Members of the Low Vision Coalition are taking their safety into their own hands, with the help of the Lima Police Department.
“Because we don’t drive, we often are waiting on rides or waiting on a bus, or catching a ride we somebody we maybe don’t know,” said coalition member Jacob King. “People were just concerned about having self-defense issues arise."
Because the members are visually impaired, it’s important for them to be able to judge how to escape the situation based on where their attacker is touching them.
“Everything that blind people or people with vision impairment are going to have to deal with is hands-on,” said Mericle. “So we’re teaching if somebody grabs you, if somebody chokes you, how to get away, how to break those chokes and how to inflict a little pain while you’re doing it."
Those who attended the class said it helped with their confidence and it made them more comfortable knowing they have the tools to fight back.
"You just never know when someone’s gonna come from behind and grab you,” said member Peggy Osman. “You just have to be aware and learn how to protect yourself."
This is especially true for Sean Oden, who has been a position where he needed to protect himself.
“Believe me, it’s a frightening thing to be mugged,” said member Sean Oden. “For a long, long time I was scared to death to carry a cane because I was afraid that somebody would attack me again. I even went as far as to pretend that I wasn’t visually impaired. It doesn’t hurt to learn self-defense techniques that we can use against somebody if we are indeed threatened or attacked.”
The class was held at St. Mark's United Methodist Church.
