Last week a Today Show segment featured the growing trend of women becoming bodyguards. Instead of the stereotypical brawny male bodyguard, celebrities and other high profile clients are asking for female bodyguards. Why? Women can be just as well trained in threat assessment, self defense and weapons as a man and we have the added advantage of blending in with our surroundings. In a reversal of feminism (interestingly enough), the bodyguard would be seen by others as a member of the celebrities’ inner circle rather than outside security.
After I viewed the segment, I fantasized about becoming a bodyguard. I was absolutely fascinated, because it seemed that it would be a complete adrenalin rush. It seemed that I was ignoring the realities of the position. The reality is less glamorous and more about intelligence.
The opening shot of the Today Show was of a no-nonsense woman preparing to shoot. In 2008, Anna Loginova, a very famous and glamorous Russian bodyguard was killed in a carjacking in Moscow. She was a former model who opened her own agency, specializing in female bodyguards. In Egypt, the Falcon Group, also specializes in providing female bodyguards to high profile women in the middle east. They even provided protection for Beyonce for her concert last year. The bodyguards do not carry guns, but are trained in the martial arts. As the role of women in the middle east change and more women travel outside of their homes, it is preferable to have another woman guard them. The owners of the Falcon Group are set to open a second office in Lebanon. In Libya, the most talked about female bodyguards are those of Muammar Qaddafi who dress in military camouflage and do not blend in at all!
At bodyguardcareers.com, the profile questionnaire was decidedly heavy on military or law enforcement experience. These are backgrounds that are decidedly male dominated, but as more women enter law enforcement and/or the military more women make seek executive protection as a career. That same website touts women as bodyguards.
So, I ask you, would you pursue a career as a bodyguard?
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