| Note: This page is under
construction. We will be adding more FAQs in the coming months.
If you are unable to find
an adequate answer to your question on this page or elsewhere in our website,
please do not hesitate to contact us. Just e-mail Leslie (Leslie@impactchicago.org)
or leave her a phone message (773-338-4545) with your question.
Do
I have to be young and in shape to take this class?
Certainly not. If
you can walk up a flight of stairs carrying something, walk quickly across
a room to pick up a ringing phone, and sit down on the floor and get up
again, you are fit enough to participate in our programs. You need not
be in top physical shape to take our programs; most participants are not.
IMPACT Chicago recommends, however, that you postpone taking the class
if you are recovering from a significant injury, have experienced an assault
within the last three months, or are pregnant.
Do
I have to be a survivor to take this class?
No. Though many women who
take the class are survivors, it certainly is not a prerequisite by any
means. Typically, about one-quarter to one-half of the women in a class
indicate they are survivors of some sort of assault.
My
boyfriend/husband/father/neighbor is very big. Would these techniques really
work on him?
Yes, IMPACT can really work
on a big man because the relative size of the woman does not really matter.
What does matter is the woman's non-negotiable commitment to herself and
to her safety. Is the woman really ready to defend herself from someone
she loves or knows? Very often a woman has competing feelings: she does
not want to harm a loved one, but she also does not want to be harmed by
that person. This conflict is very often answered, not resolved,
by the woman holding back in order to protect the other person.
In IMPACT, women learn not
only very effective techniques but also that they are worth fighting for.
Women have the ability to defend themselves. When they choose to do so,
then, women really can defend themselves against large men.
Who
are the men who do the muggings and what are their motives?
The
men who do the muggings are, quite simply, men who want to end violence
against women. Of course, the men go through a long interview and training
process, and being a male instructor is not for everyone. Being a male
instructor is challenging physically, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally.
Being a male IMPACT instructor means being able to balance all of these
factors while being in the moment with each group of women. |
