Pam Cooper knows that if someone punches her in the nose, punching them back would be silly. She would want to know why she was punched — why anyone would be punched, actually. Why are they using violence, she would ask? What’s in it for them? Especially if the victims are strangers, how is this behavior helpful in their world?
Which is why Cooper loves the martial art of Aikido, which assumes a physical, emotional and self-defense response to violence that includes compassion and a desire for understanding. In this way, the discipline teaches, violence can be thwarted.
“I would know something bigger is going on for the person who hits me,” Cooper said, who has been involved with Aikido since 1975. “I would move their arm, sit them down and talk to them. ‘So you wanted to hit me, What for?’”
Cooper will teach a free workshop on June 8 at 12 p.m. at the Queen Anne Community Center, 1901 First Ave. W. The 90-minute session is titled, “Empowerment workshop: dealing with difficult people using Aikido” put on by Seattle Parks and Recreation. All ages and levels of Aikido expertise are welcome.
“We’ll go over basic Aikido moves and philosophy,” Cooper said. “Aikido is a non-violent and non-aggressive approach, teaching a different type of physical and emotional approach if being verbally or physically abused. It provides the chance to look at it from another person’s experience without being in harm’s way.”
Compassion is key, she said.
“If we’re being abused, we can use Aikido to see it from a different person’s perspective. It allows you to be calm and listen to what’s going on. Most of the time when we react, we yell at the person in front of us or something else once we are at a certain point. Aikido allows us to take that movement before we react and look at the bigger picture.”
Standing at 5”1, Cooper was initially inspired to begin Aikido when she saw another woman of the same height successfully deal with big and difficult men.
Cooper founded the school Aikido of West Seattle in 1988.
She teaches a variety of courses in the Seattle area including senior self-defense and junior and senior high school teachers’ self-defense.
“Every Aikido situation is unique, so whether you’re dealing with a black-belt, a beginner or a group of people, it always has a challenge. That’s one of the things I love about it.”
Cooper was tapped to facilitate the workshop pro bono by an acquaintance of a student, Lynnette Douglas, a community organizer. Douglas approached Cooper after she had multiple experiences in the Queen Anne area of people approaching her who were on drugs, mentally unstable or aggressive.
“I wanted to do something to empower myself, my friends and other people in the area to deal with difficult people,” she said. “Someone recommended Pam to me, whose son had taken Aikido and explained that this was not just self-defense — that this was learning how to be grounded around them, and learning how not to fight. Aikido deals with the energy of the person.”
Douglas has organized a number of community workshops centered on teaching people to get what they want out of life.
“I love doing things like this,” she said. “I’ve dedicated my life do doing things for the community, especially with my passion for disabled, elderly and isolated people – I want to help them get involved and have unity and a voice in their community.”
To reserve a space in the workshop, contact Tim Pretare of Lifetime Recreation at 206-684-4240 or tim.pretare@seattle.gov
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