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In this video, I talk about STREET FIGHTS in the 1970s. The reality of skilled boxers that came from generations of skilled boxers. It was the norm for everyone over 15 or so to be able to box, wrestle or were good karate practitioners. The street matches were skilled and competitive. This is some of the history of my personal experiences.
Enjoy,
S
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Yessir. Folks had quickness,good jabs and could roll with a punch. And you almost never heard of a martial artist getting his ass kicked either. From the first day in the dojo they already knew how to fight. The boxed or did Karate to discipline their minds and bodies but they already were willing to fight. There was a code too. If you lost,he was the better man that day. You didn't go back and revenge with a piece. You took your ass whoopin and vowed not to let it happen again. You got better and there was respect even if you didn't like him.
The 70s look much more interesting that this feminized, plastic, materialistic era
I remember being in a street fight in highscool 5 years ago ,and just hearing everyone laughing at the fight but to my surprise everyone showed me respect that I didnt think I deserved after that day ,
I'm a boxer/martial artist and I remember very well some of the fights with some skilled and unskilled . You are right about some skilled fighters coming from families who were boxers . The term " couldn't BUST a Grape is a jailhouse expression that I have heard many times before.
The couch looking comfy asf.
Great video.
If anyone has doubts about his claim of Police watching fights. It's TRUE, my father who is almost 80. Told me the same thing and we are out here in Los Angeles.
He once had a fight back in the late 1950s, and two LAPD stopped to watch. Initially one of the cops was going to break it up, but his partner held him back.
Why? Because the fight was that good.
Also he told me that back then there were so many tough guys. Dudes who knew where to punch, how to punch, running sets (combinations), parrying, body shots etc.
Just wild stories that many wouldn't believe. Hell they fought the police also!
Three of his homeboys once whooped up half of LAPD 77th division, after an officer called one of them the N-word, when they were being finger printed.
Man, I love when you share your experiences and how they shape your perspective. With regards to the age you were describing , can I run some things by you? I'm particularly curious about how society shifted from this level of skill and honorable combat culture to what we have now, as well as what we have now as a trend set by hoods of today.
So first of all, I wanted to see if my understanding of how street fighting evolved is correct. I see three stages
1. The age where it was common for people to be trained in boxing or martial arts, and where this is how people settled disputes. I see being a long stage that reached its apex somewhere in the 70s, maybe early 80s depending who I talk to. Guys knew how to fight, and it was more socially acceptable to fight.
2. A decline which gave us the uneducated street fighter. Not sure when it started, but by the 90s it looked like people were down to crude, instinctive fighting. Coming up in the early 2000s, it looked like martial arts set the martial artist apart ( I also feel like more places were training people how to deal with wild haymakers and grabs, and less on fighting another trained individual).
3. Whatever we have now. So, mma is popular and you see mma tecniques in many street fights, but there's more emulation than actual trained people. There's not alot of mma fighters out there per se, but definitely people who will try to slam you or rear naked choke you etc.
I feel like overall quality went down, and I see this partly because of something that changed in the upbringing of young men. Not that we ever lost the DESIRE to be skilled, and to be honorable combatants but violence became less socially acceptable. My dad told me if guys fought at his school, they were made to shake hands after and clean tables. But when I was in school, even if you defended yourself you'd be suspended. So society through schooling and law enforcement basically forced parents to discourage even honorable, social fighting or have their children face consequences. The school to prison pipeline grew and in general the attitude in schools went from ," make mistakes and learn ", to, " make mistakes and pay".
Do I seem right?
The the thing I was curious about with hoods is, kind of tricky. So , I'm just outside of Chicago. A known problem is, we have so many young guys who will FIGHT, but suck and will shoot people if they lose. Many now choose guns off the bat. At the same time, my friends who were in the hood told me of untrained fighters who just got GOOD, as well as some trained fighters.
But, did fighting become more antisocial/ criminal ? My reasoning is this: what you described sounded really organized, and respectful. There was a ritual where people fought like men, and like you said it would often be humbling.
As opposed to now, I feel that culture has been diminished and the one that replaced it ( besides the one where all violence is bad) is one where people are just egotistical and sadistic. Because like I said, so many people can't stand to be humbled. Like the way I feel about fighting now, I just don't trust anyone except my friends to have an honorable fight with me. Also, if I did have an honorable fight cops would still pick me up and charge us both.
So basically, is it also right to say that we moved away from a culture where violence is still present, but martial honor is fringe?
Hi Sayf. I'm a little older than you are and I remember ''back in the day'', seeing guys fight on the street, as well as fighting myself. It was normal. I grew up in DC and my older brother had a reputation for throwing hands. My father and uncles were ex military. Backing down from a fight was never an option for me. If I ever backed down, my brother would have kicked my ass. I remember seeing one knife fight back then, but otherwise, I only saw men fight with their fists. NOBODY pulled a gun. The last time I saw an actual fist fight was several years ago in Philly, and I remember being surprised by it because I had not seen it in so long.
I Remember Even the Girls were Beating Down Dudes ! Especially the Big Sister Protecting her Little Brother !
I Remember those days back in the 70's , 80's and the Early 90's ! That was the Real MMA !
Visions of the Warriors, the Education of Sonny Carson, and others dance in my head. It was the good to see a duel between prepared fighters, now the scared hide behind guns. Blessings to you brother
We need some stories about those fights and others youve seen shaikh! It aint nothing like hearing the stories of the past from the OG’s teaching us the game! As salaamu alaikum shaykh!
Man, those sound like great times I wish beef could be settled this way today but unfortunately most people now won't put up their hands win or lose. Thanks for sharing
was there a code in those fights? I personally feel even guys who call themselves combatives instructors often teach to go for a riskier but perceived as cleaner move when you have for example an open path to knee to the groin or do something like that
I remember you stating that in a street fight it is not smart to throw a kick higher than the knee level for fear tgat your opponent will grab it. Do you remember kicking higher than knee level in any street fights? If you were not throwing many kicks then you were utilizing more of your boxing training than your karate training correct?
La had a big karate boom in the 70s alot of gang members had reputation for fighting
TO THIS FORUM: This video is a RESPONSE to several people who asked about my personal street fight memories. I want to say that at NO TIME do I want to give the impression that I was the baddest man on the planet!!! I have had my share of street fights in my youth and while I won most of them, I have had several where I was sure glad someone broke them up lol. I was TIRED and wilting fast. :). Thank all of you also for not ragging on my spelling when I screw up in the description box. Just got some help with my website and all, but still much I do myself along with 13 other things. God Bless, appreciate cha, Sayf