BLOG: Maddi On Campus: The B.Y.O.B has been unleashed

Wednesday night kicked off the beginning of the “Be Your Own Badass” tour by Girls Fight Back. For those who don’t know, GFB is a 12-year program that has been dedicated to teaching women self-defense and how to spot danger. The speaker, Heather Maggs, started the seminar with a humorous familiarity that set the audience at ease and let them know that this was, “Not a seminar meant to scare us.”

Beginning with a short video describing how GFB began when the founder, Erin Weed, discovered that one of her closest college friends had been murdered in her own apartment. Since then, Weed and several other girls she recruited as speakers have been teaching girls to unleash their “inner-badass” in her friend’s memory.

Following the video, Maggs, who is certified to “kick ass,” shared a few tips with the audience. Unfortunately, with only an hour she could only the basics. Those who attended learned how to recognize when they were in danger, the best ways to avoid danger, and if words fail, some moves of self-defense.

The program concluded with a raffle for prizes and a picture of all the audience members with Maggs which will later be posted on the GFB website. For those who missed the seminar but are interested in learning self-defense or about the “Girls Fight Back” program there is a website with information. Just visit www.girlsfightback.com.