Kung Fu Making US Streets Safer

Bruce Lee once compared studying martial 1 arts to studying oneself. It's with that same philosophy that a group of community leaders in the US city of Philadelphia are introducing kung fu to youngsters in a bid to tackle gang crime. CRI's Dominic Swire has more.

 

Philadelphia's not a dangerous city by American standards. But a recent spate 2 of youth violence, much of it racially motivated, has left many scratching their heads about how to tackle the problem. Some believe the answer is kung fu.

"I'm standing 3 in the middle of one of America's largest Chinatowns in Philadelphia city. Just next to me is the entrance to a kung fu academy and I'm going to go in to see what's happening."

Inside senior student John Testino is practicing some moves.

"That was very impressive. Are noises important?"

"Yes, that enhances your power"

Academies like this are some of the few places in the city youths from all walks of life can come together and have fun. Sean Pond is one of them. Although coming here is expensive for him, he feels the benefit.

"I've definitely gotten stronger and I've changed my eating habits and when I've been training regularly my mind and memory even function better. So it has other effects, too, besides physical health."

Shu Pui Cheung is the teacher. He says kung fu is more than just fighting.

"I think the basic thing is to teach people how to respect and be friendly towards each other. That's very, very important. And teaching the individual how to focus on concentration and health. This is why a lot of people learn kung fu."

It's this philosophy that community leaders in Philadelphia hope to teach youngsters. Lieutenant 4 Maurice Tunstall is a police officer focusing on school crime.

"Bullying 5, peer pressure, assaults, aggravated 6 assaults, sexual assaults, drugs. Anything dealing 7 with violence. We have it all from A to Z."

To tackle youth crime, Lieutenant Tunstall is helping 8 to organize a kung fu exhibition for schools, partly sponsored by the Chinese community.

While some may question the logic 9 of reducing violence through teaching kids how to fight, organizers hope kung fu can inspire youngsters to build discipline. Lieutenant Tunstall again.

"Even if we change just one youth, to change his demeanor 10 to come round to a positive, as opposed to a negative, that's what we're doing."

Philadelphia's home state of Pennsylvania recorded 53 so-called 'hate' crimes motivated by prejudice in 2009, according to latest figures from the FBI. While that's 50 percent lower than five years before, community leaders hope to reduce these figures even more by inspiring youngsters through the Chinese art of kung fu.

Reporting from Philadelphia for CRI, I'm Dominic Swire.