When interacting with peers or figures of authority (e.g., teachers, police officers, doctors) within their communities and schools, how many children’s lives can be changed forever within 60 seconds based on the decisions that they make and also the decisions made by the adults? The PLAAY (preventing long term anger and aggression in youth) intervention, created by Dr. Howard Stevenson, Executive Director of the Racial Empowerment Collaborative at the University of Pennsylvania (https://www.recastingrace.com/), uses culturally responsive group therapy and games like basketball (or Connect 4 or video games) to teach children the skills to reduce racial stress and resolve conflict during intense in-the-moment and face-to-face events leading to healthy and safe outcomes in the classroom, home and community. Culturally responsive group therapy and basketball work together to reveal emotional strengths and weaknesses, increase the capacity to challenge racial and gender stereotypes, develop interpersonal and academic achievement skills, and build stronger relationships with peers, family and authority figures. Dr. Stevenson, Constance Clayton Professor of Urban Education at UPenn initially created PLAAY in 1998 for Black male adolescents, and it has expanded to include Black, female adolescents, adolescents of other racial backgrounds and younger children of varying racial backgrounds. Participants in PLAAY have demonstrated increased levels of academic engagement and attendance and decreased levels of physical aggression and rejection sensitivity (Stevenson, Howard C. Playing with Anger: Teaching coping skills to African American boys through athletics and culture. Westport, CT., Greenwood Publishing, Praeger. 2002).
The Center for Resilience (CFR), a therapeutic day treatment program for children navigating extensive trauma histories and significant emotional and behavioral challenges, has developed the PLAAY at CFR program to respond to the racial stress and trauma experienced by the youth of New Orleans. Beginning in the summer of 2017, the PLAAY at CFR team trained extensively with Dr. Stevenson, the Racial Empowerment Collaborative at UPenn and The Lion's Story (https://thelionsstory.org/). CFR students, who struggled in traditional group therapy settings, have responded well to PLAAY over the past three years. The program equips children with the skills to navigate intense, stressful events which often lead to under-reactions (avoidance and negative internalization) or over-reactions (verbal and physical aggression). New CFR students, first engaging in PLAAY, often stood on the sideline refusing to try, unable to look their peers in the eye or stand up for themselves during games without quitting or resorting to physical violence. Those same children are now able to engage in play with peers, organize games and call their own fouls, pick up their friend when she falls, apologize for a hard foul without a fight, stay in the game after missing a shot and give a dap to teammates and opponents after an intense, emotional game. PLAAY participants at CFR have been observed to demonstrate increased intrapersonal and interpersonal skills such as self advocacy, self confidence, problem solving, empathy, respect, resilience and emotional awareness of self and others during and following participation in PLAAY.
Now, in this uniquely challenging time, PLAAY at CFR is pleased to be able to expand opportunities to engage in this culturally relevant, healing program to the youth of New Orleans, many of whom are returning to school after enduring over a year of isolation and loss. PLAAY at CFR is able to offer PLAAY Groups, PLAAY Workshops and Train the Trainer tracks to the communities of New Orleans. Please visit https://www.cfrla.org/plaayatcfr or send a message to brendan.turner@cfrla.org for additional information about the PLAAY program and the available products.
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