- NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 23/Aug 03:38

More spaces for happy faces

THE EDITOR: With the prevalence of crime in our society there is an urgent need to address the negative effects that the situation is having on our children. Not just revisiting the socio-psychological aspects, but in a more tangible way, by ensuring that we have a plan to provide more public parks and recreational opportunities across the country. We need to create more spaces and places that foster happier times for our children. There is too much grotesque stuff going on around us, distorting the minds of our children and scarring the next generation. And it’s getting worse. What we need is a concerted effort by parents, the government and all institutions to ensure that there are adequate recreational spaces for children. This speaks to everything around us, including local tourism, environment preservation and community rejuvenation. Our efforts must extend to all communities and be included in our national planning framework. I refer of the need to ensure the effectiveness of the utilisation of recreational spaces. Altogether, we must create more happy times to counter the effects of the crime problem. I recently discovered that other developed countries are very diligent in providing monitoring systems for the establishment and upkeep of children play places. In the US, for example, a special governmental unit is assigned to ensure that stringent measures are upheld for the well-being of children and that provision is made for well-designed spaces to be constructed. There is also the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), the leading not-profit organisation dedicated to building strong, vibrant and resilient communities through the power of parks and recreation. The NRPA network of more than 60,000 park and recreation professionals and advocates represent public spaces in urban communities, rural settings and everything in between. The organisation recently celebrated its sixth anniversary, so we are not too far behind. This strategy will directly counter the negative effects of crime on our children. Maybe a local Disney World-type facility of our own, but certainly we need more places where families can spend quality time together, outdoors. We already have the Queen's Park Savannah and the play park in Chaguaramas in the north, and I propose that the Palmiste Park in San Fernando be considered a suitable place in the south of the country. But like so many safe spaces it’s woefully lacking in achieving its true potential. Generally, we need to improve our efforts to provide happy times for our children. In the past, as children, we would play late into the night "Traffic light under the moonlight," "Pelt the Pan" and conduct another "Old Lady and Old Grady” and other talent shows. We understand that times have changed, and all that fun is just a good memory. And so, we have come around the corner in our consideration of the criminality of our times, but without a clearly defined plan in mind. We are staring into an abyss and if we don’t act definitively the next generation will miss the fun days because of the folly of our ways. But today the entertainment framework has shrunk to a small digital screen with all its inherent dangers. Our children try to escape the reality of the murder cries by sticking their noses to cell phones and iPads. But the violence engulfs them, and the bloodletting images stalk them – even more than parents care to imagine. To counter this scourge, we need to hear more sounds of joy and laughter from our children. We must work to create more outdoor spaces for fun and family times. We must consider how important this is to this present generation. We need a regulatory organisation to give oversight to all institutions, including churches, schools and community groups, and to ensure that adequate spaces are created in each community and effectively utilised. We need a gathering of like-minded people to address this problem, to review the opportunities for fun and recreation that we offer our children. For the children’s sake and the future of our nation, let’s counter the negative effects of crime on our children by creating more spaces for happy faces. TERRENCE HONORÉ San Fernando The post More spaces for happy faces appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.