As posted last night – We also finished our 2011 Rape Prevention Research Report! My next step is to get the updated NMNW website up and running so that we can share that report and other related data and stats here. We’ll also have photos of all NMNW Self Defense instructors, all NMNW Boys Class Instructors, the Ujamaa staff, a new media room, a new design for Marie, our NMN Logo Warrior – all systems go!

You ever think “wow, things are happening so fast …. but somehow not fast enough?” That’s me. Hurry up and wait~

Well, it looks like the 2011 Rape Prevention Research Report we’ve been working on is done! We’ll be bringing it to UC Berkeley Center for Public Health tomorrow to discuss a collaboration. I’m really happy tonite and really excited!

“Well, so I went to Dandora yesterday, and OMG, AMAZING….. NMN is doing some groundbreaking good stuff… I stayed in the class until they were done, just to see what they are doing and mostly how they do it…the research..and wow..the questionnaire is well explained..these girls need a platform to let out and we are giving them a platform for that… the energy is so good..they are willing to learn and they are really really happy.

I was humbled, i wished i could teach that class, it was amazing…
On the class timmings…two hours is perfect… they managed to do the questionnaire in 20 mins..the class went on for like half an hour plus a remainder of the last class, which by the way was really interesting, every time a question was asked all hands just rose…AWESOME…..Go TEAM…
I will learn these teaching skills, the next training am so in it….”

Through it all I must say we’ve generated some wonderful new material and data.

This sets back the launch of our new website a bit.  I can’t wait to get that up! The new home page is AMAZING and the new media pages are  expanded with many new press articles, photos and TV. In the past year we’ve had 2 short documentaries made about our work one of which is entered into the Academy Awards – Go Lisa and Mark!

We also have dozens of filmed testimonials from teen girls who fought off assailants last year using our strategies. At last count we’ve been featured in over 30 news outlets around the world. We’re getting the word out, we’re getting our message out and we’re not going to stop pushing to get self defense strategies into the hands of women and girls who need them most.

Ok, back to work on the most deadline-iest of the deadlines.

I wanted to share this letter from Lara in Brazil. She was kind enough to send it to me. I can feel her outrage in every word and I share it completely. It will be interesting to watch how this unfolds. I’m wishing the girl involved lots of love and support. I can’t imagine what she’s going through. They actually aired this ….

Good evening,
I’m here to report an absurd case of rape at the public tv. Last monday had begun Big Brother Brazil, a reallity tv program, and last saturday, after a party, the girl went to bed, and the guy went with her. She was complitely drunk, and slept, and while she was sleeping he sexualy assult her. Live on a pay channel.
Sunday, while the public tv apperence of the program, the host announced that they were having a love affair. And she didn’t remember a thing.
This is the most important TV channel in our country. This program is the most viewed, and they didn’t do anything to help the girl, and to investigate the case.
Yesterday the channel decided that Daniel, the man, did violate the program rules. And he was eliminated. And only today, they did a short report about the case at the broadcast news.
I think this case need to be discussed worldwide, this is why I’m telling your organization about it.
You can see an international note here http://www.theweek.co.uk/media/big-brother/44428/big-brother-brazil-rocked-allegation-drunken-rape
Thank you for your time, I hope cases like this didn’t happen in the future.

It’s not that he’s slacking – trust me – this place is a madhouse of activities on all fronts. It’s the pattern it follows:

The research article makes it’s rounds of researchers for their edits than circles back to us where we have to kind of drop everything, check the edits, sign off on it and send it back out again.  But this is it. There are no more sign offs – just final approval.

There is a method to this madness, I just want to speed it up a bit. Cue ‘Flight of the Bumblebee’ and you’ve got the pace I’m thinking of.

We are almost done with the new website, brochures, business cards and other promotional materials. Readying the impact research we collected from Kenya 2011classes for publication. Looking forward to putting out the final copies of our NMNW Curriculum and manuals. Everything is moving forward in our quest to bring sustainable self defense and empowerment programs to the most vulnerable communities in the world. It’s been 2 years of foundation building and now we are on our way!

My favorite parts?

- Training with the new Kenya NMNW teams – 3 week intensive this past October. Meet them all on this website soon!

- Printing up 40 copies of the new NMNW training manuals. Just seeing the finished books – and holding them in my hands – for the first time – it was amazing.

-Getting together with Comet Group Local this Wednesday night and examining some of the most recent twists and turns in the NMNW play book. I just never know what these women are going to come up with. It’s pretty wonderful.

-Talking to the trainers in Nepal and hearing about the innovative ways they are setting up their new self defense classes.

- Reading over the final edits of the NMNW research article and feeling that if people don’t get the unbelievably bizarre efficacy rate of self defense after reading this – they are flat out in insane.

- Getting dozens of filmed testimonials of young women who fought off assailants after taking our classes. (We’ll be posting those here soon)

- Pooling all the African self defense training class photos from 2007 to now and feeling so inspired and grateful to be able to do this work.

Onward~

The official NMNW curriculum is almost complete. We used it as a test model during the Nairobi training. At least 35-40% of the curriculum involved new experimental strategies. Most passed the test with flying colors and will be included in the final version in 2012. Thanks to all who contributed work to the manuals. Especially Lou Bergholz, Jeannie Cheng the National Women’s Martial Arts Federation and all the self defense pioneers who developed these amazing safety strategies.

As you can imagine there is alot going on to prepare for the official 2012 launch of the NO Means NO Worldwide program – the website will be updated with photos, articles, films and other information early next year.

So please stay in touch!

Old pirates, yes, they rob I
Sold I to the merchant ships
Minutes after they took I
From the bottomless pit
But my hand was made strong
By the hand of the almighty
We forward in this generation
Triumphantly
Won’t you help to sing
These songs of freedom?
‘Cause all I ever have
Redemption songs
Redemption songs
Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery
None but ourselves can free our minds
Have no fear for atomic energy
‘Cause none of them can stop the time
How long shall they kill our prophets
While we stand aside and look? Ooh
Some say it’s just a part of it
We’ve got to fullfil the book
Won’t you help to sing
These songs of freedom?
‘Cause all I ever have
Redemption songs
Redemption songs
Redemption songs