Age is just a number.
This is a famous saying which retired 72-year-old Aisha has proven correct as she joined a self-defense course in Blackburn.
The Muslim woman left her comfort zone to join six-week self-defense course provided by Z’s Defense Academy for Blackburn Carers service and the carers they support.
“I joined the self-defenfe course because I think it’s better to know some tricks and moves to protect and defend myself,” she told Lancashire Telegraph.
“This is completely different for me. It’s really nice meeting people and the tutor is really good, excellent – she knows what she’s doing.”
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Blackburn Carers self defence course graduates
Pushing Boundaries
Aisha believes elderly people should push boundaries and learn self-defense techniques.
“I think (older) people should have a basic idea about it and what to do to defend themselves rather than being in that situation and doing nothing,” she said.
Self-defense classes for Muslim women in the west, especially for those wearing a hijab, are becoming needed more than ever.
Due to concerns about Islamophobia, many women are making their mission to empower Muslim women to defend themselves against anti-Muslim terrorism and harassment — on the street and in the workplace.
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Aisha and two of the other carers who completed the six week course
These classes help fill an important need for Muslim women who may feel especially vulnerable in the current political and social climate.
A local mosque in Edmonton announced a series of self-defense classes in August 2021 to empower Muslim women and give them a sense of safety.
In 2018, Rana Abdelhamid, a young Muslim business woman, created a new self-defense technique against attacks involving grabbing the hijab.
Chicago-based self-defense instructor Zaineb Abdulla also, in 2016, published videos teaching Muslim women how to respond to hate attacks and trials to grab their hijab.