Martial Arts & Self‑Defense

• Queer Fight School – Jiu Jitsu & Muay Thai – A queer/trans-friendly martial arts collective teaching BJJ, Muay Thai, and self-defense. Instagram
  
• Gay Fight Club – Red Planet MMA (Bushwick) – A “pay-what-you-can” queer Muay Thai and kickboxing clinic led by LGBTQ+ coaches. Bushwick Daily+1Facebook+1
  
• Fearless Queers Self-Defense – Manhattan-based queer/trans-led open martial arts and self-defense sessions for all styles. Instagram
  
• Brooklyn Women’s Martial Arts / Center for Anti-Violence Education – Feminist and queer-friendly self-defense dojo originating in the 1970s, with historical impact. 
• Queer Karate – 227 Madison St (doNYC) – Combines karate, aikido, kickboxing, and tai chi in queer-affirming classes. (donyc.com)
• ENOUGH Self‑Defense – The first self-defense program by and for queer individuals, teaching physical, verbal, and emotional defense tools in a community‑focused environment. (roninathletics.com+4Enough Self Defense+4Instagram+4)

• Center for Anti-Violence Education – Empowerment Self‑Defense – 90-minute weekly physical self-defense sessions open to LGBTQ+ folks, Center for Anti-Violence Education (formerly Brooklyn Women’s Martial Arts) – Pioneered self-defense for trans people, women of color, and people living with HIV/AIDS since the 1970s
• Pop Gym – Queer/Trans MMA Workshops – Free mixed martial arts and protest-oriented self-defense workshops rooted in queer/feminist practice.

• NY Hung Ga Dance & Martial Arts – LGBT Self-Defense Classes – East Village studio offering free queer-focused classes in de-escalation and self-defense.
• Center for Anti-Violence Education (formerly Brooklyn Women’s Martial Arts) – Pioneered self-defense for trans people, women of color, and people living with HIV/AIDS since the 1970s
• Gun Safety & De-escalation Workshops – Available through community coalitions (e.g., CAE), oriented to queer/trans survivors; inquiries via caeinfo@caeny.org.
• Non-Lethal Self‑Defense Tools – Queer mutual aid campaigns (inspired by “Arm the Girls”) provide safe tools such as pepper gel, alarms, and support workshops—contact via local queer aid networks.

• Center for Anti-Violence Education – Empowerment Self‑Defense – 90-minute weekly physical self-defense sessions open to LGBTQ+ folks, covering verbal boundary-setting and situational safety. 
• Spray & Slay – Nonbinarian Bookstore Workshop – A free, BIPOC queer/trans-focused event in Brooklyn to decorate and learn to use pepper spray with target practice and safety tips.
• Arm the Girls & We Are the Ones NYC – Mutual aid project distributing pepper gel, stun guns, alarms, and full kits (valued at ~$300) to Black and Brown trans femmes, including NYC
• Community Pepper Spray Giveaways (Chinatown Block Watch) – Recent NYC-based distributions offering free pepper spray to vulnerable New Yorkers in Chinatown