Emma Barber of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Fort Collins reply:
My name is Emma Barber and I am a certified Gracie Jiu Jitsu instructor and owner (along with my parents and my sister Maycee) of Gracie Jiu Jitsu Fort Collins. In the past week we have been accused of wearing black belts while teaching GJJ and trying to deceive people into thinking that we are GJJ black belts. We are not. We are, in fact, GJJ University verified blue belt stripe 2’s and we wear them with pride. Anyone who has gone through the GU curriculum can vouch for the fact that a BBS2 is a legitimate blue belt.
For all of the people concerned with the fact that we are faking our rank, let me assure you, we have never done that. Every single student in our school will say the same thing. We have never worn a black belt to teach Gracie Jiu Jitsu. In a community so seemingly concerned with maintaining the integrity of the art of Jiu Jitsu there are so many people without any integrity or respect at all. Before you pass judgement on someone, why don’t you go see what is really happening for yourself first? Instead, all we have are a bunch of keyboard warriors hiding behind their screens and gossiping about things that aren’t at all true. Please, before deciding that you hate us and that we are lying to the public, come check us out.
Regarding the picture of Maycee on the ball in her black belt, yes we admit it was a mistake to take that picture in front of the Gracie Triangle. We had no intentions of deceiving anyone. We are sorry for the confusion and misunderstanding that occurred from that photo. As Rener said in the podcast, it was a poor choice in location for the picture and we apologize. However, assuming that we teach GJJ in our black belts based on that picture is ridiculous. Every other picture of us in our black belts was taken during a mixed martial arts class teaching a curriculum that is unique to our school. If you are curious about what this curriculum looks like, check out our Facebook page, there are lots of cool videos.
Lastly, regarding the red bars on our black belts, that is the belt that our system uses to set apart instructor black belts from other black belts. In case anyone is wondering, there is no regulation on belt systems. No one is the “authority” in what system uses what belt. It is up to the school to decide what belts they choose to wear. We earned our black belts for this system. They were not just given to us. Again, look at the videos on our Facebook page. Our skills speak for themselves.
So, please, before judging our character, skill, rank, and school as fraud, come check us out. No smoke and mirrors, just awesome Jiu Jitsu is what you will find. Thanks to everyone who has supported us through these last few days, all the students and friends who have posted in support of us, we truly appreciate it. Thanks to Rener and Ryron Gracie, for not only giving us this amazing opportunity to teach but for also standing behind us.
My name is Emma Barber and I am a certified Gracie Jiu Jitsu instructor and owner (along with my parents and my sister…
Posted by Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Fort Collins on Tuesday, October 13, 2015
