Danielle Almeida know that you can never be too careful out in the world.

After a female family member of hers was carjacked, Almeida has taken great care to keep herself safe while out and about, especially when she's alone. Her family member hadn't been alone at the time of the carjacking, so it's pretty indicative of how unsafe it can be for women in general.

“...I try to be really diligent of my surroundings, especially when I’m alone…” Almeida said. “Things like this [program] can prepare you.”

Nowadays, it can be tough for women to feel safe in the world, so women of all ages and walks of life gathered at the Lance Soares' Family Martial Arts Center for a free women’s self-defense workshop on Monday, Oct. 5.

The self-defense class, back for its fifth year, was geared specifically toward women and dealt with matters of outdoor nighttime safety and defense against sexual assault.

Lance Soares, a fifth-degree black belt with 25 years of teaching experience, instructed the self-defense portion of the class. Attendees learned several defense moves and escape tactics should they ever be attacked.

“[The program] has been pretty popular,” Soares said.

The foundation of the class was gaining confidence. Most female victims on the street are selected if they look timid, avoid eye contact and don’t stand tall, Soares said.

Soares walked attendees through firmly and assertively telling someone “no.” He encouraged the class to make themselves bigger by standing tall and to keep their hands up and at the ready in case they should have to fight.

“The world’s getting a little scary, so I figured I should learn a little self-defense,” said Dawn Choquette, a first-time attendee. “I’m out in the community a lot and just want to feel a little [safer].”

According to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, four out of five rapists are someone close to the victim. Worse yet, 68 percent of sexual assaults go unreported and 98 percent of rapists will never spend a day in jail.

Before the session began, a representative of The Women’s Center came to discuss statistics surrounding domestic violence and sexual assault against women.

Rebecca Arruda, the education coordinator of The Women’s Center, informed attendees about how the center can provide aid to victims and what services they offer for women, families and even men who find themselves victimized and have nowhere to turn.

Arruda and Soares both emphasized that confidence is important to remaining safe on the streets. As such, self-defense is good for building confidence, which is key in prevention, said Arruda.

Today’s culture discourages victims, female and male, from opening up about assault or even reporting it because people have a tendency to victim blame. Victim-blaming is when a victim is made to feel as though they brought their own abuse or assault onto themselves or provoked it in some way.

Because of these realities, it often falls to women to be able to take care of themselves and take steps to prevent their own assault.