Bullying or bullying is not something that should be taken lightly. Some people think that worrying is an exaggeration, as it has always existed: making fun of other partners or making fun of the physique of others is nothing new. However, this does not mean that it is correct or that it should be tolerated.
Bullying is something that if you get out of control, the consequences can be tragic. That is why it is important that measures be taken to prevent and combat it. Unfortunately, being a sensitive issue, not all ideas are good.
Now MadFit, a gym in Madrid, has been denounced by the Municipal Police by offering Krav Maga courses for children from 4 years old as a way to combat bullying.
What is the Krav Maga?
It is a system adopted by the Israel Defense and Security Forces, which consists of a method of close combat and is currently very popular to be used as self defense.
The purpose of Krav Maga is not to obtain victory in a fight, but to defend oneself and get alive from a real situation or confrontation. When children are taught, The main idea is that they learn to identify possible threats such as bullies or kidnappers, as well as teach them discipline, safety and promote their self-esteem.
Why has it been reported?
Perhaps when reading what the Krav Maga consists of, you wonder why the gymnasium has been denounced. At first glance it's just a self-defense class for children like karate, although it is important to mention that Krav Maga is more aggressive or heavy than other martial arts. Seeing it from this point I think it might be a good idea, because it never hurts to prepare them for possible risk situations.
The whole problem arose from an advertising of the classes offered by MadFit, which, in my personal opinion, had a very bad planning. They advertised on networks claiming that Children's Krav Maga classes were "the best option" against bullying, and accompanied by an image in which two children were fighting.
According to information from the CDM sport portal, it was found that the advertising was also in the establishment, so they proceeded to sue the head of the gym for a possible violation of the Childhood and Adolescence Guarantees Law of the Community of Madrid.
"Publications may be contrary to law, making an apology for violence, encouraging guidelines that lead to an incorrect development of the personality of minors.", they declare in a post on their Facebook page.
The gym apologizes but also defends its position
The news has been published in various media, so the gym has posted on its Facebook page a response in which they clarify that their intention is not to promote violence and advertising has been withdrawn.
As I said at the beginning of the article, I personally believe that teaching children measures so that they can defend themselves in dangerous situations seems to me to be an excellent idea. And it seems to me that Learning a martial art alone cannot lead to an incorrect development of children's personality. What would happen then with the classes of karate, tae kwan do or judo?
Violence is not the solution, nor will it ever be.
The problem is that they have taken it as a measure to prevent bullying. Let's analyze the image again. Two children appear fighting: the girl is clearly seen throwing a kick to the boy's abdomen, and next to it a sign that says "STOP bullying"How do we interpret this? It makes us understand that the way to stop a bully is by attacking him.
But the solution to bullying will never be to respond with violence. To prevent and combat bullying there are other measures that we can take, and that start from our own home.
We can all contribute to avoid bullying, and the solution is not to turn the other way or educate our children to return the blow or push. Let's talk to our children, learn to detect the signs of bullying and always keep in mind that any type of violence it is not resolved with more violence.
