NEW CASTLE, Pa. — Bullied growing up and having played a bully in the movies, Sean Kanan uses life experiences to reach local students
Art can do more than imitate life.
Sometimes, it shapes it. That’s the case with actor, producer and author Sean Kanan.
Kanan, who grew up in Lawrence County, was bullied during his school years here, but later went on to play intimidating tormentor Mike Barnes in “The Karate Kid 2.”
“I have intimate experience with bullying because I was bullied extensively when I was a kid,” Kanan said. “It’s kind of ironic that I would then go on to play this iconic bully, Mike Barnes, and then it takes another turn.
“I never imagined that what I was doing with that character, years later, would create a platform for me to speak about my experiences with bullying to other kids. So it’s kind of come full circle.”
Kanan used that platform last month — National Bullying Prevention Month — to bring his message to middle schoolers in five county districts. He visited two others — New Castle and Neshannock — a year ago.
“Bullying is an enormous problem in our society,” said Kanan, who belongs to the national organization Boo2Bullying, which presents programs on awareness and prevention methods related to bullying to students and parents. “Suicide is the third-leading cause of death among adolescents, and bullying is a tremendous contributing factor to that.
“I just feel that I’ve got a first-hand platform to reach people, so it’s something that I’m very passionate about.”
‘YOU’RE NOT ALONE’
In his presentations, Kanan plays a clip from “The Karate Kid 2” in which his character is tormenting underdog Daniel LaRusso, played by Ralph Macchio. He asks his young audiences if they can believe “that scary guy actually used to get bullied.”
“And,” he added, “I tell them if you’re getting bullied, you’re not alone.”
To illustrate that point, he has all the youths close their eyes and asks them to raise their hands if they’ve ever been bullied, witnessed someone being bullied or actually bullied someone. When he instructs them to open their eyes, he said, they see that almost everyone in the room has their hands up.
“So I say, ‘even though you might feel like you’re alone, you’re not,’” Kanan said. “Bullying is something that affects almost everybody. (Being bullied) seems like a very solitary experience and they feel like they can’t talk to anybody, and they feel completely ostracized and excluded.
“But when they realize they’re not alone, that they’re not the only ones going through it, it really helps.”
Kanan said his goal in his presentations is not to lecture, but rather, to facilitate conversation.
“I get kids to come up and talk about their experiences of being bullied,” he said. “I even get kids to come up and talk about the times they bullied someone else. We talk about strategies about how to prevent bullying, stop it, eradicate it.
“A lot of it has to do with not creating an atmosphere where it makes it acceptable and OK for a bully. I tell the kids, ‘I don’t expect every one of you to stand up to bullying, but if you’re standing around laughing or filming somebody getting bullied, you’re part of the problem.”
RESPONDING TO BULLYING
Kanan offers various approaches to dealing with bullying.
•Tell a teacher or another adult. “I remember when I was a kid, everyone was concerned with not being a rat or a tattletale or a stool pigeon,” Kanan said. “But you have a right to come to school and learn without being bullied. If you’re standing up for yourself by telling an adult what’s going on, that doesn’t make you a rat.
•The buddy system. “There’s strength in numbers,” Kanan said. “If you’re being singled out and you have to go somewhere, find a friend to go with you.”
•Don’t give off a victim vibe. “If you’re walking around with your face buried in your phone and your shoulders rounded and kind of looking around like a mouse, you know what mice attract — hungry cats. You’re not a victim.”
•Martial arts. These teach not only self-defense, but also courage, honor and humility, Kanan said, while building self-esteem. “I’m not advocating for kids to get involved in physical violence, but you have every right to defend yourself if somebody is being physically aggressive with you. It’s a last resort, but I differ from what kids are taught sometimes, which is ‘whatever you do, just walk away.’ Well, you can always walk away. You can’t be rational with someone who is being irrational with you.
“I’m a huge proponent of peace through strength, whether it’s with our country or on a personal level. Bullies, generally speaking, don’t like to engage with people who seem self-confident, self-aware and are intentional. Martial arts teaches all of that.”
FULFILLMENT
Kanan calls himself a “big proponent of service,” and believes it to be an important part of living a meaningful, happy life. That’s something he feels especially when reaching kids about bullying.
“It gives me such a feeling of happiness and connection,” he said. “It gives me more pleasure than a lot of other things in my life, you think would do. The ability to help other people, it helps me become a better version of myself.”
Sharing that message back in his hometown is especially gratifying.
“Oh yeah,” he said. “It comes full circle, being able to come back to New Castle where a lot of the bullying in my experience took place, and be part of the solution.”
d_irwin@ncnewsonline.com