Bigger Than Basketball: Racine students and police officers play ball in honor of Crime Victims' Rights Week

 

RACINE, Wis. (CBS 58) – Students and police officers took to the basketball court on Friday, April 26 for a special game in honor of crime victims.

Dozens filled the stands at Jergstad-Agerholm School in Racine for "Bigger Than Basketball," an annual event for National Crime Victims' Rights Week.

"People like to play, people like to watch, people like to cheer and dance, so I thought it was a way to include a lot of different people," said Nakeyda Hamer, the state lead for Voices of Black Mothers United. "There are members here who have lost their children, who have lost their loved ones, and so we welcome everyone in to stand united with us."

Voices of Black Mothers United hosts Bigger than Basketball, allowing kids and local officers to join forces on the court.

"The players on these teams are officers from different departments, officers that our children see in the neighborhoods in uniform, but today they get to see them as humans, as teammates, as players," Hamer said.

This is the third year of Bigger Than Basketball, but the first year that students helped run the event.

"It's also inviting our young people to be a solution to the problems we're having in our community, because ultimately, they're our future," Hamer explained.

Gabrielle Hood, a patrol officer with Racine Police Department, is one of several officers that hits the court each year.

"This is just another way for us to connect in the community we work in, and it's awesome," Hood said. "It's really important to understand for them, that they can come to us, and that we're on their side to help them out."

The event is a way to raise awareness and bring all facets of the community together.

"It's just changing that narrative where we're not talking about the us against them," Hamer said. "It's all of us in our community, and all of us have a role."