A vehicle for empowerment! That’s how Minister of State in the Office of the Attorney General with responsibility for Crime Prevention, Corey Lane, has described the Ohana “Gloves Over Gun” Project.
Phase Two of the project was launched today at the Chesterfield Brewster Youth Empowerment Centre, at Silver Hill, Christ Church. This project is designed to use the sport of boxing with several forms of social support to transform the lives of young people living in communities that may be susceptible to acts of violence.
Mr. Lane expressed the view that in this “new day”, there must be a new way of doing things. “We cannot do the same things the same way and hope to harness a different result….Our young people now are not our young people of even 10/15 years ago. Therefore, Ohana, family, we must address the times that we are in, in a different way. And that different way is to work with organisations, sporting and other wise, to ensure that we increase the peace, harmony, and empowerment for our nation.
“This Ohana project, Gloves over Guns, is one of those. Now, people may see this as a sporting event, but this is a vehicle for empowerment; this is a vehicle for affirmation…. Many of our young people turn to the block to get that affirmation….They get involved in negative activity to fit in, but if we create…the alternative for them to walk around with medals on their necks, knowing that they get that high five from society in a positive way, that is the new way, …and we have to enhance that and do it in better…and…greater ways,” he told his audience.
The Ohana “Gloves Over Gun” Project is designed to use the sport of boxing with several forms of social support to transform the lives of young people living in communities that may be susceptible to acts of violence.
The Minister identified the New Horizon Programme as another project recently launched under the National Peace Program (NPP). He explained that under this initiative, some of the least fortunate young people in society would be given an opportunity to go beyond these shores.
“If they are within their trodden down societies and all they can see is poverty and crime, that is what they would believe is their lot in life,” he suggested.
Mr. Lane also told the gathering that Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley had challenged him and by extension the field agents in NPP to start a number of adventure clubs across the communities.
During his address, he called on Barbadians to use their influence in their sphere to “add positivity” to those they come in contact with. “You don’t need to be part of a macro programme but you have young people in your families, … [and] communities that are going astray, and your love, guidance or care for that one person can mean the world of difference,” he surmised.
Project Coordinator, Kathy Harper-Hall, said the project is intended to use community-based boxing activities to engage youth, increase community cohesion, and spread messages of peace through sport.
Mrs. Harper-Hall continued: “This project presents an opportunity for positive exposure and brand alignment with the promotion of peace, excellence in sport and positive development, and the intended outcome is that it will assist greatly in having safer communities and more focused youth, and can contribute to the reduction of youth violence.”
She noted that the communities of Checker Hall, St. Lucy; Brereton, St. Philip; Montgomery or Grazettes, St. Michael; and Silver Hill, Christ Church were being targeted in this phase. The curriculum, she explained, will cover aspects of boxing, and will have a life skills component.
The primary objectives of the project include promoting peace and non-violence through the enjoyment of sport; increasing self-confidence in participants; providing a safe environment and capable personnel for open discussions; emphasising conflict resolution among other life skills; and assisting with personal development.
The first phase of the project, organised by the Barbados Boxing Association (BBA), was conducted in the Belfield Community in 2022 as a pilot. It was funded by the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment through the National Sports Council. The second phase is being done in collaboration with the BBA and the National Peace Program.