Beacon Press: Don't Fight Back
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Don't Fight Back

And 10 Other Myths About Crime, Personal Safety, and Gender-Based Violence

Author: Meg Stone

Nationally recognized violence prevention expert Meg Stone identifies 11 myths about personal safety and offers evidence-based solutions to living a safer, freer, and more optimistic life

We receive a lot of advice about how to stay safe in society—myths like “don’t go to the bathroom alone,” “don’t go out at night,” “don’t dress too provocatively,” and, perhaps most ridiculously, “don’t wear a ponytail,”—all designed to keep (mostly) women away from potential danger.

Meg Stone, an expert in personal safety, traces the origins of these dangerous myths, and explains why safety isn’t defined by men in power telling us what they think makes us safe. Myths address:

  • how attackers behave
  • what (or who) to fear
  • what you should never do
  • and what you should always do.

She addresses how many of the myths are completely wrong and not based on any real evidence. Stone also spends time unpacking the kinds of myths that can’t be disproven or are more nuanced than just “helpful” or “not helpful.”

She concludes with a powerful treatise about how to be truly safe—or at least safer—in a world that lacks evidence, using lessons she has learned from her 20+ years teaching self-defense.
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Don't Fight Back

ISBN: 978-080701624-4
 Publication Date: 5/5/2026
 Size:5.5 x 8.5 Inches (US)
Price:  $18.95
Format: Paperback
Not Yet Published
Will Ship On: May 2026
(Backorder policy)
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