Here’s a Quick List of Basic Safety Protocols to get you started:
For Detailed Information and Support, Scroll Down!
Tap or Click to Select Your Safety Concern Below:
Safety Resources for ATX
Go out, Dance and Date with greater confidence and less risk
Volunteers from the Austin 2Step Dance Community collaborated to create a survey, provide data and personal feedback about safety concerns within our community.
The resources on this page is one pillar of support that resulted from that effort. To view the full survey results, click below:
ALWAYS TRUST YOUR GUT.
The number one risk when it comes to personal safety is denying your own somatic resistance to a person or an interaction!
“IF THE VIBE IS OFF, SO AM I!” — If you don’t feel good about the person you’re engaging with, or the night you’re having: DISENGAGE, go home, stay safe.
*NOT EVERYONE WHO VIOLATES A BOUNDARY IS A PREDATOR!*
MOST boundary violations are unintentional.
Every being carries with them both conscious and unconscious Wants and Needs. When our Wants and Needs violate another person’s autonomy, we call it a boundary violation. COMMUNICATION and CONSENT are the BEST tools to avoid violations of the autonomy of others, however, we are often unaware of the boundaries of others, and even our own true boundaries, as well as our unconscious or instinctual Wants and Needs. One of the ways we learn about ourselves and others is when a violation has occurred.
For those who have experienced trauma, this process can be even more confusing. We can become reactivated and unconsciously reenact trauma patterns, keeping us enmeshed in shame, blame and victimization.
The hallmark of a healthy relationship of mutual respect is the work of Repair. Repair is the tool to bring together and correct or resolve harm. Repair does not excuse an offender from compensation or reparation from harm caused, which is why many people, even well-meaning people, don’t engage in Repair. Repair requires Accountability and Ownership, not of our Intentions, but of our Impact.
Intentions are what we do or don’t expect the outcome of our choices will be.
Impact is that ACTUAL outcome of our choices.
Others largely judge us and interact with us based not on our Intentions, which are largely invisible and unknown TO THEM, but rather on our perceived impact, which is both subjective and isolated to individual and group impressions which are largely invisible and unknown TO US.
Our confidence, clarity and communication are ALWAYS #1 Protection against both being misunderstood, as well as being a target of, predation.
Claims of safety violations and abuse are extremely serious and reputation-damaging. Smear Campaigns and Whisper Networks were a prominent concern amongst the respondents to our Dance Community Safety Survey. Many well-meaning individuals are “suspicious of being suspected,” and many people in our community have been falsely accused of abuse when the situation was nuanced or biased to the narrator.
This type of culture is extremely dangerous for actual victims of predatory behavior, especially if their assailant is more established and more respected within the community.
Targets of predation are disproportionately those who have previously experienced trauma, including but not limited to: economic and social disenfranchisement and exclusion.
Without our Awareness of the Problem and our Willingness to Take Action, these natural, primal patterns will follow the paths of least resistance, meaning that the most vulnerable within our community will continue to suffer, while predators and abusers continue to thrive.
A passion for creating safe spaces
Safety starts with us: our awareness, our information, and our capabilities. Community safety is predicated on each person taking responsibility for their personal safety.
ATX Risk Factors:
Immediate Safety risks occur fast, and are typically resolved swiftly (about 2 minutes). Current APD response time averages over 5 minutes for Priority One 911 calls (A Priority 1 9-1-1 call is an emergency that requires an immediate response because there is reason to believe an immediate threat to life exists).
From a self-defense perspective, we cannot Wait and Rely on Others for our personal protection. We MUST have a Strategy and Be Prepared to ACT.
The first thing a boxer learns before entering a ring is:
Protect Yourself At All Costs.
You may argue: We’re not out to fight, we’re out to have fun..!
Without a measure of safety, the environments and people you experience bring inherent Risk. Mitigating Risk requires awareness, education, and capability.
Community safety is predicated on individuals taking responsibility for their own personal safety.
Community or authority as an intervention is always secondary to your own ability to Effectively Respond to potential Risk, oftentimes within seconds. Decision you make in one second can have a significant impact on your night, and the rest of your life.
One reckless decision can cost you or someone else their livelihood or their life. Many crimes are never brought to justice, many interrelational ruptures remain unrepaired. Preventative strategies are always the safest option, followed by worst-case-scenario awareness strategies.
Whatever brought you out, treat yourself and others with respect!
Everyone loses when abuse occurs in our venues and communities.
Go Out Safe: Crime and Violence Safety
Learn the basics of a safe time out, regardless of venue or event. Centered on Austin, Texas.
Dance Safety in ATX
Information and Introduction to Technical Safety on the floor, and Community Safety off the floor. Links to the ATX 2Step 2026 Community Safety Survey Results! Regionally and culturally specific to the Austin 2Step Scene.
Relational Safety
Why is dating STILL one of the most risk-inherent activities? Click here to learn how to stay safe and have fun in the process of getting to know someone! (Regionally non-specific)
Instinct & Intuition: Trust Yourself and Be the Leader of Your Personal Safety
Techniques, Tools and Resources to support your personal safety skillsets for Life!
Power & Control: The Root of Violence
Deeper education about the philosophy of interpersonal violence, crime, and the parts that make us vulnerable to predation, or to become a predator.
Resources
Find compiled references, data, links and additional resources here.
An array of resources
I offer 1-1 coaching, business and group consultations, as well as speaking and workshop opportunities for organizations.
My specialty is in supporting women, children and communities, but my philosophy and work is based on an Inclusive and Safe World for All.
Contact me directly with your inquiries or visit the shop to book a consultation.
Personal Coaching
- Place the Onus of Your Life Where It Belongs: ONLY YOU can be the driver of your life experience.
- Learn to Rise & Shine, even while the World is Burning
- Learn to Trust Your Own Inner Guidance and Wisdom (Fire Your Masters and Liberate Your Soul)
- Support your therapeutic process with somatic tools that will carry you through life’s challenges
- MIND-BODY-SPIRIT Primer for the Modern Soul
Women’s Self-Defense Training
- 1-1 Practical Self-Defense Instruction
- Lectures, Workshops and Custom Classes on Self-Defense Mindset and Movement Basics for your Womens’ and Girls’ Organizations
- Private Coaching and Speaking Engagements for Survivors & Survivor support networks.
Visit My Virtual Shop
- Self-Study, single-price E-Books
- One-time fee videos
- Consult and 1-1 scheduling 24/7
She ever so gently, and often joyfully, reframes LIFE into a REALITY where I have a CHOICE and a VOICE in my journey of HEALING and BECOMING. She does all this with black-belt SKILL, old-soul WISDOM, and child-like WONDER. She literally CHANGES THE GAME!”
Mark C.
Owner, Red Sun Creative