Nobody can be unaware of the knife crime epidemic running through the nation where the government responds by cutting funding to youth work, education and just about everything else that troubled and vulnerable young people need to help them lead their best lives. Once again it has been left up to individuals and communities to provide caring and safe environments to instigate change. David Edgell is one of those individuals, co-founder of Gloves Up Knives Down(GUKD), a project that works with communities nationwide to provide access to boxing facilities, writes Michael Holland.
GUKD began when one of the co-founders’ relatives had been stabbed through his hands ‘effectively curtailing any boxing ambitions he had,’ says David. ‘It started in Essex as a visual initiative to direct kids away from knives in the street to the safety of boxing clubs, using social media platforms and relationships with boxers and clubs that some of the founders had already cultivated.’
Soon, GUKD spread across the counties, with recent events held with high-risk youths in Manchester, plus, in Hampshire in conjunction with the House Of Pain Boxing Club, one of whose young boxers was recently murdered.
The co-founders all have special partnerships with either the media, boxing clubs, film-makers, graphic designers, etc; they are people who can make things happen.
I asked David why use boxing as the go-to sport for young people to move away from gangs and knives. His answer explained everything: ‘Figuratively speaking, delinquent youngsters are drawn from the same social gene pool as a lot of boxers. People have a choice and, sadly, many make the wrong one. After having done so, many find it difficult to start again. Our credo is Preventative Intervention, targeted at kids aged between 7-13, to whom we give a free starter boxing kit and sponsor them for two free lessons. This programme was devised for us by United Nations Child Psychologist Professor Joana Carvalho Costa, MSc, PhD, who has extensive international experience, particularly in the Favelas of Brazil.
‘In a boxing club, you have respect and the support of a different family structure who encourages and nurtures you. Your mental acuity is heightened, you get fitter, eat better, nutritious foods, and have to think for yourself on the spot; all aspects of your life that are cast aside on the street. We aim to cultivate responsible citizens by changing the individual, his family, his carers, his peers and his community.’
All the top boxers have stated their backing of GUKD, and closer to home, SE London’s David Haye has shown a lot of interest, as well as some of our boxing clubs: Royal Resistance Gym(Kidbrooke), Sawyers Boxing Gym(Crayford), 12 Rounds Boxing Gym(Clapham).
Premier League football clubs, SKY Sports and MPs are also keen to get on board.
GUKD will soon be opening their own boxing club in Tottenham, where it will provide activities to embrace the whole community through boxercise classes. David says, ‘We hope to develop a template that can be rolled out nationwide’.
Check out GUKD:
Website: www.glovesupknivesdown.co.uk – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Z9BGS3s1EE