Miss USA Nia SanchezWow, I can’t believe the backlash the new Miss USA is taking on her answer to a question in last night’s Miss USA contest.
Miss Nevada, Nia Sanchez, was crowned Miss USA last night after answering a question about sexual assaults on college campuses. She said as a 4th degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, she believed in women protecting themselves and learning to defend themselves.
Backlash Against Miss USA, Nia Sanchez:
Now, a bunch of people are going nuts on twitter and other places on line. Posting things like:
“How did she win after that awful and offensive answer? Idiot.”
“I’m sorry, but women shouldn’t need to take self defense classes to protect themselves from rape”
“Let’s hope Nevada uses her media tour to reiterate that teaching girls self defense is NOT the best way to protect against assault”
“Miss Nevada, who just reinforced victim-blaming rape culture to millions of viewers, is crowned”
“Miss Nevada was asked about rape at colleges and answered that women need to learn to defend themselves… OR MEN COULD JUST NOT RAPE”
“Not happy w/Miss Nevada’s answer that to stop rape we should teach women to defend themselves… Why don’t we teach men to not rape?”
“Miss Nevada described how individuals need to protect themselves from rape, instead of teaching others not to rape. Stop the victim blaming.”
“Sick of hearing women need to learn self defense from sexual violence We need a culture we don’t have to defend ourselves from”
And it goes on, and on, and on….
I applauded her answer! And no, not just because I teach self-defense and martial arts. I believe her answer is promoting the idea of women taking control of their own lives. In all of my safety and self-defense speeches and classes I promote personal responsibility for your own safety and well-being.
I hate rapists and wish punishments for those caught were stricter. I also applaud those that are trying to change the culture and stop men from raping. More power to them, and I hope they are successful. However, for that group to say those of us who believe women should learn to protect themselves and keep themselves safe is victim-blaming is preposterous. It’s ignorant thinking! And dangerous! And it is hurting women! It’s taking power away from women.
Yes, I Watched the Miss USA Show
Yes, I watched the Miss USA show last night. Our next door neighbor’s granddaughter was there because of being a Miss Teen Montana, and we were hoping the teens might get on TV for a second or two and we would see her. They didn’t. But watching the show as I did some stuff on the computer, I had Nevada out front even without the Tae Kwon Do connection. (I’m hapkido anyway, not TKD, but I did like the fact that she is a fellow martial artist) I liked her answer to the rape culture question, and after all the questions, thought she should win for sure. My wife thought she was the best and her answer the best too!
I just don’t understand all these people posting comments like above, and worse, all over the Internet. Men have been raping women for as long as there have been men and women. Men who rape today know it is wrong. I don’t think you are going to “teach” a lot of these rapists not to. Again, like I said above, if people want to spend their time trying to teach men not to rape, that is a good thing, but saying to empower a woman to protect herself and learn to stay safe and defend herself is blaming the victim in nonsense. Every person making comments like that should be ashamed of themselves, it’s not
Miss Nevada, Nia Sanchez, who should be. She should take her black belt in Tae Kwon Do on the road and get as many girls and women as she can to take more personal responsibility for their safety, self-defense, and everything else in their lives!
While I am for those who are trying to change the culture and eliminate raping by men, I don’t see it working in my lifetime. I’m sorry, but as I said, it’s been going on for a long time, and I’m just not optimistic that men will stop raping without being locked up or put under ground. (I guess while we are at it we can teach people not to kill, not steal, etc.) So while I’m around, I’m going to help as many women (my daughter and wife first) know how to avoid situations that have a higher risk of rape, and what to do if attacked, which includes ripping the SOB’s eyes out if that’s what it takes.
Check out this Clip from a Live Safety and Self-defense Presentation:
Self-Defense Training Is About Personal Responsibility
Learning to stay safe and defend yourself is taking personal responsibility. I believe we should all take personal responsibility for our own safety and that of our loved ones. I applaud Miss USA, Nia Sanchez, for her answer and hope many girls and women will take their own safety and self-defense into their own hands and learn more to keep themselves from danger. To all of those bashing her, wake up and realize that she is empowering women, not blaming them.
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