How can sport build peace in troubled communities?

‘Peace’ is a word we hear and utter quite commonly in our lives. The society requires it, yearns for it but may lack it. Is peace just the absence of war? We all know this is an extremely popular concept of peace. However as Baruch Spinoza said, ‘Peace is not an absence of war; it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, justice.’ In my opinion, the first phrase, a sentence to itself, has to be meant figuratively since it’s literally untrue. Peace is not simply and by itself an absence of war, but it is the state which exists when war is not present. The rest of the sentence gives three attributes of peace.

Peace has always been among humanity’s highest values-for some; supreme. People from different parts of the world possess various cultures, lifestyles and statuses; and on the surface, they seem to have very little in common. Yet, they breathe the same air, inhabit the same planet and share a common humanity; therefore world peace is truly crucial. Shattered communities and conflict areas exist worldwide and it takes hard work and a great deal of open-mindedness to heal them. However, despite the philosophies and teachings of great men promoting the idea of world peace and the overwhelming number of peace movements which have risen out of nowhere, peace on Earth has continued to be an elusive dream. Perhaps the answer lies within ourselves. Although human nature guides what we do as a single person and as a civilization, we have different perceptions of things, including ways to establish peace within our community. A great way of building peace in troubled communities would be through sports.

According to United Nations in 2008, sports is recognized as ‘all forms of physical activity that con...

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...the globe. It focuses on fun and education using the exhilarating and character building sport of Ultimate Frisbee as the tool.

Along with its positive implications for health, sport truly does contribute profoundly as a peace-building effort. Sport and peace programmes inclusive of all genders, races, nationalities, social and economic statuses are vital in making a difference in an individual, a community, state and global levels. It has been proven that they provide an opportunity to bring groups together in a competitive place without being antagonistic, learning to work through and look beyond their differences. This helps in shaping a more united and peaceful environment. Although sport alone cannot stop a conflict, it can be an important tool in peace-building, whether through reuniting populations that have been divided or never had any contact whatsoever.