"Streetbeefs" is a YouTube channel that has unsanctioned backyard fights, boxing matches, MMA matches, as a way to settle disputes between two people instead of resorting to gun violence and other forms of dangerous street violence. They also have amateur fights with people who are not well trained if at all, but use it as a way to just let out some aggression. They have a referee, and even a registered nurse there in case of injury and to make sure fights stay one on one, and no dirty tricks (nut shots, eye gouging, etc.). I've always thought that sometimes just having two guys who have a problem just have at it in an environment like that, then at then end it's over with and handshakes all around, is not a terrible thing (so long as it is properly supervised and everyone is on the same page with fight rules, etc.). Do you guys think this is something that actually works... or even more recently, could curb gun violence?
Here is an ESPN article on them.
This open-air fight club in Virginia has become a destination for those looking to settle feuds, seek thrills and blow off steam.
www.espn.com
How about that? We did exactly this, as neighborhood kids, and it seemed to be a positive thing. At least, at the time.
Let me give you the perspective from one big-city neighborhood, albeit quite a few years ago:
It just so happened that several of us close neighbors in my old neighborhood, had pops who either fought in Golden Gloves or in the Service.
Every now & then as kids, when hostilities would break-out between us, our dads would make a quick make-shift backyard ring, put those over-sized puffy soft boxing gloves on us (I forgot what they're called), and let us loose in the ring to vent-out our animus. We never made it past a round or two, and it always resulted in the combatants coming together, not just shaking-hand afterwards, but actually heartfeltly embracing each-other.
There was an interesting aspect to this, though. At least for a time afterwards, the combatants would seem to form close friendships. You know when you're a group of kids, and individual kids have different degrees of closeness in their relationships with each other, and with time spent together? So you're really tight with a kid or two more than the others, but that closeness sometimes switches over the months and years as interests and time together changes? That's what I'm talking about. The combatants often became exceedingly close friends for some period afterwards.
This is old-school male-bonding / male-conflict resolution. I suspect it's politically incorrect these days. But it seemed to work for us as kids, at least then when we were younger.
I also believe this was part of the "fair fight" phenomenon & ethos, that was prevalent during that time & era. Two guys with a beef would agree to duke-it-out in a "fair" manner, where there is no kicking, biting, or any other behaviour except "Marquess of Queensberry" type rules. This includes no one getting seriously hurt. The guys would square-off, and their friends form a circle around and make sure the fight is "fair". The fight is bare-knuckle, "no gloves". It stops when a kid "gives", injury or bleeding occurs, or the fight becomes too one sided (in the eyes of the guys circled around).
Obviously this last form of neighborhood fighting could be problematic, as you've got unsupervised kids beating on each other with bare knuckles! I suspect this was exactly what our neighborhood fathers were trying to avoid!
I'll also add that Golden Gloves (& Silver Gloves!) was a really big deal in my neighborhood back then, and also in quite a few neighborhoods across the city. Golden gloves was often thought to be the preferred way to go about this type of stuff, and I might agree.
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So, what do I think of all this?
Under proper supervision (& safety), it might be a good thing. If it keeps the kids and young adults from settling their beefs in the street, I'm all for it.
But, I'm old school. My preference in this type of concept would be Marquess of Queensberry type traditional boxing. And also, I'm big on Golden Gloves.
