A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing

Fraud, as defined by Merriam-Webster:

    : the crime of using dishonest methods to take something valuable from another person

    : a person who pretends to be what he or she is not in order to trick people

    : a copy of something that is meant to look like the real thing in order to trick people

In martial arts, there are many degrees of fraud and it is rampant.  It can be something relatively minor, like using inflated claims to build business for a legitimate school, or dangerously serious, like those who fabricate lies about themselves and their art to try and gain followers for possibly nefarious purposes.

In my experience around the greater martial arts world, I have learned only a very small percent of martial arts teachers are complete frauds.  Out of that, an even smaller percent are doing it for criminal or predatory purposes.  Most of those are simply people who are attention seeking, have mental and emotional issues and live out a fantasy they have created.  However, there are also those who use fraud to build themselves up to get some kind of edge on others.  For instance, there are those who hold legitimate ranking and achievements in martial arts, but chose to add fraudulent details of their history, certifications or rankings in fraudulent arts, even lie about military, law enforcement and similar occupations.

So, when looking at martial arts teachers, you can broadly categorize them into three types:

1.  Credible - They are licensed to teach a legitimate art, or have earned enough rankings in legitimate arts to establish credibility in what they teach.  They only teach what they have been taught, or teach only from their direct and quantifiable knowledge and experience.

2.  Suspicious - They have one or more licenses or rankings in legitimate arts, but add licenses from arts which are not verifiable or are proven to be fraudulent.  They embellish their background with inflated or false occupations and experiences (Stolen Valor, law enforcement/security, secret underground fight tournaments, etc).  In a nutshell, they are a hybrid mix of verifiable, credible certifications and experience, along with certifications and experiences which are not verifiable and credible.

3.  Fraudulent - Everything about the teacher is unverifiable and not credible.  No line of transmission that can be proven.  No quantifiable and verifiable experience and training to back up their teaching.  May have some credible ranking or training, but not enough to qualify as a teacher.

Most martial arts teachers fall into #1.  But, in my decades of being involved in martial arts, an alarming number of teachers fall into #2.  Lastly, a small number of so-called "teachers" and "masters" fall into #3.

Teachers in #1 and #3 are pretty easy to tell.  It's that group in #2 who are the most difficult and, as a result, the most dangerous.  They can build trust with you and convince you that everything about them is true, because there is enough credibility to cause you to not question the things which are not so credible.  When that teacher is someone with predatory purposes, they may seek to take advantage of you financially, emotionally and maybe even physically.

Bottom line is that someone who has to rely on deception, instead of just being honest about who they are and what they teach, that can only be for the purpose to gain something from you to satisfy their own selfish desire.

A legitimate teacher (#1) will generally be upfront and honest about themselves and the art, provide whatever information you need to validate their legitimacy, and not try to dazzle you with made up stories or inflated claims.  They have a product (art), you want to learn it (be a student) and they agree to teach it to you (teacher).  They don't come to you, you go to them.

What is interesting is that some of the most legitimate, credible and amazing teachers are some of the hardest to be accepted by as a student.  They either have class size limits set in place, screen out those they don't want as students or even require a potential student to prove themselves first.  However, those who are fraudulent, whether partial or completely, most often are the ones who welcome anybody and everybody with open arms and a smile.

When it comes to martial arts teachers, trust is an essential component.  I mean, just because someone has fancy pedigrees on the wall and a hundred trophies on a shelf, that doesn't mean they are honest and credible.  In schools, teachers are background screened as a requirement for their licensing and, if they go out and commit crimes, their licensing would be pulled.  Martial arts licensing doesn't include a background check and, if they committed crimes, nobody is going to come pull their license.  They might get kicked out of the organization who issued their ranking, but unless you did your own research with the right sources (you are likely to not find anything on Google), how would you know?  Additionally, what if the teacher is either fraudulent or has created his own art (legit or not)?  Without a governing organization or head teacher to reach out to in order to check the credibility, what would you have to rely on?

Criminal or predatory purpose is one reason to avoid fraudulent teachers, or those who teach fraudulently (those are different things).  The other is something not often mentioned, but just as important - incorrect and even dangerous instruction.  Someone with some training can set up classes and teach new students, but if that teacher isn't trained enough to actually teach those techniques correctly, this can have devastating results to the student.  I don't just mean bad technique can get you injured or killed in a real encounter.  I also mean the damage that can happen to the knees, hips, back, neck, shoulders and other parts of the body.  The likelihood of injury, not just short term, but even long term, is critical.  You may not realize you are stressing your ACL or PCL in your knees until many years later.  By then, the accumulated damage leaves you with decreased mobility and potential knee surgery to repair it.  Your martial arts training should build you, not destroy you.

Now, I am not one to go out busting frauds.  I generally will not engage them in the various social media sites I belong to.  I find it is tiresome and useless, as they will just spin their stories and eventually make threats and challenges which have nothing to do with the question of their credibility.  However, it is important to point out the difference between a fraud and someone who is teaching their own system or art.  Bruce Lee created his own art (Jeet Kune Do), based upon his extensive training in Wing Chun, Kung Fu and other teachings he received from legitimate teachers.  The Gracie family started their own brand of Jiujitsu, but it all came from extensive training in Japanese Jujutsu and Judo, which are both credible and verifiable sources.  I personally know teachers who hold black belt ranks in different legitimate arts, but combined them into their own system or art.  Even though their art is their creation, it is based upon legitimate and credible sources, as well as black belt certifications of those arts.  In other words, they could teach just those arts they hold ranking in, but chose to combine them into one art.  That's not fraud, because they are very clear about what it is they teach and can prove their ranking in the arts which they based their teaching on.

So, what do I do about those who are complete frauds?  I ignore them.  If someone I know and like is seeking training from a fraud, I will warn them.  Otherwise, they have no effect or influence on my training and I choose to not allow the distraction they bring to interfere with my path.

But, what about those who are suspicious or partially fraudulent?  If I have a "need" to investigate into someone or what they profess to teach, I have the resources available to do it.  Networking with people you trust who are knowledgeable and credible is a huge asset.  Otherwise, I defer to my first statement above.  I may not deter someone from training with them, but might offer what I consider to be a more credible and trustworthy teacher or organization.

So, what about all the politics?  Well, for starters, there's a difference between politics and fraud.  Politics just means differences in viewpoints or ideologies.  Political conflict happens when those differences are the basis of disagreement.  Political conflict can be constructive or destructive, depending on the participants.  However, confronting or exposing fraud is not politics, because in politics, both sides can base their position on verifiable, credible fact (just interpreted or applied differently).  Fraud is fraud, not based on verifiable, credible fact.  Yet, those who are uncomfortable or who disagree with the idea of exposing or confronting fraud will often label it as political, when it simple does not fit that definition.

But, you have to ask yourself why a fraud or someone teaching fraudulently would need to be exposed or confronted.  That answer will depend on the person making the accusation or confrontation.  If it is to protect society, friends or family, such as the case with someone who is not only a fraud or teaching fraudulently, but also a convicted sex offender or other kind of criminal, then a case for justification could be reasonably made if someone feels compelled to do so.

However, if the fraudulent teacher or person who teaches fraudulently really doesn't pose a danger to anybody, exposing them or confronting them could be seen as simply bullying or harassment.  We all have heard about internet bullies, keyboard warriors and so on.  To me, it is a waste of time and energy to engage in such behavior, particularly when there is no justification other than the fact that the person being targeted is engaged in some fraudulent behavior (without any real danger to anybody).  The internet is full of fraudulent teaching and teachers who are nothing more than attention seeking narcissists.  Those people attract either the same kind of people, or those who are attracted to those kinds of people.  There is no victimization because everybody is a willing participant in the fantasy.  A responsible, mature adult should be able to spot these types and avoid them.  Confronting them and creating drama can actually reflect badly on the legitimate martial artist, their martial art and their organization.  The cost doesn't warrant the result.

The last part I want to write about may be uncomfortable to some and I may even take criticism for it.  But, there are literally hundreds of organizations who will (often for a fee) recognize a teacher and send them a certificate to show the affiliation.  There are Federations, Councils, Boards, Alliances, etc, all for the purpose of providing affiliation or certification to various martial artists around the world.  This is different than those organizations specific to a particular martial art (Such as the Bujinkan organization, International Shotokan Karate Assn (ISKA), etc).  The groups I mean are ones where they accept martial artists of all styles, with no validation process to even know if any of it's members are legitimate.  Often, those who are engaging in fraudulent behavior will collect such certifications and proudly display them on the wall.  Sometimes these are what people are presented over the actual ranking or teaching certification they should have to be able to teach their art.  It's slick marketing, to show that they are recognized by others, so that they can try to convince you of their credibility.  But, the truth of the matter is that none of these represent actual ranking, licensing or certification for the art they profess to teach.  It's the same for a teacher who has certificates for "Best Teacher of the Year", "Certificate of Recognition from the Academic Association", etc.  No matter what, that teacher must still have a legitimate, current teaching license issued by the governing agency who licenses teachers.

If someone chooses to align themselves with those who practice fraudulent behavior, then the credibility of that person can reasonably also be called into question. I have seen legitimate martial artists have their reputations stained from their good intentions to simply accept everybody into their circle.  By engaging in any kind of affiliation, the "nice guy" is really saying they don't care the person is deceiving others and engaging in behavior that opens the door to criminal activity and victimizing others.  In addition, for a legitimate teacher to align himself with someone who is knowingly engaged in fraudulent behavior, they are allowing that person to use their name and status as validation, much like the various association certificates I mentioned above.  Remember, frauds seek to take advantage of others for their gain.  If that means using terms like "brother", "friend", etc and building a relationship with actual, credible teachers in order to make themselves appear credible and trustworthy, then that is just further proof of their fraud.

It is a buyer-beware market in martial arts, without any sort of real checks and balances being used.  We all need to be aware of predatory behaviors, questionable claims and nefarious backgrounds.  Most of the time all that comes with a friendly smile and open arms.