Long Island students were getting empowered at the Domestic Violence Empowerment Expo. In partnership with the Center for Counseling and Wellness, the Criminal Justice and Psychology clubs, and the Office of Security, Long Island campus students were recently provided with a self-defense class, agency resources and free safety alarms. The expo also included off-campus resources like ECLI-Vibes, Long Island Against Trafficking, L.I. Against Domestic Violence, Breathe Jiu Jitsu and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department. Attendees were able to learn about these resources and what they have to offer.
During the self-defense class, which was presented by Danny Stolfi and Jamie James, owners of Breathe Jiu Jitsu, students learned how to protect themselves against numerous physical threats.
“Jiu-Jitsu is a sport or martial art that works for the smaller person,” said James. “It works for everyone but is designed to help a smaller person work against a bigger person.”
James and Stolfi went on to demonstrate proper stances, grabs, holds, pins and ways to fall without hurting yourself.
“It’s all about technique and leverage,” said Stolfi. “Being the one in control is key to getting out of these threatening situations, and learning the proper technique will prepare you for that.”
Though these moves are fun to learn and can be used playfully, they are moves we hope to never use in real life.
“When learning Jiu Jitsu, the hope is to never use it, but the hope is it gives us confidence, but really it all starts with recognizing the behaviors prior to getting into a situation like that,” says James.
“Paying attention when loved ones talk about something they are concerned about in their life, speaking up when we don’t feel comfortable with someone, talking and finding resources we feel comfortable and confident in. There are so many different things to prevent this from happening, but we have so many available resources here on Long Island, just in Suffolk County alone, which is incredible,” he said.
