Bruce Lee™ in Northern Ireland
by Paul Crossey
John Little, Andy Kimura, and James Bishop made their first visit to Ireland on the 25th of September, 2000. The visit was hosted by Martin O’Neill, a senior social worker and Jeet Kune Do instructor, and the Jun Fan/Jeet Kune Do Association of Ireland, which is based in Belfast and Lurgan, Northern Ireland. Little, Kimura, and Bishop shared Lee’s philosophy with the people of Ireland, giving insights into his life and how his philosophy can be applied to our own lives.
Martin O’Neill explains the reasons behind the visit, saying, “I wanted to give Bruce Lee’s philosophy an opportunity to reach out to my students and also non-martial artists in Ireland. Everyone has heard of Bruce Lee, his striking cinematic stardom has made him known the world over. However, during the past few years, the publicity of his writings edited by my friend John Little has been able to illustrate that Bruce was much more than a martial artist. John wrote to me once, saying, ‘the ways of the fist are limited, but the ways of the mind are infinite.’”
Little, Kimura, and Bishop’s Irish visit comes at an important time in Irish history. The cease-fires in 1994 brought a new sense of hope in Northern Ireland. When the Loyalist and Republican paramilitaries declared cease-fires, it lifted a terrible pressure from the community (1.5 million people), which had endured and coped with the relentless violence of the conflict since the mid-1960s.
There have been 4,000 deaths, 40,000 injured and billions of pounds in damage to the economy. Unfortunately, the cease-fires were too late for many people, those dead, injured, bereaved and traumatized. For the first time, it became possible to examine the depth of bereavement, loss and pain felt across the country because of the deep division between the two main traditions, Loyalist (allegiance to Britain) and Nationalist (allegiance to Ireland).
The suffering of one side could be dismissed or disqualified by reference to the more extreme suffering of the other. Those who have been injured or bereaved have been mainly civilians unconnected to the paramilitaries or security forces. These individuals have often been randomly targeted in a brutal campaign of terror.
In Northern Ireland everyone has been affected in some way by the conflict. No one has a monopoly on suffering or the moral high ground although many try to claim this. It is Sifu Martin O’Neill’s belief that, “If Ireland is to have a peaceful future, we must be willing to acknowledge the deep hurt and mistrust there has arisen over decades of injustice and hatred. If we are to have a future as a civilized society we must work to comfort those bereaved and hurt and also those physically and psychologically injured. We must listen to each other not with hard hearts but with compassion. We need to value real peace if we can achieve it and not forget how precious it is.”
The people of Northern Ireland have been through a very hard time. However, depending upon where you lived, it could be experienced in diverse ways. Poor working class communities got the worst treatment. Sifu O’Neill can relate to the suffering caused by the troubles although he is quick to say, “My experience is not as traumatic as some in the community I came from. Nevertheless, the conflict has affected me. Like many others, it robbed me of an ordinary childhood and adolescence. One day everything seemed normal; the next day it was swept away in violence, brutality, mayhem and hatred, which knew no bounds. Throughout the conflict the courage and dignity of ordinary people shone through the violence. Their resilience is an example of how people can hold onto their humanity even in the worst circumstances.”
It was against this backdrop that the John Little, Andy Kimura, and James Bishop visited Ireland to give a lecture tour. The aims of the lecture tour were to share Bruce Lee’s authentic legacy with people in Ireland, give people an insight into his philosophy, and demonstrate how Bruce Lee’s ideas can help people overcome obstacles and barriers and reach their goals in life. The lectures also celebrated Bruce Lee as a human being, a man who stood against racism and sectarianism and once said, “Under the stars, under the heavens there is but one family.” The Jun Fan/Jeet Kune Do Association Ireland also wished to use Bruce Lee™ as a role model for people in Ireland who stand against hatred and bigotry.
On Monday evening, September 25th, the Little, Kimura, and Bishop visited Clann Eireann Youth Club. This club is based in a deprived Nationalist area and is the location of Martin O’Neill’s Jun Fan / Jeet Kune Do club. There was an informal discussion and certificates were presented to students of the year Paul Crossey and Andre Farrell.
“I was very impressed with the character of Martin O’Neill’s students,” says James Bishop. “There was a real feeling of honest enthusiasm evident in the club that night. Their sincere inquiries into Bruce Lee’s philosophies and our work were an absolute delight.”
On Tuesday, September 26th, the day began with an interview on BBC radio’s “Talkback” program, which focuses on current affairs. Despite being a short interview, John Little managed to do an excellent job of summarizing the key elements of Bruce Lee’s philosophy.
In the evening, Little, Kimura, and Bishop gave a lecture on Bruce Lee’s philosophy at Queens University in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The lecture was very challenging in that John Little, James Bishop and Andrew Kimura focused on the deeper meaning of Bruce Lee’s beliefs, values and philosophy. People attending got a taste of how deep Bruce’s philosophy really was and, with the help of Little, Bishop and Kimura, we could all understand the principles and ideas behind this philosophy a lot clearer.
“I thought the lecture was put together very well,” said Andre Farrell. “John Little gave a very informative and in depth view of Bruce’s philosophy. After reading about his philosophy, John made his writings even easier to understand.”
The lecture did pack a lot into two hours, but everyone seemed to take something from it. Keith Coffey specifically focused on the self-actualization part, saying, “The lecture put what I had read into perspective. James Bishop went very deep into the concept of self-actualization and it was a bit hard to understand, but given the time-limit of one lecture he managed to fit in a lot of information.”
On the martial art side of things, Tony McAtamney gives his thoughts on how the lecture helped his training. “It helped us understand Bruce Lee’s mind. When I had trained before I had not known this deep, philosophical side of Bruce Lee, and now I can apply his philosophy to my own training.”
It is safe to say that most people left the lecture hall with at least a slightly different outlook on life and possibly gained a wider and more positive perspective on the world.
On Wednesday morning, September 27th, John Little was interviewed on Radio Telefis Eireann by on-air personality Dave Fanning. It was an excellent and informative interview, as Dave Fanning is a Bruce Lee™ fan and was knowledgeable about Bruce Lee’s movies and philosophy.
Afterwards, the John Little, Andy Kimura, and James Bishop visited the Ashton Centre and Star Youth Club in the New Lodge area of Belfast. This area has been the brunt of much violence and tension and is situated on the peace line between loyalist and nationalist communities. Little, Bishop and Kimura spoke to Ashton Centre representative Jim Deery and his colleagues about their efforts to promote peace and community development in the area.
“I was very impressed by the fact that the social workers in Ireland were bringing people together using elements of Bruce Lee’s philosophy,” said John Little. “Tenets such as self-empowerment, self-actualization and the eroding of sectarianism — all touchstones in the philosophy of Bruce Lee™ — were being applied to positive effect in Ireland. In facing these facts, and recognizing that the Irish people cannot afford to waste time on inert ideas or vague speculations, lest people die — one can no longer say that Bruce Lee’s realm is solely within the circle of martial arts enthusiasts.
“Linda Lee Cadwell once observed that ‘Bruce viewed himself as a citizen of the world with a mission.’ This was certainly proven true in Ireland. Walking the “Peace Line” with Jim Deery and to Jim, Martin O’Neill and other social workers who likewise saw value in Bruce Lee’s approach to civil issues, further underscored the growing belief that Lee’s appeal and greatest contribution may well be in the more ‘human’ sciences, such as sociology, civil rights and, of course, philosophy.”
On Thursday, September 28th, the three Bruce Lee™ scholars traveled to Dublin in the Republic of Ireland. Later that evening, Little, Bishop and Kimura gave a lecture at Dublin’s Trinity College, the home to such historic luminaries as James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, and Bram Stoker. The lectures focused on Bruce Lee’s philosophy, goal setting, and conquering prejudice. Andrew Kimura spoke about his father’s friendship with Bruce Lee™ and how his father became Bruce Lee’s highest ranked student. There was a great atmosphere at the lecture and the audience asked many questions during the Q&A session.
“It was quite a feeling being at Trinity College,” says Andy Kimura. “It was a very impressive location for Bruce Lee’s thought to be laid out. I believe that this is the kind of place that Bruce’s thought should be presented in, the hallowed halls of Trinity and places like that, which are deserving of hearing his thought.”
John Blessing, a Dublin resident, was quite impressed with the lectures. “The lectures John Little, Andy Kimura, and James Bishop gave were extremely meaningful to me and my friends. We all learned quite a bit about Bruce Lee’s teaching, and how to live a better life. When you study such a great man’s life, one can’t help but learn from it, and apply it to your own.”
“I think the lectures were a great success,” says Sifu O’Neill. “People enjoyed them and those who came to the lectures were not necessarily just martial artists. I think there was a good mix of people. There were men and women there from all walks of life, people who were interested in Bruce and had heard about Bruce in a host of different ways and weren’t necessarily interested in the martial arts side. They were interested in the deeper meanings of what Bruce was about and had to say, and what he had to say is still relevant. I believe it speaks out in Ireland and particularly Northern Ireland. We have had a lot of problems and Bruce Lee™ himself acts as a rallying point for people, and I think that is tremendous. Obviously, we need all the help we can get in Northern Ireland and I think having Bruce Lee’s art brought to the people here is just excellent.”
James Bishop agrees with Sifu O’Neill. “To me, it’s tremendously gratifying, the opportunity we have had to come to Ireland and use Bruce Lee’s philosophy and his notoriety to make a positive difference in these people’s lives. I believe the work we have done here is going to have repercussions (ripples in the pond, so to speak) and, over time, this thing will grow. It’s a great honor to be at the ground floor of this, to launch these philosophy symposiums in such a prestigious place and make a little bit of history.”
For Bruce Lee Educational Foundation director John Little, the trip was especially meaningful. “I think this week represents the culmination of a personal dream for me, which was to see Bruce Lee’s philosophy and thought accepted and taught at the highest possible academic level: Trinity College, with its rich history and tradition, and Queen’s University before that. Trinity, in particular, because it was home to the likes of James Joyce and Bram Stoker, was a particularly meaningful environment to present Bruce’s thought because it put Bruce Lee’s thought on a par with all of the other great philosophers and thinkers that were taught there, and it’s no secret that I think that Bruce’s true legacy lies in his thought.”
Martin O’Neill concluded, by saying: “The lecture tour was a great success and on behalf of my countrymen and women I would like to give sincere thanks to John Little, James Bishop and Andrew Kimura, who gave so unselfishly their time and effort to make this visit a success. The visit to Ireland marked a watershed in the development in our understanding of Bruce Lee as a role model – not just a great martial artist, actor, and philosopher, but a real human being. We all hope that it will not be their last visit to our shores.”