An MMA champion and Olympian is speaking out against hate and racism after a CBC News investigation found that certain martial arts gym owners, coaches and trainers were among the attendees of a secretive neo-Nazi conference in Vancouver over the summer.
Arjan Singh Bhullar, a Richmond-based former mixed martial arts (MMA) heavyweight champion who represented Canada at the 2012 London Olympic Games, said he was shocked and disgusted to learn that some members of the martial arts community are engaged with white supremacist activity.
“You know, my initial thought was to fight hate with hate, maybe as a combat athlete and fighter, but you know … that’s never the answer,” he told CBC’s On the Coast.
“We have no place for this in society and in sport, especially martial arts.”
Researchers have long warned about the “infiltration” of the martial arts community by neo-Nazi and white supremacist movements.
But after CBC News published its investigation, naming specific individuals involved with MMA who went to the neo-Nazi gathering, Bhullar was quick to defend the sport as a force for good.
“Martial arts is a perfect common denominator to bring people together from different communities, different cultures,” he said.
“Those that are tied to this are not a representation of our sport and our community. And I guarantee you they will not be welcome back.”
Bhullar, who runs a foundation for youth, says martial arts should promote respect, discipline and community — and that he’s even run youth programs to combat hate and racism.
“It is an extreme sport in terms of testing your physical and mental limits… [But] we’re not drawn to extreme ideology,” he said.
“There’s an extreme nature to the sport, the physicality of it, and that’s where it stops.”
Policy change
The Fitness Industry Council of Canada (FIC) also spoke out, saying in a statement that those named in CBC News’s story were not welcome in its organization.
“None of the identified individuals, nor their organizations, are members of the Fitness Industry Council of Canada — nor will they ever be allowed to join,” reads the non-profit’s statement.
The FIC, which lists several prominent gym chains among its members, also outlined several actions it hopes will strengthen inclusion in the industry.
A national non-profit, which represents the interests of the Canadian fitness industry, says it will develop guidelines to guard against extremists and hate in the fitness world. (Kokulina/Shutterstock)
That includes reviewing its membership vetting process to make sure those with “extremist ties” cannot access its resources or events.
The council says it will develop a national code of conduct to help gyms, studios and trainers to recognize and respond to “hate-based recruitment and activity.”
“Our industry exists to uplift Canadians — body, mind, and spirit. Anyone spreading extremist ideology stands in complete opposition to everything we believe in,” reads a statement from Zach Weston, the executive director of FIC.