"Don't Fight Back": And 10 Other Myths About Crime, Personal Safety, and Gender-Based Violence
Meg Stone
May 2026 · Myths Made in America Book 12 · Beacon Press
Ebook
192
Pages
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infoThis book will become available on May 5, 2026. You will not be charged until it is released.
About this ebook
A nationally recognized violence prevention expert 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:
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.
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.
About the author
Meg Stone is the executive director of IMPACT Boston, an abuse-prevention and empowerment self-defense organization. Her writing has been published in Huffington Post, Newsweek, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Dame, and Ms. She has received numerous awards for her work over the past thirty years. Meg lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with her partner, Mal, and a shockingly large collection of musical theater cast albums.
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