At Greenwich Boys & Girls Club: Sensei teachers self-control in battle against bullying

Written by Yevgeniya Kusayeva, Post Correspondent
Monday, 16 January 2012 17:00

In the battle against bullying, one karate instructor encourages kids to practice self-control and presence of mind over throwing fists.

Sensei John Mirrione, founder of Harmony by Karate, stopped by the Greenwich Boys and Girls Club last week as a part of his National Stop Bullying Campaign. The club gathered fifth graders in the auditorium to watch public service announcements for the campaign and to see Mr. Mirrione show off his moves.

Mr. Mirrione has appeared on several major news stations and has spoken on Oprah about his anti-bullying campaign. He published a book called Philosophy of the Week, and also posts on YouTube with reflections from the book.

The victim of bullying himself growing up, Mr. Mirrione opened up to the Greenwich kids about his own experiences overcoming adversity. He talked about one incident in which he was attacked by other kids when he was eight years old. He also spoke of how pneumonia landed him in the hospital. While in the hospital, he said a friend introduced the power of meditation and breathing to alleviate his sickness. He then had the kids practice deep breathing to “blow out” bad thoughts.

Mr. Mirrione’s father, who owned a karate practice, initially trained him at a young age. He acknowledged that many are only interested in karate as entertainment or sport. It took him years to understand the importance of meditation and discipline.

He shared with the kids one strategy to prevent bullying. Pulling two volunteers from the crowd, he advised them to act out a short scene. One, cast as the “bully,” was told to push the other child who acted as the “victim.” When the bully pushed the other child, everyone in the group had to yell, “Stop!” Mr. Mirrione told them that this should be applied to life, that they should not turn a blind eye if they witness bullying.

There was a sensitive moment when Mr. Mirrione asked for a show of hands from the kids who have been a bully. Another, to show whether the kids believed being bullied was their fault. He was very careful in explaining the boundaries of certain actions. He clearly wanted to express that strong emotions require the appropriate actions, but that action is not violence. He explained that being bullied is not the victim’s fault — it is how some children express their emotions.

A main draw of the program, however, was Mr. Mirrione’s karate moves. He spoke to the kids about the value of meditation for spiritual growth, asking them whether there could be “harmony” in karate, a sport that is sometimes perceived as violent.

From the start, the kids were eager to see Mr. Mirrione’s demonstrations. He asked for volunteers to stand up to show off their kicks and punches. One boy attempted Mr. Mirrione’s bold one-handed push up. Mr. Mirrione proceeded to do the push-ups with one knuckle resting on a concrete slab.

Mr. Mirrione instilled an air of confidence and trust in the room as more kids stood up to participate. By the end, the kids stole the show when Mr. Mirrione wanted to show off his break dancing mixed with karate moves.

There were many questions from the audience. One boy asked if the sensei could break things. They wanted to see the concrete or a wooden board kicked in half like an action movie.

“No,” he said, “the board don’t hit back.”

Mr. Mirrione will be on tour this year, but at home he continues to train his own children.

For more information on the campaign visit the Web site, harmonybykarate.com/antibully.htm.

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