Fun Fighting Workshops

Hi Fighting Friends! Our next Fun Fighting Workshop will be in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, May 16th, 2026. Register here!

What is Fun Fighting?

Fun Fighting Workshops (formerly known as Femm Fighting) are twice-yearly martial arts training events for women, trans, and nonbinary martial artists. Michelle Johnson (that’s me) and Jaydra Perfetti co-host these events at Jaydra’s home school, Southwest Portland Martial Arts. Our intention is to create fun and enriching cross-style training opportunities and to build community and camaraderie among folks whose gender identities may be underrepresented in the martial arts.

Jaydra and I recently change the name of our event to “Fun Fighting” after we realized that the name “Femm Fighting” felt alienating to some of our trans men and masc community. We aim to create an inclusive space for those who may experience gender discrimination in the martial arts, and we hope that the new gender-free name encompasses the spirit of the event. The feel of the event and who the event is for remain the same.

Jaydra and I recently spoke about what are the do’s and don’ts of the space we’re creating so that folks can determine for themselves if Fun Fighting is a space for them:

What kind of space we are creating:

• Everyone is a valuable member of the space

• Hierarchy-free presentation

• Sharing atmosphere

• Actions and words that build each other up

• Consent, consent, consent

• Trauma-informed space

• Folks are receptive to learning and self-reflection

• Awareness and acknowledgement of how gender oppression feels

• Experience care instead of more trauma

Actions and words that are not invited:

• Domination or controlling others in training

• An attitude that values competition more than cameraderie

• Patriarchal power dynamics

• The base assumption that men are the default authority

• The assumption that men are more valuable, right, and in charge

• Sexual comments, jokes, or contact

• Sexist, racist, or gender-discriminatory comments or jokes

• Discriminatory language or actions

Many of us, myself included, have experienced sexism and gender discrimination in male-dominated martial arts schools. These incidents are painful, and often occur because men are unaware of the ways they perpetuate their dominance in our culture. Because of this, Fun Fighting is not currently open to those who identify as cisgender men. We work mindfully to create a safe space for those who may have an embodied experience of gender discrimination. There are plenty of training spaces available to cisgender men– Fun Fighting is a safe space for the rest of us.

We hope that these guidelines help you get a sense of the atmosphere we aim to create with Fun Fighting, and to decide if Fun Fighting is a good fit for you. If you would like to be on the email list for future events or have any questions, please send us a message. To read about a previous Femm Fighting event, check out this post.

Thank you!