Capoeira4Refugees to tour the Middle East

The Capoeira4Refugees tour will not only allow participants to experience the work that Capoeira4Refugees has been doing in refugee communities, but it will also allow them to experience the region’s culture through food, music and local trips. The tour will be led by Mestre Pedro Albuquerque, whose experiences with capoeira in similarly marginalised communities during his youth inspired him to support the mission of Capoeira4Refugees. “When I came across C4R’s work, it reminded me of the times when I taught in a favela in my hometown, Rio. The project helps make it possible for capoeira teachers and mestres to come to the region to teach the youth and share their experiences with the local instructors.” - Mestre Pedro.

During this tour, participants will visit Azraq refugee camp, and community centres in Amman, Jordan and Shuafat refugee camp, Jalazone refugee camp and East Jerusalem in Palestine.

“To bring the capoeira world together to support refugees through social capoeira. That has always been our vision. A crucial part of the tour is to help inspire and train local capoeira players from the region, so they can train friends and family and work on social projects in their own communities.” - Tarek Alsaleh, founder, Capoeira4Refugees.

The Capoeira4Refgees tour is an event that will bring capoeiristas from around the globe into the Arab world to not only raise awareness about the refugee communities there, but also to expand the global capoeira community and teach participants about the impact of sport development on peace and on wellbeing.

Capoeira4Refugees teaches capoeira to children and youth who are the victims of conflict. They have been present throughout the Middle East since 2007 and have given classes to over 10,000 children in Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan. Capoeira is a Brazilian martial art form combining rhythmic moves from dance, acrobatics and martial arts to create a dialogue between two players - a beautiful, active conversation through movement. Developed by African slaves in Brazil as a form of both self-defense and self-expression, capoeira also provided a mental escape from the oppression the slaves faced by the Portuguese. A deeply collaborative game, capoeira has evolved into its own culture in the Middle East.

Capoeira4Refugees helps youth refugees cope with the abuses of conflict, the impacts of forced displacement and the fears of an unknown future. The skills they take from capoeira will benefit them for the rest of their lives: they will build inner strength, confidence and resilience as they step into the roda, or circle, they will take back their childhood through playfulness, while also maintaining their physical wellbeing.

• If you are interested in participating in the Capoeira4Refugees tour, contact: [email protected]
• For more information on the tour including dates and sign-up information, visit the Capoeira4Refugees website