Today is the day that Israelis stop to remember the Holocaust. But the reality is that this should not just be a day for Jews and Israelis stop to remember. If you are practicing Krav Maga and are not Jewish, or Israeli, which I have found to be the majority of practitioners then this is a day for you to honor as well.
The reason for this is quite simple, though the Holocaust was one of the worst (not only) and most talked about and historically documented examples of the evil humans can do, there is some good that came out of it. Two very important things in my life were born because of the Holocaust, one is the state of Israel and the other was the birth of Krav Maga.
It is likely, that had the Nazis never decided to commit mass genocide against my people and others that neither of these things would have born. Imi Licthenfeld started putting together his new mixed system for self-defense when the Nazi would go around and pick on all the Jews prior to the war. He said enough is enough and as a result the world’s most effective self-defense system was developed.
It also is a major reason I decided to move to Israel to join the army, though I am highly critical of Israel just as I am towards anything you must remember that I was willing to give my life for the existence of the country. Though I choose not to stay and not to live in Israel for a variety of reasons, I put my life on the line to defend it because I like many Jews said, NEVER AGAIN!
Never again is the motto for the Holocaust post WWII and yet, while it may not have happened again for the Jews to the degree it is still happening again, and again, and again.
If you are a Krav Maga practitioner, this day should be important to you because it is part of your systems heritage. Not only that, Krav Maga practitioners do it to protect themselves. Perhaps its because you never again want violence against yourself to occur but as a practitioner it is far more than that. To me it is a lifestyle to avoid and prevent violence both to our selves and others.
For these few simple reasons, I say to you, if you practice Krav Maga, you too should remember, and join in with me and say NEVER AGAIN!
Written by: Jonathan Fader