The article reflects on 15 years of photographing children in post-crisis situations, revealing that their instinct is not just to find food and shelter but to play together. This instinctive play allows children to develop crucial skills for cooperation, empathy, and conflict resolution, necessary for understanding democratic principles. Despite its significance, unstructured play is diminishing in modern society, replaced by screens and structured activities, leading to a generation that struggles with self-governance and resilience. The author argues that fostering unstructured play is essential for nurturing healthy, engaged citizens in the future.
In unstructured play, children practice the very skills democracy relies on. A backyard game of tag teaches how to negotiate, choose a leader, adapt rules and resolve conflict.
Children know instinctively that play heals. We tend to think of play as childish or optional. But it's how we first learn to care for ourselves and live with others.
We've prioritized safety over self-governance, fragility over resilience. It's not just kids who suffer from the loss of these play opportunities, but society as a whole.
Time and again, I've seen something extraordinary: After crisis, children don't just seek food or shelter. They seek each other. They play.
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