FREE TO PLAY

...Not for Sale is a campaign of students, entrepreneurs, artists, people of faith, athletes, law enforcement officers, politicians, social workers, skilled professionals, and all justice seekers, united to fight the global slave trade.

Every single person has a skill that they can give to free an individual living in bondage.

Article 31 of The U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child guarantees the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts. It also encourages the provision of appropriate and equal opportunities for cultural, artistic, recreational and leisure activity.

FREE TO PLAY is free to be alive, free to be a child.

ATHLETES COMBATING MODERN SLAVERY BY RAISING AWARENESS

FREE TO PLAY CHALLENGE

Create a personal or team challenge to help raise funds for the Not for Sale Campaign and make sure that ALL children are Free to Play.

Click any of the three videos below to see what others are doing with THE CHALLENGE.

       

 Olympic and World Champion            USF Women's Track              USF Women's Soccer
 Brian Boitano joins "Free To Play"

PLAY IT FORWARD

Michigan Summer Camp Believes all Kids Should Be Free to Play

The kids of Hot Rock Basketball Camp play with passion in Adrian, Michigan every summer. They turn into gym rats for a week, unable to get enough of the game they love: basketball. Director Gary Gray introduced them to a new idea this past summer. Not all kids are free to play. They are sold like any other commodity, and are forced to work against their will. Gary challenged the kids to go home and raise money to fight the scourge of trafficking. Within one week, they had raised nearly $11,000. The kids of Hot Rock sure know how to take the rock to the hoop.

Watch the video of Hot Rock abolitionists

GLOBAL NEWS

According to the US Department of State, children as young as 2 are trafficked from counties such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sudan for use as jockeys in the Persian Gulf States' camel racing industry. Child camel jockeys are often sexually and physically abused; most are physically and mentally stunted, as they are deliberately starved to prevent weight gain.

The trafficking of children for sport, such as for use as camel jockeys, is prohibited by the United Nations Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery and International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 182. After years of pressure from human rights groups and western governments, gulf sheikhs have agreed to enforce bans on child jockeys. However, concern remains.

>>See more of Craig Walkers award winning picture story of child jockeys.

EVENTS

UNM Women’s Volleyball becomes the 1st Abolitionist Team

The University of New Mexico Women’s Volleyball team hosted a doubles tournament called Grass Bash on Sunday, April 29th that served as both a year ending event for the team and an opportunity to create awareness and fund raise for the campaign. In the first year of the event Grass Bash had a successful turnout with 50 teams participating in 7 divisions. The team wore Free to Play t-shirts and raised $700.00 from the tournament’s proceeds to donate to the campaign. “Getting involved with the Free to Play campaign was a natural fit for us,” said Jeff Nelson, UNM Head Volleyball Coach. “We have so many opportunities and things being in college athletics that it seems perfect to support an organization that is helping kids all over the world. Since playing is a big part of what we do...we want to support everyone having the opportunity to have fun and play!" The team plans to expand the Grass Bash to 100 teams next year and will pledge one home game in their upcoming season where fans can make donations based on the number of blocks or kills set by the team.

>>Click here to learn how to become an abolitionist athletic team

Running for Freedom

On November 4th a group of Sport Management graduate students from the University of San Francisco completed the US Half Marathon course in San Francisco, which took runners across the Golden Gate Bridge. Before the race, Jesse, Sam and Renée asked family members and friends to make a pledge to the campaign for their efforts to complete the 13.1 miles. Wearing Free to Play t-shirts the group stayed on pace and completed the course in less than 2 hours, a feat they all agree was made easier knowing they were spreading an important message. “About 4 miles to go, a woman cheered ‘Free to Play’ as we ran past. At that moment we felt this surge of energy and inspiration to keep going. We were encouraged that onlookers were paying attention to our message,” says Renée.

Also running the half marathon was Health/Fitness Director Amy Chang and fellow trainers from the Decathlon Club in Los Gatos. Amy and her colleagues fundraised $200, which was generously matched by Western Athletic Clubs, parent company to the Decathlon Club. In all, a total of $900 was raised which will support the interventionist project in Northern Thailand to build two dormitories, a recreational facility, and health and education programs for children who were once victims of sex trafficking. “In the end, it’s not just the money you collect, but the belief that you can take action to fight global injustices,” says Renée.

Trifiniti athletes plan their "Escape from Alcatraz™" to abolish modern slavery

Several members of The San Francisco Bay Club and Bay Club Marin escaped for a worthy cause this year by donating and raising awareness of the Not for Sale Campaign. They participated as a Free to Play team in the infamous Escape from Alcatraz triathlon. "Our athletes are honored to contribute to this mission. It's easy to take our freedom to play for granted," says Duane Franks, founder of Trifiniti triathlon training at the Bay Clubs. "Jumping off the boat and swimming from Alcatraz to San Francisco is the perfect symbol for this worthy cause." In addition, Franks who coaches athletes of all abilities, including 6-time Escape from Alcatraz age group winner, Kathy Winkler, is donating 50% of June's swim video lessons to the Not for Sale Campaign. For additional information on Trifiniti services, contact Duane Franks at 415.433.2200 ext. 419 or trifiniti@sfbayclub.com.

Free to Play has been adopted as a key theme for the San Francisco International Children's Games to be held in San Francisco in July 2008.

Approximately 2,000 children ages 12 to 15, representing nearly 100 cities and 50 countries, will travel to the USA to participate in this event, which is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC)--making the event the world's largest international multi-sport youth games. The Games will host a global symposium for international policy on children's health issues.

Pro-Am Beach Soccer and Free to Play unite!

The 2007 Pro-Am Beach Soccer Championships supported Free to Play as part of the tournament's mission to "Enable Anyone to Play." For every goal scored in the tournament a contribution was made to the campaign to help fight slavery and ensure a child's right to play.

Beach Soccer started in Brazil over 30 years ago and has become the fastest growing beach sport in the world amongst recreational youth and adult players. All ages and levels can enter one of the four Pro-Am Tournaments to be held in Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, San Diego, and Miami Beach. To find out more about the tournament details visit the official Pro-Am Beach Soccer Championship website at www.proambeachsoccerusa.com

FREE TO PLAY is free to be alive, free to be a child. Athletes, teams, lovers of the outdoors, and all active individuals are coming together to use their passions and gifts to stand up in the fight against slavery. Contact Not for Sale to tell us your story!