An international program that teaches girls and women the art of self-defence has started to roll out in Australia. It is backed by a charity set up following the murder of a young woman who was killed as she walked home last year. The initiative, known as Guardian Girls, now has multiple generations of one family working on their karate skills together.
Among those who have taken part is Savannah Last, who has been a karate kid since she was two years old. Last year she was assaulted by a group of teenagers, an experience that left her feeling powerless. "For the first couple of days, I was scared to even go down the shops," she said, describing how the attack affected her everyday life.
It was in the aftermath of that assault that she signed up for the new Guardian Girls program, along with her mother and her grandmother. The three generations now train side by side, practising the drills together as they rebuild their confidence.
The sessions cover a range of physical techniques. Participants are taught moves such as kicks, ear grabs and how to respond to choke holds, while instructors stress that the aim is to show women they can be physically, mentally and psychologically strong.
The program arrives against a sobering backdrop. Statistics from the federal government's latest Status of Women report card show that two in five Australian women have experienced violence from the age of 15, a figure advocates point to when explaining why such training matters.
The initiative is strongly supported by the advocacy group Stand With Audrey. It takes its name from Audrey Griffin, a 19-year-old who was murdered on the Central Coast last year while walking home after a night out with friends. Supporters describe Guardian Girls as an empowering and positive way of educating young women.
Griffith University on the Gold Coast has become the first in the country to officially adopt the program, while talks are also underway to bring it to the University of London. Organisers hope the rollout will widen its reach to more women and more campuses in the months ahead.