Posted to Photo Galleries on

A group of Crown Heights kids get together weekly and learn the martial art of Karate.

Photos: Kids Learn Karate

A group of Crown Heights kids get together weekly and learn the martial art of Karate.

Related Articles

30 Comments

  • cc

    controversial. we want them to know how to protect but somehow its weird too. they should just grow up to be good jewish boys

  • yankel

    to cc. you’re just plain stupid and foolish. why is it weird for a jewish boy to learn self defense, discipline, integrity, self confidence and much more? If you dont like it, dont send your children there, but please dont make any asinine comments like “controversial. we want them to know how to protect but somehow its weird”.

  • Its about time...

    Finally….crown heights kids with a fun constructive organized extra curricular activity!
    They’ll grow up to be the protectors of Crown Heights, the way things are going now – you’ll need them!

  • go-ds right hand man

    to 4 cc
    a good jewish boy is successful/matzliach
    doing what you gotta do to be matzliach can include a variety of skills
    ldor vador oolnetzach netzachim

  • Ms. Y

    Gymies doesn’t seem to be able to find frum teachers. It’s more of a problem than many realize. Kids being called by “English equivalents” of their holy loshon ha’kodesh names, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

    And the management either truly doesn’t care about this issue, or is clueless about the problems this causes (thinks it’s “pareve”!).

    For this we pay money????

    There ARE frum people who can teach martial arts. [And has the avoidah zara been cleaned out of this course? Martial arts comes from Eastern religious traditions! Less likely if taught by someone who’s not a frum Yid.]

    There are frum people who can teach exercise classes. There are frum people who can teach gymnastics.

    Please do a better job of finding them (I know it’s not easy, but many of the things really worth doing in life are not easy.) For what the classes cost, you can afford to pay frum Yidden who have these skills.

    It’s so sad when people make something that has all the trappings of being completely “appropriate,” and then it turns out it’s not, right here in our neighborhood!!!!

  • All For it!

    CC:
    Why is being able to protect yourself going contradictory to being a good jewish boy. Are good Jewish boys supposed to be victims in all situations requiring self-defense or protection of another?

  • HT

    karate, Basil, Softball and bike rides. sounds like it’s the Five Towns, not the rebbe’s shchuneh.

    I guess that’s what happens when there’s no leadership…

  • to #5-wo, wo, wo

    what’s up with the name calling????:(you write: “you’re just plain stupid and foolish”)

    you have an opinion and so does someone else….

    chill out…

    there is definitely room for someone to be wary of the environment that their child frequents, and the activities that their children are involved in.

    for example, at the girls programs at this mini gym, many of the girls (older than 3) wear very not tznius outfits and will even head straight outside to go home wearing the same skimpy tutu that they wore to their class. We are not talking about one and two year olds.

    A child internalizes what they wear and how they act, to a great extent, especially when they begin to think that this is one of the “coolest” things that they can be doing.

    It can become their emphasis, and they can also begin to aspire to the life that comes along with living up to these activities on a full scale.

    Look at the way someone (even a child) dances, for example, in tznius clothing, and how they dance in non-tznius clothing. The difference will almost always be very apparent, with the non-tznius clothing evoking less tznius dance.

    It is also not the best idea for a young girl to be parading around in not tznius clothes, even indoors. You can not use the argument that she is so young, and pure, and it will not affect her. It WILL affect her, the same way pretty and tznius attire will positively affect a child to behave in a more refined manner.

    Look at the advertisements for children’s clothing in the secular world. You see young children posed in revealing and prusste clothing. Now look at what kids are up to nowadays. Do you honestly think that the clothes one wears, the hobbies one has, the activities one puts major emphasis on, will have no affect on a person???

    Of course it does-both in positive and negative ways.

    There is nothing wrong with a Yid being fit, and it is indeed a good thing, but one should make sure that it is done within the boundaries of Torah, halacha, and proper hashkafa and that that the physical activity does not become the main focus of the child or adult’s interest and life.

  • elisha

    when i was in a chayder the whole basketball game and sports would freeze by concensus and led by our rebbis who were yirei shamayim if our yarmulkahs fell offf

    soo my point is how in a chassidic karate class there is no allowance made at such a young age thAT All the boys MUST AND CANNOT OPERATE without wearing

    TZITZIS!

  • Kosher karate is already here

    #11 (Ms. Y) is right: there ARE “kosher” martial arts programs available. I don’t know if it’s still underway (I think it is), but for many years the Tora Dojo martial arts association, which is world-renowned as being for (mostly frum) Jews yet is absolutely authentic, held kids’ classes in Crown Heights. And they just started up a men’s class as well. If anyone wants to know more about that, the teacher’s name is Mordechai Genut (a second-degree black belt, not a brown belt like the guy in the pictures), and his contact information is: 718-801-6882 or Mgenut@gmail.com.

  • hello

    to # 16 g-d created eyes for a reason so i think you shuld look again before you talk actually every single kid is wearing TZITZIS!!!!!

  • Chana Lew

    Great Program! Go Gymies. Thanks for continuously providing fabulour classes for boys and girls of all ages.

  • Yonah in VA

    Krav Maga is the Israeli Defense Force martial art of choice. This form of self-defense is highly effective; the whole philosophy is simply self-defense against a hostile attacker, no Zen mumbo-jumbo. If my children knew Krav Maga, I would have confidence that they could defend themselves against assault.

  • AG

    Anyone living in a big city needs to know how to protect themselves, both boys and girls. I myself took karate as teenager and it once saved me when I was attacked by 2 blacks at the subway extrance at Nostrand and President St at night. Second it is a good exercise. My only negative comment is that the instuctor should be religious and a black belt. A religious instuctor would avoid the improper things you see in the pictures.

  • mom of two very happy girls!

    To all the nay sayers,

    Gymies is a special opportunity given to our children.

    For some kids it can be a real life saver. Many of our boys and girls suffer though their schooling and this is there time to shine. Why put it down!
    I my self am a mother of two girls that go to gymies and when they leave they are tznius because i make sure they are, this is the parents obligation.

    but nay sayers will always be nay sayers……or will they be? Try and see the good~

  • ju jitsu

    you know there is somthing called ju jitsu and i go to it and i am a blue belt i bet i could shmear them

  • sqvira

    Does anyone know if there is a “kosher” program for teenagers available somewere? Preferably closer to Flatbush.
    Thanks.

  • emes

    This is a huge mitzvah. In a place like Crown Heights, you either learn karate or buy a gun. This is good for shmiras shabbos. Instead of relying on R; Goren’s heter to carry a loaded gun on shabbos kodesh, they can defend themselves without doing the melacha of hotzaah.

  • So Crown Heights

    If I sent my kids to an after school program I would not want their photos to be posted on the web as an opening to public debate, something the kids surely hear about the next day at school. So Crown Heights.

  • KOSHER FRUM KARATE CLASSES

    Tora Dojo Martial Arts, an authentic eclectic system of traditional Martial Arts is being taught in Crown Heights by Second Degree Black Belt FRUM Instructor Mordechai Genut for the past 8 years. The classes are for boys ages (6-14) and for Men ages (15+).
    The classes are geared towards learning basic techniques such as blocking, striking,moving, stance work and defending against potential attackers.
    Mordechai Genut believes of the importance in studying Martial Arts to help you and your child improve self esteem, build confidence, discipline, self awareness, and to be able to protect yourself and the people that you love.
    For more information: Call (718) 801-6882 or email Mgenut@gmail.com