Strong against bullying
Martial arts studio hosts empowerment workshop
About 1 in 3 students in the United States have reported being victims of bullying at school, according to a 2011 report from the National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice Statistics.
The harmful experience can then lead to negative physical, school, and mental health issues.
It is with this in mind that the John Wai Kung Fu Academy in Plantation organized its first Youth Empowerment Workshop against bullying this week.
Assistant Instructor Lian Chung, said the academy typically implements bullying prevention in their classes and decided to create a workshop to reach out further to the community in time for the new school year.
“We want to make sure that they feel prepared and confident enough to walk through the halls knowing that they’re going to have a good year,” said Chung.
The free workshop brought together 40 kids of various ages to learn assertive verbal
communication skills, appropriate body language, how to identify bullies, techniques to assist a friend being bullied, as well as self-defense strategies.
Chung said they wanted to focus more on empowering the students instead of promoting physical aggression, stressing the importance of awareness, avoidance and assertiveness. The self-defense techniques involving kicks and wrists blocks are reserved as last resort actions in the event one must stand up for themselves and escape a situation.
“We’re teaching them how to be more confident and kind of raise their chin high and stand up for themselves and others if they are being verbally bullied,” said Chung.
Anya Carey, a student at the academy,
participated in the event. She recalled having stood up to bullies for friends in the past, some of which were making mean comments.
“Stay verbal and if they start getting physical, like really physical, make sure that you’re defending yourself,” Carey said.
Christian Espinoza was another one of the kids participating in the event. The 11-year-old said he has always been bullied throughout his school career, making him equally mad and sad.
To bullies, Espinoza said they should stop because he does not like being bullied.
To his fellow victims of bullying, he said, “Stay strong and try to stick up for yourself.”
“We’re teaching them how to be more confident and kind of raise their chin high and stand up for themselves and others if they are being verbally bullied.” — Lian Chung, John Wai Kung Fu Academy assistant instructor