Like most of the media messages targeted at women, the messages women receive about self-defense contain myths designed to perpetuate our rape culture, a culture which accepts male violence against women as the norm. Since men usually write these messages, there is a problem with the very language of women's self-defense.
Men manipulate the language of self-defense to their advantage, and to women's disadvantage.
When a man victimizes a woman, she is often blamed for using bad judgment or accused of actually desiring the victimization. In return for this loss of freedom, men offer you the false hope that locking yourself inside after dark will prevent them from beating you, raping you, or killing you. The United States Department of Justice documents that eight out of ten women recognize the face of their attacker, a man they trust enough to allow into their home or someone who already shares their home. According to the latest FBI statistics, one out of every four women will be targeted for sexual assault, and a woman is beaten every nine seconds. For further insight into the way men manipulate language to avoid accountability for their violence against women, please see Talking Back, by bell hooks, and Fugitive Information, by Kay Hagen.