I'm going to assume that if you post on this forum, you already know who Xu Xiaodong is; he's a Chinese MMA fighter who beats the shit out of garbage kung fu instructors to demonstrate that their kung fu is garbage.
Today, I stumbled upon this golden nugget:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pvyu...youtu.be&t=128
A European "Wingtchun" instructor - who continues the proud tradition of creatively respelling Wing Chun - has challenged Xu Xiaodong to a gong sau. In the course of that challenge, he dropped this golden nugget political obliviousness:
""I am from the West and I have full right to represent the Chinese culture and Chinese martial arts."
I'm still parsing apart everything troublesome in this statement. This is an Italian guy not only claiming ownership of Chinese martial arts - and more astoundingly, Chinese culture- and then telling an actual Chinese martial artist in China that he lacks ownership of said tradition.
I know he's a tough read, but man, I really feel like Edward Said should be required reading for martial arts instructors. This is just... embarrassing.
Today, I stumbled upon this golden nugget:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pvyu...youtu.be&t=128
A European "Wingtchun" instructor - who continues the proud tradition of creatively respelling Wing Chun - has challenged Xu Xiaodong to a gong sau. In the course of that challenge, he dropped this golden nugget political obliviousness:
""I am from the West and I have full right to represent the Chinese culture and Chinese martial arts."
I'm still parsing apart everything troublesome in this statement. This is an Italian guy not only claiming ownership of Chinese martial arts - and more astoundingly, Chinese culture- and then telling an actual Chinese martial artist in China that he lacks ownership of said tradition.
I know he's a tough read, but man, I really feel like Edward Said should be required reading for martial arts instructors. This is just... embarrassing.
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