From the posts that I see in the taekwondo section of MT, easily 60 to 80 percent revolve around grievances against USAT. If this is in any way reflective of how the majority of USAT members and athletes feel, then it amazes me that any of you stay with them. It would seem that somebody would have started an alternative league by this point. The way many of the postings read, USAT is in some kind of ivory tower and incapable of steering itself in any meaningful way.
The real problem is that the current USAT members complain, and yet they continue to support the organization with members, competitors and coaches at USAT state, regional and national events.
Prior to the remediation (not decertification) of the USTU, the USTU had a membership base of about 40,000. When it became apparent that the USOC was not interested in remediation but rather complete reorganization into staff driven leadership model without state associations, the overwhelming majority of Korean born instructors BOYCOTTED the organization and left, taking their students with them. Those instructors left completely, with the only ones that remain were their students who had national team potential.
That resulted in a 75-80% drop in membership, to current membership levels of 8-10,000. This has crippled the organization, but it wasn't enough to kill it. What needs to happen is to have the rest of the instructors BOYCOTT the organization, leaving only those who have national team potential remaining. If everyone did that, then membership would drop to maybe 1000, and the organization could not survive on those numbers.
It would only be for one or two years. We know USAT is hurting because they came out with that membership task force which tried to find ways of building membership while still maintaining control. USAT recognizes the problem, but still think they can keep control while keeping them in survival mode.
Those instructors can go take all their color belt students as well as younger black belts and compete at the AAU for a couple of years. If everyone did that, then the level of competition would be the same, because all of the same competitors would be there.
Complaining about Jean or Juan or what the organization is doing to the membership does not work because it requires whoever the members are complaining to (i.e., the USOC) to care about what is going on. They don't. We cannot control the reaction or response of the USOC, which is what everyone is hoping will happen. The USOC isn't coming to the rescue.
What we can control is the amount of money that flows into the organization. That is the way to kill USAT, by cutting off their funds. That means cutting off as much financial support to USAT as possible including but not limited to membership fees, state/regional/national tournament fees, coach fees, seminar fees, club registration fees, referee membership fees, and everything else. You can't control the USOC but you can control how much money you give them.
Put another way, there already is in place an ongoing boycott of USAT five years now and it has resulted in an 75-80% reduction in membership. What needs to happen is for another 15 or more percent of the membership to stop participating. It is ironic that the ones who have the most sincerity and the most hope that things will turn around, are the very ones that prevent the turnaround from happening.
Stop going to USAT events for one or two years. It's really that simple.
But encourage your friends to do the same. The way to get to USAT is to financially starve them out. That is within the control of the membership, not complaints or elections, which are rigged games.
