Sports and Social Mobility in Brazil (as submitted to Planetary Magazine)

Submitted by Luciana Pimentel on Tuesday, October 05, 2004 at 11:27:55 AM EST.

When we deal with social mobility, we see it as the possibility of individuals to have better life conditions to reach a higher social status than the one they occupy at the present time. Sports support and change social standards, working as an instrument of changes in the structure of society. The perspective of social mobility is seen by children and young people with great expectation, that is, the hope to get a better future.
In Brazil, there are several projects that include the use of sports as an element of social mobility, such as the Projeto Escola Fora da Escola in Ceará, or the Programa Educação pelo Esporte created by the Ayrton Senna Institute. In all of these projects, sports have the objective of taking children out of the streets and putting them away from violence and prostitution.
Even children who are not involved in social projects still have the possibility of social mobility practicing sports. The Brazilian soccer players are the perfect example of this. The number of players involved in social projects for children and teenagers is very small, or not significant. But this fact does not affect the possibility of becoming a professional. In a country where soccer is a national fever, sports can represent the possibility of a better future for young people.
We believe that this is a good way to save children because they leave the streets and crimes to do something they like and that could become their future careers.
Sports provide the best choice to help children because playing games is part of childhood. Moreover, you don’t have to be rich to practice sports. Also relevant, the large number of athletes who had their lives improved through the practice of sports is an encouragement for the youth.

Deborah Sztajnbok
Luisa Belem
Joana Mello
Ilana Carvalho

Class 83

Sources: http://mtv.msn.com.br/especiais/pacto/tema10.shtml
http://www.etfce.br/Extensao/proj_sociais.htm

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