Fighting Back
The second part of our investigation into knife crime looks at a project designed to tackle the problem head on. It’s not run by a nagging teacher or a finger-wagging policeman, but a genuine expert on the subject of knives; Mark Davies is a professional martial arts instructor and Combative instructor to Special Forces. End of Term caught up with him to discuss his ‘Cutting Edge’ programme.
I asked Mark to outline what his programme is all about. “Basically the Cutting Edge programme aims to get young people to understand the consequences of using a weapon.” Illustrating further he says: “we really try to bring home exactly what will happen not just in their own lives but in the lives of everybody around them if they decide to go down that route. It’s a lecture based presentation.”
Mark is under no illusions regarding the reasons why young people choose to carry knives and has even explained these misguided notions, for the benefit of MSPs. “I did a presentation on my experiences in the parliament building.” Mark has a vast experience of dealing with people and because of his background, sometimes works as a door supervisor. “One of the things I tried to get over to the MSPs is that when I’m working at events for under 18′s and we search and find a kid with a weapon on them (we hold them whilst the police are called) and I’m sat speaking with them, is that only a very small percentage of them are hardcore gang members who are carrying a weapon because they want to actually use it. The vast majority of kids who are carrying these things are simply petrified of others who might be carrying weapons. It becomes almost like an arms race. They know Johnny down the street is a nasty piece of work and carries a weapon, so they think, ‘well if he’s carrying one, I better carry one as well’. What we find is that most of the kids that are carrying are in fact decent and intelligent kids. They simply haven’t thought about the consequences of pulling this weapon out in a moment of panic and using it. Young people live for the moment and often don’t think of the consequences. We find that when we go over the consequences they see that it isn’t a particularly smart move. Realistically, they can’t use a weapon to defend themselves lawfully, so they really have to look at other ways of keeping themselves safe.”
Lifestyle
Mark doesn’t isolate the challenges of knife crime from the lives of young people but realises that some will need to make distinct choices in order to keep themselves safe, and explains: “They’re worried about their personal safety. They need to look at their life and at where there are the potential areas where they could come to harm. Sometimes certain areas will present potential dangers.” He adds: “It’s simple; don’t visit there anymore. Go somewhere else… If you’re worried about being harmed as a result of the circle of friends that you keep, it may mean that you might have to be smart and change them. Sometimes, keeping safe takes intelligence and possibly changes to some of the things that are happening regarding lifestyle.” These are bold moves and tough choices to make but the alternatives could be grim.
Mark is a fully qualified Combative instructor to Special Forces. Cool eh? In fact I asked him if this, in a way, didn’t make the whole subject a little more glamorous than it should be. “Not at all” he answered. “What we do is the absolute opposite of glamour. There is research on knife crime and on different ways of combating it and one of the things highlighted by it, is that on a local basis, the most effective way to reduce knife carrying amongst young people is through the use of educational programmes, but that they need to be presented by people that young people can relate to and respect. It’s a waste of time for police officers, teachers and other authority figures to do it. With my background as a martial arts instructor to the special forces I get respect because of what I do; I’m not just another suit talking at them.”
Graphic
Mark doesn’t hold back during his talks and explains: “On the presentation side of things, we show people how terrible a scene it is when a weapon is used, and just examining how terrible the effects on their lives and everyone around them are. He continues: “Most people have never actually seen what a weapon does to a human being. I’ve witnessed it first-hand more times than I care to remember. We demonstrate that life isn’t like ‘Grand Theft Auto’. It’s terrible… You can taste it, you can smell it, it’s an awful scene and it destroys a life not just for the moment, but for years to come.
We present images of what a knife does. Imagine that done to somebody that you love. Would you like to be responsible for doing that to somebody else bearing in mind that they’ve got also got people that love them and care about them as well? Once again you look at it on the TV and in videogames where it looks like nothing. People don’t realise exactly what it does to the human body. We can be very graphic with it. Generally though, we just speak about it. The shock and awe images are pulled out if required. Anyway, as much as you want to get the message across, it’s no good having people running out into the corridor having turned green.”
Mark mentions that he has the backing of the Government who have been keen to find out about how the ‘Cutting Edge’ programme can help. “I’m the first martial artist to have been mentioned by name in a motion brought before the Scottish Parliament. There was a motion of support in the Scottish Parliament for my programme. We’ve had a lot of support” he says proudly.
No quick fix
So where does this leave the issue? Does this type of scheme hold the answer? “Sometimes I feel like banging my head off a wall and giving up… There is no quick fix. You can look at knife amnesties for example; but let’s use a bit of logic… Do you really think that ‘Charlie MacChav’ is going to, in a sudden moment of public responsibility, hand his weapons in at the next amnesty? No… Knife amnesty is a total waste of time as is banning various types of weapons. The crux of it comes down to how we engage young people.”
Mark is still heavily involved in martial arts and insists that proper tuition has real benefits. “The physical skills are secondary to the life skills that we teach. We have special games and drills to emphasise life skills like discipline, focus, control, teamwork and things like that. They learn in every single class the importance of showing each other, and the instructor, respect. Older kids become technically proficient, but we’re giving them both physical and mental fitness training.
There are still major problems with knives in Scotland. The ‘Cutting Edge’ programme is one method of attempting to deal with them. The real answer is in the hands of young people across the country. Thinking about social and lifestyle choices is something that all young people are responsible for and need to be made aware of.
Published in End Of Term , a magazine for scottish school leavers
