“As a survivor of rape, my training in karate and self-defense has helped to restore my voice. Martial arts are a way of connecting mind and body, listening to self and others, finding strength and being empowered. It is through training that I have moved beyond coping and surviving to a deeper sense of integration.”

The goals of CAE’s Survivors' Prevention and Healing Project (SPHP) are to help women and transpeople who are survivors of relationship violence, sexual and/or childhood abuse access the proven benefits of training in women- and trans-positive self-defense and martial arts programs. SPHP also aims to, as one participant put it, “restore to survivors something that is often lacking in other forums—a connection between mind, body, and spirit that was severed for most when they were assaulted.” Because SPHP is free and offers free child care, low-income women and transpeople—who have the least access to healing resources—can take advantage of this nurturing program.

While women- and trans-positive self-defense and martial arts training is only one part of the solution to women and transpeople's victimization, it is a crucial part. Class discussions and role plays increase an individual's psychological strength. Women and transpeople also learn physical skills and mental strategies that give them a new sense of their capabilities and power. CAE's programs emphasize that:
· No one has the right to hurt you, and you are not to blame if you have been hurt.
· You can end isolation by accessing support services and networks.
· There are concrete steps that you can take to be safer at home, on the street, at work.

We teach simple, effective physical techniques useful in many different situations. In role plays, students practice standing up for themselves, setting boundaries, and expressing themselves clearly. In discussions, we talk about strategies for safety and prevention; emotional aspects of self-defense, battering and other family violence issues; and concrete steps for increased safety.

We stress the right of every woman and transperson to protect themselves if they are being disrespected, threatened, or abused. At the same time, we stress that if you are experiencing violence, it is not your fault. Counseling and other referrals to programs for survivors of relationship violence, rape, incest, and childhood abuse are made available to women and transpeople who seek further help.

CAE offers free Self-Defense training or one month of free training in tai chi chuan or karate to women and transpeople who are survivors of relationship violence, sexual assault, and/or childhood abuse. Free child-care is available. Some survivors prefer practical physical and mental skills taught during the self-defense course, some prefer the power and intensity of karate training while others seek the calming, meditative aspects of the slower tai chi. Each year, approximately sixty-five survivors benefit from free training in self-defense, karate, or tai chi chuan through CAE’s Prevention and Healing Project for Survivors. Survivors who receive our services experience an enhanced sense of personal control and increased self-esteem. This aids in the healing process and increases survivors' ability to live, study, and work more effectively.

As part of our Prevention and Healing Project for Survivors, CAE maintains contact with over 75 victim-services providers, including the following area agencies: Bellevue Medical Center Rape Crisis Intervention Center; Beth Israel Medical Center Rape Crisis Intervention Program; La Bodega de la Familia; Center for Women and Families at the NY Association for New Americans (NYANA); CAMBA; Long Island College Hospital Rape Crisis Intervention Center; NYC Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project; Park Slope Safe Homes Project; St. Vincent’s Hospital & Medical Center Rape Crisis Program; and Safe Horizon. Because CAE has offered this program for several years, referrals from domestic violence centers, rape crisis centers, police officers, district attorney’s offices, private counselors, and even New York State senators are consistently increasing.

Additionally, CAE provides free off-site workshops at rape crisis centers and domestic violence agencies throughout the metropolitan New York area. Each year, these workshops reach approximately 130 women throughout the city.

“The best part of the (self-defense) course was discussing preventative measures about daily life… I think the most important thing is realizing I have options in a variety of situations. This made me think about changing certain things in my life… and I hope to be able to protect myself in the event I am in a situation, with a partner or a stranger.”



The Prevention and Healing Project for Survivors (PHPS) serves women and transpeople who are survivors of relationship violence, sexual assault, and/or childhood abuse, particularly low-income women and transpeople who have access to few resources to help their healing process. Approximately half of the survivors we work with are women or transpeople of color. Most come from Brooklyn and Manhattan, with lesser numbers from Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island.