Every human being has the common experience of once being young, but not every person has had the privilege of having had a childhood. Right to Play, a development organization dedicated to improving the lives of children through fun and games, ensures that even in the harshest of situations, children are given the chance to be children.
In the fight against AIDS, Right to Play is doing important work through a program called “Live Safe, Play Safe,” in which interactive games and subsequent discussions with children educate them about HIV/AIDS. Dr. Lorna Read, the director of research and programme development, explained that training local youth to act as coaches for the games is vital to Right to Play’s guiding principles of sustainability and inclusion.
The inclusion of women and girls is especially important to the organization, which is faced with breaking down stereotypes that women are fit only for the home. However, as local coach Safari Kayisire said, “thanks to sports, the children learn tolerance,” and before long, girls are welcomed onto the playing field alongside boys.
Dr. Bruce Kidd of the University of Toronto, explained that the importance of including girls in sports is academically supported. Studies show that teenage women involved in high school sports are less likely to contract STDs, which is directly related to the fact that their participation gives them self-esteem and confidence that strengthens their capacity to negotiate their own sexuality.
Yet self-confidence is nothing without knowledge, an understanding Right to Play uses in tailoring its games to specific situations. In one AIDS-related game, certain children play the HIV virus and try to catch others; however, as the children run after one another, coaches yell out different causes for getting caught, such as unprotected sex, thus teaching the children in a very unobtrusive way.
There is an ancient proverb that reads, “Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember, Involve me and I will understand.” By occupying children with fun activities that engage and educate simultaneously, Right to Play has crafted a brilliant program that harnesses the energy of children for positive means.
As the Olympic speedskater Joey Cheek said, “children everywhere play.” By playing sports, children are able to socialize, exercise, vent frustration, and learn important life skills. If only adults were willing to be so light-hearted as to play as children do, perhaps the world would be a better place.