In each of the summer vacations of 2018, 2019, and 2020, AfrisCool offered children aged 7 to 12 one week of sports, games, and learning. Children with and without a migration background could take part, and Black children and their families were specifically encouraged to join.
3
vacation weeks from 2018 to 2020
45
children in the first year
25
children in 2019
7–12
years: the children’s age range
The idea
Many children love soccer. That enthusiasm brings together children from very different backgrounds – and AfrisCool builds on it. Every day there was training, team-building games, and an educational session.
The educational sessions covered global learning and the question of how discrimination arises and what can be done about it. Fair play and team spirit helped the children practice treating one another with respect.
Role models from the diaspora
AfrisCool was planned and run by people with their own experience of migration. Almost all of the coaches and speakers came from the African diaspora. Seeing Black people as experts empowered many of the children. To make sure girls felt comfortable too, we made a point of having female supervisors.
Three summers of AfrisCool
2018: The beginning
From July 23 to 27, 2018, we met at the Behmstraße sports ground in Berlin-Gesundbrunnen, together with the soccer club 1. FC Afrisko. We had planned for 10 to 12 children a day; 20 to 30 came, 45 in total. A large wooden puzzle of the African continent was used to explore origins and identity. A picture quiz challenged clichés about Africa.
2019: The second round
From July 8 to 12, 2019, 25 children took part, and on some days almost half of them were girls. A female and a male coach of African origin led soccer, handball, tennis, and circuit training. In four educational sessions, the children learned to recognize discrimination and to stand up against it. On a scavenger hunt across the sports ground, they discovered role models from Kenya, Pakistan, Germany, and Nigeria.
On the last day, we visited the Sea Life aquarium at Alexanderplatz. At the end, the children asked for more Afrobeat music and a quiet corner to retreat to.
2020: Dancing to Afrobeats
From August 3 to 7, 2020, there was soccer in the mornings and dance in the afternoons, again at the Behmstraße sports ground. With a professional dancer, the children learned a choreography to Afrobeats and performed it for their families on the last day.
The educational sessions covered African and Black histories of resistance and Africa’s achievements. The week was held in cooperation with the project “SAfE – Strengthening African Parents” (“Stärkung Afrikanischer Eltern”) of our sister organization NARUD e.V. Because of the coronavirus rules, the two planned weeks became one.
What we learned
- Demand was high: in 2018, far more children came than planned.
- Vacation programs are lacking, especially for children whose families cannot go away on vacation.
- Role models matter, especially coaches and speakers from the African diaspora.
