Tuesday, July 23rd, 2024
Author: Lisa Michelutto
Photo credit: Osman, J. (July 20th, 2024). From Somalia to south Oregon – how basketball reunites civil war survivors. Aljazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/7/20/from-somalia-to-south-oregon-how-basketball-reunites-civil-war-survivors
SUMMARY
Somali civil war caused widespread famine and displacement. Despite international interventions and the establishment of a new government in 2012, the country remains unstable. This instability led to mass migration, with many unable to return home. In Ashland, Oregon, former Somali national basketball players and their families reunite annually to celebrate sports and their resilience. This gathering exemplifies how sports can offer psychological and moral support amidst adversity.
BACKGROUND
It is well known that playing sports is one of the most important things to lead a healthy life. Playing sports, however, is not just about that, because very often, in fact, having such a passion leads to much more: a family and a concept of belonging. It appears fundamental to cite a Nelson Mandela’s quote: “sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand”.
Following the toppling of dictator Siad Barre in 1991, the conflict in Somalia broke out, resulting in a breakdown of central authority and fierce warfare amongst clans. Widespread starvation and displacement brought about by the fighting led to humanitarian involvement by the UN and the US in the early 1990s. Despite these initiatives, Puntland demanded autonomy and Somaliland proclaimed independence, plunging the nation deeper into anarchy. The Islamic Courts Union (ICU) briefly ruled southern Somalia in the early 2000s before Ethiopian forces drove them out. As a result, Al-Shabaab, a militant organization that still carries out insurgencies, rose to prominence. Since 2007, the government of Somalia has received assistance from the African Union Mission in Somalia, or AMISOM. The establishment of the new Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in 2012 indicated some progress in stabilizing the country. Still, Somalia is beset by persistent warfare, political division, and humanitarian emergencies. There have been many fatalities, large-scale evictions, and severe economic damage as a result of the fighting. In Somalia, long-term peace and stability continue to be elusive despite international efforts.
Obviously, this is a situation in which it is impossible to live, and this has led to a phenomenon of mass migration, in which those who are part of it have not yet been able to return home to Somalia after so many years.
A very interesting story and one that manages to bring a smile to one's face is the recurrence that happens in one specific city every year. In Ashland, in fact, a town in the southern part of the state of Oregon in the United States of America, every year former professional players of what was the Somali national basketball team meet with friends and families to spend a weekend dedicated to sports and all their sacrifices. This is a beautiful example of how sports can unite and offer support, if only psychological and moral, during the most difficult times. That is also why, starting from passion, this project became one that hosts about 75 to 100 people a year.
The project has developed so much that in addition to basketball activities there are also many other activities, such as swimming, hiking and tennis. Of course, they also play sports and have fun together not to forget the atrocities of war, not to forget their homeland, and to celebrate the new life they have been given a chance to start.
REFERENCES
Osman, J. (July 20th, 2024). From Somalia to south Oregon – how basketball reunites civil war survivors. Aljazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/7/20/from-somalia-to-south-oregon-how-basketball-reunites-civil-war-survivors
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