Strength in numbers: The power of community
After she was mugged, Nasra felt a sense of powerlessness. She turned outwards with this, sharing her experience with guardians. And their response drove her to set up and host a self-defence class for guardians and people local to Tower Hamlets.
Why she set up self defence class
A current Dot Dot Dot guardian, Nasra’s been living in east London for more than a year.
“After the attack, I wanted to do something about the powerlessness I felt,” she tells us. “I had always wanted to try self-defence classes. And I thought now would be a good time to tap into the protective and more aggressive side of myself.”
“After I shared my experience and feelings with other guardians, I found out that many people shared a similar desire.”
The power of self-defence
After sharing the news about her attack and its implications on her mental health with her fellow guardians, Nasra identified a clear way to support those who shared her concerns.
“I wanted to organise a tailored class for people local to Tower Hamlets including guardians so we could learn together how to react and protect ourselves in a dangerous situation.”
“The class itself was fantastic,” she exclaims. “We learnt how to punch in a safe way using pads and boxing gloves. The instructor really encouraged us to unleash. By the end we were sweating!”
Guardian community events fund
Supporting the communities in which we work is a central part of Dot Dot Dot’s mission. We set up the Guardian Community Events Fund to help and encourage guardians to engage local residents and fellow guardians.
“The funding from Dot Dot Dot paid for the instructor and venue,” she explains. “The instructor was really supportive. He went above and beyond to bring my vision alive, designing a class that specifically addressed our concerns around phone snatching and knife crime.”
Community restored her faith in humanity
Nasra admits that, after she was attacked, she had lost faith that there were many good people out there.
“I was in a pretty cynical place,” she explains. “So the kindness and generosity of our instructor really took me by surprise. He liaised with the venue and gave us a discount because Dot Dot Dot was a social enterprise. He has a business to run, but he demonstrated real kindness by taking the time to design a tailored class for us.”
“Seeing how guardians supported my vision for the class and one another was also really beautiful. Like a ripple effect, they told one another about the upcoming class and we ended up having a really great turnout on the day.
“My desire to put on this class was born out of a rather horrible experience,” Nasra finishes. “But something came out of it that was positive and beautiful: People supporting one another.”
