By Leriana Figueiredo | Executive Secretary Fight for Peace
This update was translated and edited for clarity by staff and volunteers of Dreams Can Be Foundation August, 2008
1540 Fight for Peace Sports and Education Centre (Luta Pela Paz) The Association Fight for Peace is immensely grateful for the contribution of all the donors that helped us. Through the received donations it was possible to buy new uniforms for the athletes, and enabled a greater participation in the events and competitions. The Fight for Peace Boxing Club works to confront the issues facing impoverished youth through the focusing on prevention of youth participation in crime and violence. The club is based in Parque União, one of the fifteen favelas or slums of Complexo da Mare, where there has been a decade of territorial drug wars between two of Rio's largest drug trafficking gangs. Currently young people are involved in violence as both aggressors and victims. The Fight for Peace Boxing Club maintains regular contact with youth most affected by violence. The club channels aggression into the ring, transforming it into positive energy in the form of team work, respect for rules, self discipline, self confidence, competition and dedication to sport. Through instruction in citizenship and conflict resolution techniques, club members learn they cannot instigate, participate or encourage violence in the community - they are taught that outside of the ring, potential conflict must be overcome through peaceful mediation and without violence. The club focuses on combating the illnesses of society, school evasion, the use of drugs and criminal behavior. This year, more than 540 children and youth of the “Complexo da Maré” received the benefits of the club through activities such as the sport of boxing, education, social actions, leadership and job opportunities. The Fight for Peace Sports Project is in an area that has the one of the highest indexes of mortality from firearms in Brazil.
The involvement in the crime and the drug traffic does not represent the majority of the children and youth of the “Complexo da Maré”. Approximately 96% do not have involvement with organized crime. Our role is to face this difficult problem and to keep them far from the crime and to reintegrate into society those that have been involved and wish to change their lives. Through an integrated methodology, Fight for Peace offers to the children and youth access to sport, the necessary support to return to or continue in school and real financial alternatives through the formal job market over a life in crime. Fight for Peace started in 2000, as a project of the NGO “Viva Rio”. In 2005, our headquarters was constructed, a building with 750m ² and consisting of two floors so that it could shelter the activities and services for more than 500 children and adolescents. In 2006, the project was evaluated by the American Latin Center of Studies of the Violence - CLAVES of the Fiocruz – Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (in partnership with the Organization Pan-American of Health and the PNUD Program of United Nations for the Development), and determined to be a successful experience in the prevention of the involvement of youth in violence. “The project Fight for Peace shows efficiency, effectiveness and efficacy in the primary prevention of the violence and crime, as it was demonstrated throughout the study”. (P. 139) {{{{{ Em 2006, o projeto foi avaliado pelo Centro Latino Americano de Estudos da Violência – CLAVES da Fiocruz – Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (em parceria com a Organização Pan-Americana de Saúde e o PNUD- Programa das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento), como uma experiência exitosa na prevenção do envolvimento de jovens na violência. “O projeto Luta pela Paz mostra eficiência, eficácia e efetividade na prevenção primária da violência e da criminalidade, como ficou demonstrado ao longo do estudo”.(p. 139)}}}}} In 2007, Fight for Peace won the Laureus Sports For Good prize, considered the Oscar of sport, in the category “Sport for Good”. Also in December of 2007, Fight for Peace became emancipated from its original founding organization and became a nonprofit institution, strengthening its bond with the community “Complexo da Maré”. Through July, 2008, the Fight for Peace project exceeded the expectations of children and youth served by the project reaching 540 attended. More than 300 students were benefited with access to the Internet and 90 children received computer skills courses. Our athletes won expression in the national boxing competitions: Robert, for the second time, won the “Golden Gloves” - important competition in São Paulo. Nilton was invited by the Brazilian Boxing Confederation to qualify for the Pan-American of boxing that will happen in Argentina. Fight for Peace was invited by the State Secretary of Youth to coordinate the table of sports at the State Conference of Youth, that culminated in the National Conference in Brasilia, where two of the projects youth were chosen as delegates to represent the state of Rio de Janeiro. Roberto Custódio started in the project in 2001. Since then he has dedicating himself to boxing and personal and professional growth. Today he is one of the athletes that stands out on the National Boxing scene, having been bi-champion of the “Gold Gloves” - important competition of boxing in São Paulo - and São Paulo’s vice-champion in 2007. Moreover, Roberto today works as the technical assistant for boxing in the project, teaching the children everything he has learned. Leriana Figueiredo – Secretária Executiva The educational potential of sport happens through the respect for rules, the necessity to learn to coexist with others and about victory and defeat and the aspect of discipline in behavior and as an alternative to violence. This evidences the educational potential of sport and its importance for the social system. Sport is a right to be guaranteed to all citizens. The social inclusion through the sport, assuring the access of youth, must occur with a lot of options of sports demonstrations, always to the light of the citizenship, diversity and inclusion. Leriana Figueiredo - Executive Secretary Fight for Peace provides practical alternatives to crime and organized armed violence for children and youth in disadvantaged communities via social inclusion through sports, education, access to the formal work market, the promotion of a culture of peace and building youth leaders. The main objective of the project is that children and youth discover their potential and that they learn new perspectives of life. We hope that our work continues to grow stronger and that we can continue offering opportunities with the objective to breach barriers and to reach peace and form productive citizens, integrating and including children and youth, contributing to the construction of a more just society. We sincerely thank the donors of GlobalGiving and want you to know that your contribution is very important to allow us to continue our work and for many children and youth to have more chances to grow both personally and professionally. 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