Parents, school faculties, and various other groups spend large amounts of time searching for ways to keep the youth off the streets and steer them away from a life of crime or minimal opportunities. While many cities have Boys & Girls Clubs or YMCA's, even the low prices of their after school activities or the distance of their locations in relation to the children's home often prevent parents from spending the money necessary to enroll their children in these programs.
Children without access to recreational activities, whether it be at home or at a local park due to crime, will often fall victim of boredom and lack of a positive environment to surround themselves with and fall in line with the negative elements that surround them. This is when many kids find themselves hanging out with other kids who are part of or are forming gangs. Kids who are lucky enough to stay away from negative elements, often find themselves secluded from others and in search of a support system if their parents, grandparents, and aunts or uncles aren't around to guide them during the post-schooling hours.
While many cities, states, and even non-profit organizations search for ways to fund activities for kids, the answer is actually a lot more simple than what some people may be aware of. The majority of middle and high schools have gyms and other sports facilities at their disposal. While particular facilities such as basketball gyms or pools are in use by their respective school teams, they are not in use at all times and even during the season of the sport, may have hours that they are available.
As an example, high school basketball teams may practice during their season until six o'clock, but why not keep the facility open until eight or nine o'clock? Of course the school will need a couple of people to supervise the facilities, but with government aid already being spent on finding alternative after school programs and activities for children AND adults, why not redirect some of the funds to a gym manager. On an average of six to eight hours worth of payroll a day, the school can employee one or two people part-time to make sure the facilities are safe and everything is under control. Often more money than this is already spent on various other programs across a city.
Another benefit of giving children and even adults a sports option to occupy their free time is harmony. What I mean by this is that when people often compete with or against each other in sports, they often build a level of respect and even friendship for each other that they otherwise would have never had. The stronger levels of friendship that can be formed by various children for each other, the harder it would be for them to commit acts of violence against each other when they mature.
Legendary Olympian Jesse Owens, several months before his death, lobbied then-President Jimmy Carter to allow the United States to be represented in the 1980 Olympics because the Olympic ideal was to be a time-out from war and above politics. Competition on the playing field often disintegrated lines of hate and politics. While everyone is different, they can build a mutual respect for each other through competition.
Another smaller benefit is that opening school sports facilities, will open up the availability for people to be more active in their everyday lives, cutting down the effects of obesity and health afflictions such as diabetes. Professional sports organizations such as the NFL promote programs called "Play 60" and First Lady Michelle Obama promotes for "Let's Move!", which urges children to play for 60 minutes a day. Opening school gyms, pools, and sports fields would make this more possible for children and adults to do.
While I don't have access to numbers such as the cost of enacting such an initiative, I am willing to bet that the benefits would outweigh the cost and even help contribute to making neighborhoods safer.
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