Forgotten Fury: Racism and discrimination in martial arts-Part 3

Originally published in the Amsterdam News, 2010 by Nigel Clarke (Clarke Illmatical)

“The media and the karate magazines never gave Black fighters the exposure and recognition they deserved,” explained Victor Moore, the man who became the first Black national karate champion in 1965 and went on to successfully place in every organized tournament for the next ten years. Moore defeated legendary fighters, including Chuck Norris, Bill “Superfoot” Wallace, and Joe Lewis. Despite these achievements, Moore’s entire career has been overshadowed by a piece of footage from the 1967 Ed Parker Long Beach Invitational, where he performed a speed drill with Bruce Lee.

The infamous footage shows Bruce Lee throwing a punch at Moore’s face, and Moore not blocking it. Moore protests this footage and says that the latter half of the video has never been shown to the public. He explained, “He [Lee] was supposed to come in on me and score punches to the chest. He came in and I blocked it; he came in again and I blocked it, and then he flashed at my face and I laughed. Then I said, ‘Okay, you stop mine.’ I came in and tagged him in the chest, came back again and tagged him in the chest. He blocked the third one and was a little embarrassed, I imagine.”

Why hasn’t the full footage of the 1967 Ed Parker Long Beach Invitational been shown? For years, Moore has been trying to get a hold of the footage so that the truth can be told.

In 1967, Karriem Abdallah became the first Black man in the United States to create a functioning karate system. At that time, it was unheard of for a Black man to establish such a system. Karriem was a successful fighter and teacher for years, producing champions from the “K.A. System.”

Regarding racism in martial arts and exclusion from the media, Abdallah says, “We haven’t been recognized because no one stepped to the forefront and paved the way for that recognition... As long as that exists, we’ll go on unrecognized. It’s like the old Negro leagues.”

Both of these men have shared instances of discrimination at tournaments.

Moore explains, “At the Jhoon Rhee Nationals in ’67, I wasn’t permitted to fight for first and second place, because he (Rhee) picked who he wanted to compete for first and second.” Jhoon Rhee is recognized by many as “The Father of American Taekwondo.”

Abdallah recalls attending an event in the 60s with Harlem’s karate master Fred Hamilton: “The Koreans were cheating all the Puerto Ricans and Blacks.”

When Fred Hamilton spoke out about the injustices he witnessed, both he and Karriem Abdallah were confronted physically. Discrimination at tournaments and partiality by the media have hindered the careers of Black and Hispanic martial artists.