In 2016 a group of young people launched a federal class action against the Northern Territory government for mistreatment at the notorious Don Dale youth detention centre. That lead to a settlement that included funds to develop a basketball rehabilitation program in prison. One of those people, recently out on parole, is an Alice Springs peer mentor at Hoops 4 Health, giving other young people the skills to tackle their trauma and keep them out of prison.
Category
đŸ“º
TVTranscript
00:00Until recently, peer mentor Aaron was behind bars, where a one-of-its-kind basketball program
00:09called Hoops for Health gave him a shot at his dream.
00:14If you can change that one person's point of view or thoughts or life path, then the
00:20ripple effect is massive of the lives really theoretically changed.
00:24Aaron is the Alice Springs Facilitator for the First Nations-led initiative, running
00:29workshops in prisons and communities to help young people regulate their emotions and tackle
00:36trauma.
00:37Founded in Darwin in 2001 by Waramungua Nginaman and former pro bowler Timmy Duggan, it rolled
00:44out in the territory's youth detention centres in 2016, expanding in 2022 to adult prisons.
00:52Whether you came from Don Dale from that terrible time, or from your family's over
00:58history with the intergenerational trauma, this is all relatable and linked.
01:05The program champions the lived experience of its mentors.
01:09To be able to make people feel as comfortable as possible, not having to speak as formerly,
01:15sort of having that background where they know that I've been in their shoes to an extent,
01:22I've lived in the streets, I've grown up in areas where there's disadvantages.
01:26The NT has been making headlines for ballooning prison numbers and for having some of the
01:31worst incarceration rates in the world.
01:35Those leading the Hoops for Health program say preventative initiatives like theirs could
01:39help turn things around.
01:42You only have to be able to teach one person that and then that person be able to go on
01:46and teach one other person and then that other one other person be able to teach one other
01:50person.
01:51No prisons, because does healing really go on there?
01:55And rehabilitation?
01:56I'd say we have to impact from the day that our young kids are born.
02:04Evening the playing field, so kids can shoot for the stars.