People being awkward/angry towards MA

[ProjectJanus]

Well, today at school I wore an extra pair of my Kung Fu shoes to school. One of my friends-not a very close one- asked what kind of shoes they were. I replied, "These are my martial arts shoes." She proceeded to give me a sort of...disgusted look and say "....martial arts, huh?"

And this is not the first time I have ever experianced this. When I told some people that I do martial arts they all laughed at me. Note: I really don't care what people think of me. Most people just say "Isnt that just for little kids?" and laugh. Honestly, where did these ignorant people get the idea that martial arts is just some thing for small children? I could care less if they didn't do martial arts, but you don't need to say anything.

Is it just the people around here, or is this everywhere?

I really want to spread the word, to end this epidemic of ignorance.

[Belasko]

I didn't notice it myself too much in regard to MA but I did notice that in the jr. high/highschool age there is a general abundance of ignorance in general. Plus I think that the usual attitude by many (not all) teens just accentuates this feeling. So in the end I think its a societal issue.

[scottnshelly]

Ignorance is nothing new in Martial Arts, and it’s not something exclusive to the Martial Arts. Everyone is ignorant is certain subjects. You may have heard of the subject but have little to no exposure to it. When this happens, you make associations in your mind. For example, if you have never been to a rodeo, never even met someone who had been to a rodeo, you would have no knowledge of it. You may have heard of a rodeo, but never actually witnessed one. If you meet someone wearing cowboy boots you might ask the same question that your friend asked you. When asked you might get “these are my rodeo boots” as a response. Since you have no exposure to rodeos, you would start to make associations in your mind. All of a sudden you might think of a cartoon that showed a rodeo; then you would think about that cartoon and how it depicted rodeos. This might give you the same response as it did your friend about Martial Arts.

Some people’s only exposure to Martial Arts is what they see on the television and hear others talk about. This is why there are so many different perceptions of what Martial Arts are. Some think of people in white gi’s breaking boards while others think of little kids with yellow belts pretending to kick each other. Some people might think of old Zen Masters sitting on top of a mountain while others might think of UFC style fighting. Some people might think of the legendary Samurai while others might think of sneaky Ninjas.

Everyone has heard of Martial Arts, but there are so many different styles that everyone’s experience with it is different. Everyone either went to a few classes as a kid, or some distant family member or former friend did.

I personally have grown to like this mass ignorance. It makes for good conversations. Next time you get that look of awkwardness or angriness, ask what they know about Martial Arts. This is the best way to educate the uninformed.

[Adonis]

I usually don't mention martail arts training because of that fact.

[usc96]

I get the occasional wax on, wax off comment from co-workers, but they still ask me to go to lunch with them so I take it as good natured ribbing. Plus, I guess a 35 year old taking up karate is kinda funny. I've learned to laugh at myself, so things like that really don't bother me.

[Sengra]

Actually,learning MA's here in my country is very much acceptable...that sometime's people start to brag, but the self-discpline you get from MA's is very much welcomed by everybody. I myself feel very comfortable and safe when I'm with a MA practitioner...^_^...

[KempoTiger]

Well, today at school I wore an extra pair of my Kung Fu shoes to school. One of my friends-not a very close one- asked what kind of shoes they were. I replied, "These are my martial arts shoes." She proceeded to give me a sort of...disgusted look and say "....martial arts, huh?"

And this is not the first time I have ever experianced this. When I told some people that I do martial arts they all laughed at me. Note: I really don't care what people think of me. Most people just say "Isnt that just for little kids?" and laugh. Honestly, where did these ignorant people get the idea that martial arts is just some thing for small children? I could care less if they didn't do martial arts, but you don't need to say anything.

Is it just the people around here, or is this everywhere?

I really want to spread the word, to end this epidemic of ignorance.

How old are you? If you're in high school that "little kids" comment is most likely derived from the Rick James skit on Chapelles Show where Rick James made fun of Charlie Murphy for doing some kind of "karate kick." He said something along the lines of, 'Charlie Murphy...doin Karate....probably takes class with the little kids.' (not an exact quote but pretty much the jist of it)

In my personal experience, not many people have mocked me or anything of the like at least to my face about doing martial arts. Part of that I attribute to the fact that I'm a black belt, and given the area I live in that puts a bit of fear and respect into my peers. Another part of that is I already proved myself in Jr. High/High school as I made clear in that post a while back that got deleted about what percentage of fights everyones "won".

[KempoTiger]

I get the occasional wax on, wax off comment from co-workers, but they still ask me to go to lunch with them so I take it as good natured ribbing. Plus, I guess a 35 year old taking up karate is kinda funny. I've learned to laugh at myself, so things like that really don't bother me.

ugh....yeah I get that all the time. I have a manager that only refers to me as "grasshopper" or "Daniel-son." 9 times out of 10 when I show up to work he bows to me. In turn I began to refer to him as "Master Miagi" so in the end we both just eventually end up laughing.

[Go To Sleep]

People are ignorant towards traditional martial arts, but respect things like boxing, wrestling, etc. Sad but true, it's just people being stupid.

[UseoForce]

I attribute a lot this in my area to the local McDojo. They think that represents the end-all of martial arts. My training couldn't be more different than that!