With the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial (and possible appeal due to the wreckless rhetoric of Congresswoman Maxine Waters,) police reform is on everyone’s mind. It’s my opinion police corruption does exist, but only in certain cities. The public can combat that corruption by raising up departments in more ethical cities, and even from other countries. Japan is home to the safest cities in the world, and they’re kept that way by police who practice martial arts and make it a lifestyle.
In the following YouTube video by Chadi, we learn that police in Japan are required to practice Judo, and encouraged to practice Kendo. Judo and Kendo are modern and streamlined versions of Jiu-jutsu and Kenjutsu, respectively. Jiu-jutsu and Kenjutsu were practiced by samurai in Japan’s feudal age. Judo is a style of unarmed grappling, and Kendo is Japanese-style swordsmanship.
It may not seem like sword fighting has any use in modern times outside of sports. However, the video explains that Kendo teaches one a proper mindset and split-second decision making. Judo has more practical use to modern police when they need to subdue and handcuff suspects. The debate in the Derek Chauvin trial was that, even though George Floyd was on drugs that impaired his breathing, Chauvin shouldn’t have held his knee on Floyd’s neck for so long. I invite practitioners of Judo and Jiu-jutsu to comment whether there are any safer submission techniques available.
It’s not enough to learn martial arts techniques, however. One must practice them regularly and strive to continuously improve. A commenter on one of Chadi’s other videos discusses the need for constant practice, or else the skills will deteriorate, and the police officer will revert back to unsafe practices. Whatever style of martial arts you practice, it’s meant to be a lifetime pursuit of excellence.