Andrew Simon- Human
Rights Soccer Tournament
Andrew Simon- Human
Rights Soccer Tournament
During
his eight-week stay in Sana'a, sophomore Andrew Simon from Duke University
resided across the street from an abandoned, gravel parking lot covered in glass
and the occasional debris from nearby construction. This area served as the
soccer field for around 30 children who played day in and day out. He wanted to
provide the children a means of experiencing soccer on a soccer field under the
guidance of coaches and trainers. However, this goal became secondary as he
learned about children's rights issues in Yemen through an internship with the
Democracy School that he participated in through the Yemen College of Middle
Eastern Studies internship program. During his internship at this NGO he
attended several meetings discussing children's rights and the problems
encountered when organizing projects to help children, as well as visiting the
Ministry of the Interior, juvenile prisons, and attending human rights
workshops. He wanted to establish an event that would place information about
human rights, in the form of a pamphlet produced by the Democracy School,
directly into the hands of children. He realized that he could accomplish this
goal by organizing a soccer event that would emphasize Human Rights. After a
lot of hard work organizing the event Andrew was elated by the positive response
he received from both
the children and the media; many Yemeni children approached him afterwards and
thanked him for organizing such a wonderful and informational tournament.
Nothing like the Human Rights Soccer Tournament had ever taken place anywhere in
the country and the event drew attention from two major newspapers: The Yemeni
Observer and Al-Thawra. Due to attracting positive publicity, the event is
going to become as annual affair.
Organizing the tournament was one of the most positive experiences Andrew had while in Yemen and he recommends that other students coming to YCMES consider also participating in the internship program: "my one recommendation would be to partner with an NGO that has several connections throughout the city". Doing so made organizing his event easier and offered him the opportunity to connect with the local children and make lasting friendships with the Democracy School employees who helped him. He states: "the major reason I am taking Arabic is the fact that I strongly believe in cross-cultural dialogue leading to understanding. Yemen was a great place to form lasting friendships with people that may have appeared very different from me in the beginning, but not so much by the end."