Trauma and Recreation: How Refugees Overcome Displacement and Assimilation Through Play

This research study examines the impact of participation in recreation and sports as a means for successful assimilation of African refugees into host cultures. The term African is used with caution in this paper and it is understood that it incorporates many nations; however, it is used in this paper as a reference point. This paper provides new and useful insights into the resettlement needs and issues facing young refugees and the ways in which community sport may or may not facilitate the integration process. The evidence for a recreational approach to recovery for traumatized children is based on program foundations. Evaluations measure the lasting impacts of intervention and serve as a basis for expansion. Discussed are the benefits of community sport in negotiating belonging, building trust, and forming community while analyzing recreation as a means for overcoming sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), developing basic skills, and establishing mutual acceptance