Knock Out Dog Fighting // Knock Out Dog Fighting Teams Up With Boys & Girls Clubs of America

- Kris Crawford

Knock Out Dog Fighting Teams Up With Boys & Girls Clubs of America To Stop Cruelty and Abuse

Knock Out Dog Fighting members Jose "La Bamba" Palacios, Tahoe & Kris Crawford, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson & Megatron and Ozone

Because of the success the Knock Out Dog Fighting program has been having positively influencing young men and women, the Boys & Girls Club of America asked For Pits' Sake and the Knock Out Dog Fighting program to be a part of their Passport to Manhood program.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of America's Passport to Manhood program, designed for male Club members ages 11-14, addresses the issues and challenges faced by young men during this critical time in their development. Through 14 sessions concentrating on specific aspects of character development and manhood, the program helps young men explore and develop the attitudes, values and behaviors necessary to become self-sufficient adults of good character. Passport to Manhood represents a targeted effort to engage young boys in discussions and activities that reinforce positive behavior. The Knock Out Dog Fighting session addresses humane education, cruelty and abuse.

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Fighters Jose "La Bamba" Palacios and Anthony "Rumble" Johnson, the two most active professional athletes who volunteer with the Knock Out Dog Fighting program, speak to the kids about courage, discipline, protecting those who cannot protect themselves and that strength is not about how much you can lift or who you can beat up -- it's about what you have inside.

A unique key to the success of the various For Pits’ Sake programs, including the Knock Out Dog Fighting program, is that Crawford’s American Pit Bull Terriers are at the core of everything they do, including the Knock Out Dog Fighting program. “As someone who has used pit bulls in community service for the past 15 years, I know that dogs can reach and teach people on levels that we humans can never achieve”, said Crawford. “I also know that people learn from example better than any other way. The symbolism for a lot of these kids of meeting a dog of a breed they associate only with the worst kind of bloody violence, but that interacts with them in an open, friendly, and responsive way provides a lesson in choice that is invaluable. You don't have to live out the stereotype that your neighborhood or cultural history has hung on you.”

Knowing that partnerships and collaboration are more effective than isolated individual efforts, the Knock Out Dog Fighting program works with schools, juvenile detention facilities, community centers, law enforcement agencies and gang prevention task forces, with the goal of stopping cruelty and abuse by providing humane education and alternative activities and interests for young people.

Knock Out Dog Fighting team members include professional athletes, dog trainers, dancers, musicians, artists, and scientists who present information and involve under-served and gang-impacted youth in intriguing alternative activities to get them to stop fighting dogs, away from the gang life and to help them succeed in life.

Knock Out Dog Fighting is excited to partner with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America because they serve a vulnerable population on the verge of establishing patterns for life. Knock Out Dog Fighting's goal is to interupt a process that might escalate into more violent crimes against people.

Kris presenting at the Boys and Girls Club

UFC Fighter Anthony "Rumble" Johnson presenting at the Boys and Girls Club

UFC Fighter Anthony "Rumble" Johnson and Muay Thai Champion Jose "La Bamba" Palacios presenting at the Boys and Girls Club

Muay Thai Champion Jose "La Bamba" Palacios presenting at the Boys and Girls Club while Tahoe hangs out with the kids

UFC Fighter Anthony "Rumble" Johnson with Megatron & Ozone and Muay Thai Champion Jose "La Bamba" Palacios presenting at the Boys and Girls Club

Lots of question during the Knock Out Dog Fighting presentation for the Boys and Girls Club

Tahoe hanging out with some of the kids during the Knock Out Dog Fighting presentation for the Boys and Girls Club

Knock Out Dog Fighting members Tahoe, Jose "La Bamba" Palacios, Kris Crawford, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson, Ozone & Megatron

"My highest praises for Knock Out Dog Fighting (K.O.D.F) and all that their program did for our kids and our Club. I feel that this was a very positive and uplifting moment that was shared here at our Club. The team at K.O.D.F. went above and beyond our expectations and cannot be thanked enough for what they are doing with us." -- Gabe, Boys and Girls Club of America - Silicon Valley