Reykjavík Grapevine - ágú. 2022, Blaðsíða 23

23The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 08— 2022
As participants leave their first femi-
nist self defense workshop, there is
a palpable shift in the room as quiet
strangers become empowered individ-
uals, united by their autonomy, knowl-
edge, and strength. This is the mission
of Slagtog, a women and queer-led
feminist self defense organisation
dedicated to combating gender-based
violence with tools participants can use
in any situation.
“When I did my first Slagtog work-
shop before becoming a member, I
remember I was standing so tall and I
felt so grounded,” says Meeri Mäkinen,
one of the organisation’s newest train-
ers. “I really wish everyone could expe-
rience that.”
Reversing the stigma
Elínborg Hörpu- og Önundarbur, a
self-defense trainer and one of Slag-
tog’s founders, says they had previ-
ously tried self defense classes aimed
at women that were anti-feminist
because they perpetuated the stigmas
surrounding gender-based violence.
Instructors told women what not to
do, such as don’t go to parties alone or
get in a car with strangers. While these
seem like reasonable suggestions, and
Elí encourages people to approach situ-
ations with logic, basing self defence
training on platitudes like this takes
away a women's agency.
Slagtog instead equips people with
tools for any situation they may find
themselves in. “Our focus is on empow-
ering the participant in all senses of the
word, starting by reinforcing the basic
knowledge that our body is ours, and
we have the right to bodily integrity
and autonomy,” Elí says.
Violence does not happen because
of something a victim does, but
rather because of the person who acts
violently toward them. Slagtog teaches
participants that they can respond in a
number of ways to de-escalate the situ-
ation: removing themselves, respond-
ing verbally, or fighting back physically.
Self defense is often advertised as
martial arts, but physical techniques
are only part of what participants learn
in feminist self defense, says Mariam
Arnedo Moreno, a trainer and one of
Slagtog’s founders. “We also talk a lot
about how we are socialised in this
world as women, so it puts gender-
based violence in that context,” Mariam
explains. “But the physical parts are
very accessible. It’s about defending
yourself through any means, not about
mastering a technique.”
Starting from “no means
no”
The idea to found Slagtog came from
a French book called “Non C’est Non,” or
“no means no.” The author, Irene Zeil-
inger, has been teaching feminist self
defense for 30 years and now equips
trainers.
After being in contact with Irene, Elí
says they wanted her to come to Iceland
to teach the principles of feminist self
defense. The founders of Slagtog, in
cooperation with a Romanian youth
organisation, received a grant to bring
the program to their respective coun-
tries.
The process of becoming a trainer
is intensive, usually lasting eight hours
a day for two weeks with six months
in between sessions so trainers can
practise what they learned. Trainers
not only practice physical manoeuvres,
but they also learn theories behind
violence, trauma, and feminist peda-
gogy. Trainers also choose a speciali-
sation, allowing them to work with
girls and transgender youth, migrant
women, or the LGBTQ+ community.
The emotional toll
Trainers invite participants to share
their success stories of defending
themselves. “Any type of story where
people managed to stop the violence
or get away from it is a success to us,”
Mariam says.
Despite the success stories, train-
ing can be emotionally difficult. Most
of the trainers were activists before
starting on their feminist self defense
journey, Elí says. Thus, they have some
coping skills to work with vulner-
able and marginalised populations,
but Slagtog also hopes to provide more
formal therapy for their trainers soon.
“Sometimes someone will open up
about a difficult situation that they
are in, and there’s not much you can
do. You can refer them to organisa-
tions where they can get help or try to
give advice if they want it, but in the
end you don’t control what they do and
you know they might be going back to a
really violent situation,” Elí says. “This
is one of the most challenging parts of
being a trainer.”
Everything is worth it, the trainers
agree, when they see participants leave
with their heads held high.
“Every time I’ve been part of a train-
ing, the participants have been so
happy. There’s a lot of emotions, and
sometimes there’s crying and anger,
but at the end I feel like everyone walks
out feeling quite strong and powerful,”
Elí explains. “They really are strong,
but they’ve now had the opportunity
to explore that and feel it in the unique
way feminist self defense has to offer.”
Words:
Emma Ledbetter

Photo:
Emma Ledbetter
Culture
Fighting back with feminism
Slagtog empowers participants with verbal and physical
skills to combat violence
Sick new Slagtog album dropping soon
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