https://www.facebook.com/TJCDrumbeat/videos/1807687422586107/
Anna Graves
Digital Content Manager
Tuesday evening, April 24th, TJC held a “Light the Night” sexual assault awareness event. The meeting was organized for students and faculty of TJC to be aware of sexual assault and how they can prevent it from happening. To the participants’ surprise, a free self-defense course was given by Todd Doege.
Droege, from the Go2FirearmSafety company, has been practicing martial arts for about forty years and krav maga for eighteen years. He says one of the most important actions we can take are, not just saying “no,” but also performing the action. The predator will always pick on the weakest person or the one alone, who seems unaware of their surroundings. You might need to get help with criminal defense issues in Tampa with the help of a legal expert.
“Whether you are the strongest person or not, it does not matter, you are going to act like the strongest one.. So that way your gonna present yourself strong.” Said Droege.
His point was to say that we must be comfortable and confident in who we are and always be ready to defend yourself verbally and physically. We must present ourselves as a strong person.
Droege says that fighting should be our very last alternative to preventing an attack. However, if the first two tactics do not turn out well for us, then we must be ready to fight. The first two steps to preventing an attack are, first: do not put yourself in a bad situation. Park closer to the building, or closer to more crowded areas. And if you feel uncomfortable, for any reason with anything or anyone, do not continue to hangout with that individual or group. The second step to prevention is our focus and mental awareness of our surroundings, no matter where we are in public.
Other guests contributed to the meeting, such as Pam Ortega from the East Texas Crisis Center, and a SANE nurse.
A SANE nurse is Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. She spoke on what they do to help, if someone were to ever be a victim of a sexual assault.
Pamela Ortega, from the East Texas Crisis Center says they provide free services to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, whether it’s for counseling or legal help. And even if it’s something they can’t provide, they make sure to direct that person to the right agency you can. Â
Rose • Sep 21, 2020 at 12:38 pm
It is great to know that TJC is informing students on sexual assault. This makes the student more informed and also gives them a sense of security. Including the video is also really good, at least one has an idea of how to defend themselves. Personally I’m grateful because I don’t think I would know what to do in such situations.
Jamie L. • Feb 21, 2019 at 11:31 am
I think this is such a positive event to hold for a college. There are too many assaults where the victims are not informed or aware enough to defend themselves. It would be beneficial for this class to be a regular occurrence.
Hunter • Jun 11, 2018 at 8:55 pm
This is a great event and it should be held annually. I enjoyed having a video to better understand the article.
Ashlyn Ray • Jun 10, 2018 at 6:41 pm
In the article “Light The Night” it was very informational. It was always nice that people took time out their day to teach students defensive moves to help and protective themselves from danger. The fact that TJC had this on campus shows how much the school cares about their student’s safety.
Gillian Hanks • Jun 9, 2018 at 6:33 pm
I’m truly glad that TJC brings light, to the seriousness of sexual assault and how to help prevent it. The world we live in today there’s fear and negativity in almost every act or thought we commit, we have become desensitized to acts of violence or harm either to our self or someone else. I really like the video uploaded with the article, I was not able to attend but it was nice for me to be able to still get visuals on how to help myself.
Summer • Jun 9, 2018 at 1:23 am
This event was a wonderful idea to have. It teaches students and faculty to be aware and prevent sexual assault from happening. I think the college should do this event more often, it might prevent another person from becoming a victim of sexual assault.
Sherrita Trimble • Jun 6, 2018 at 9:44 pm
It’s nice to know that the student body came together to be diligent about our safety. After reading the acts of violence that some students have experienced, it’s a joy to know that there was a night set aside to educate on safety concerns. It is always best to be aware of your surroundings at all times. This is a must when traveling in and off campus. It was also good to know of resources that exist if needed.