Personal Protection: Bully Proof??

I am writing this in response to a recent article I read in the Winnipeg Free Press. It seems that there is no end to martial arts schools “selling” themselves as a one-stop shop for the ultimate self defense or promoting themselves as the best (when compared to all of the other martial arts systems out there).

I caution parents and teens. This is a buyer beware market. Much like the unregulated nutritional supplement industry, there is no authoritative body monitoring claims these martial arts systems make. One must utilize common sense, and try to see through the hype.

There are a number of martial arts systems that are popular due solely to their “popularity”. Television, the Olympics and mixed martial arts competitions have driven up the perceived effectiveness of certain martial arts. A consumer must realize that these venues all have one thing in common...Rules.

Now I will go on record in saying that some martial arts training is, in fact, better than no martial arts training at all. The article presents a scenario of an attempted child abduction and then alludes to bully proofing your child. Not that the two wouldn't be interrelated, however a 5 year old using leverage to “escape” the grip of an adult male can be a little far-fetched.

As far as abduction proofing your child, the emphasis should be on prevention. If you are going to teach your child to do anything, it should be to attack a vital area: for example the eyes, throat, or a good solid kick to the shin. Then escape. Don’t forget scream, scream and scream some more.

Now let’s deal with the Bully Proofing portion of the article...

The article makes statements like “but the bulk of the program is learning to restrain a bully who is usually within a few years of the child's age.” This is wishful thinking. Regardless of how much age and maturity the child victim is giving up to his or her bully, there is also the factor of weight. This can put the victim at a disadvantage in trying to utilize techniques like tackling your opponent to the ground and having enough weight to keep the bully there. Once on the ground, the technique is to cling to your attacker until they get tired...or bored, I guess. Without any real consequences, all this will do is prepare your bully for your take-down attempts in future altercations.

I agree with some parts of the article. Tell your attacker that you are tired of being bullied. I would add to this that you inform your attacker that you intend to get adults involved: a teacher, for example. The next step is to tell an adult; nothing to change here. The final step, which I totally disagree with, is to tackle your attacker to the ground. This can lead to a myriad of negative consequences, such as you are now the attacker to any teacher or adult who sees the altercation from this point forward. It also creates an aggressive atmosphere for retribution. Your bully will want revenge.

There are more, but the main point missed here is that in today’s bully scenarios there are fewer and fewer instances where a bully does not have a group of friends around as back up. If you tackle your bully to the ground, you are now open to kicks and punches from attackers you were unaware of. There have been children beaten to death from multiple attackers, and this is not an acceptable technique given those potential consequences.

Remember a bully needs an audience, and a lot of times they are his friends or fellow bullies. So do not anticipate that your altercation will be one on one, even if everyone who is there says so. It’s a trap.

Now, I believe that the first step is for the parents to talk with the child and develop a plan. Address the issue with the involvement of the principal, wherein the bully is told that any harm done to your child will be seen as directly related to him. This prevents him from “assigning” one of his friends to “take care” of the victim.

If you believe that self defense training is required, then I believe the best forms for these types of situations are the ones that allow you to defend yourself from a standing position, deal with multiple attackers, use small joint manipulation and leverage, combined with your opponent(s) aggression.

Most martial arts have aspects of these elements within their systems without requiring you to hug your opponent or take them to the ground where you are open to other attackers. Most Kung Fu styles are proficient in joint locks and multiple attacker scenarios. Aikido and Hapkido utilize joint locks, leverage and momentum to their advantage.

In short, don’t buy into what you see on TV. Do your research, and find something that you can approve of. Make sure the techniques will not result in your child or yourself being charged with assault.

Remember if I punch you, and you kick me, you will be charged with aggravated assault. It’s not worth going to court when you are just defending yourself. There are other more effective techniques that allow you to control your attacker(s) with less likely legal consequences.

Some things to think about:

http://www.timesonline.com/news/local_news/ellwood-city-second-grader-attacked-bullied-on-bus/article_84fb97d9-a303-5c4f-8d43-a7641f08bbc2.html

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/teen-allegedly-bullied-television-interview-bullying-140353690.html

http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/20/justice/new-york-bullying-attack-blind/index.html

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