arm ourselves, we don't have to be victims.
Women carry an arsenal in their purses, Britt said. Keys, combs, brushes, nail files, ball-point pens, credit cards - all those can be used in an attack.
Mace and pepper gas are useless if we're not prepared to use them. Walking across a parking lot with a vial of mace in the ``safe'' position is like walking unarmed.
But when it comes to weapons, the best ones are our brains.
``We all have our weapons,'' said Britt, who grew up in Driver. ``Our weapons are our minds.''
Don't drop your guard, he warns.
``When you're in your car and you pull up to that red light, that little second it takes to fiddle with the radio can be life-or-death,'' Foster said. ``Someone can be right there at your window.''
In the workshop, they'll talk about ways to stay alert.
``If a woman can spend an hour and a half in an aerobics class to get an inch off her waist, she can spend an hour and a half to save her life,'' Foster said. MEMO: The workshop is June 24 at 7 p.m. at the Portsmouth campus of
Tidewater Community College. To register, call 484-2121, Ext. 491. Cost
is $25. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
James Britt, left, and Mark Foster are leading a self-defense
workshop. by CNB