Carolina Alumni Review - May/June 2012

‘It’s not a sad, depressing view
of poverty. It is a very hopeful way
of looking at a very difficult

Jason Arthurs

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SAME DESTINATION

put kids from different tribes on the same
team so they would befriend each other,”
Arthurs said. “To these kids, soccer is their
life, so if they’re spending all this time in
the field together with people from differ-
ent ethnic groups, the idea is that they
won’t want to fight each other.”
Arthurs and photojournalist Andrew
Johnson ’ 10 filmed the bulk of the footage
during the final two weeks of the 2010
tournament. They focused on the players
and coaches who would face each other in
the championship game, and through their
eyes showed both the despair and the hope
that exists in Kibera.

“It’s not a sad, depressing view of
poverty,” Arthurs said. “It is a very hopeful
way of looking at a very difficult living
situation.”
The final scenes show the winning
team parading through the streets of Kib-
era. As the multi-ethnic group of revelers
thrusts trophies into the air, the film high-
lights in print the many soccer matches
that have been played in the years since the
tournament began. “All of them,” the text
says, “have ended without a fight.”
In the 50-plus minutes leading up to
this point, viewers meet several key peo-
ple. One is Nicholas Mutuiwa, who
dreams of becoming a soccer star in the
United States and returning to Kibera to
give back to his community. Another is
Adan Ibrahim, who credits soccer with
keeping him away from one of the slum’s
biggest pitfalls — drugs.

As tournament organizer Kenny Juma says in the film, “For many young kids in Kibera, they value soccer as a way of survival.”

Without a Fight premiered in March at the 11mm International Football Film Festival in Berlin; its U.S. debut took place in April at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival in Durham. Upcoming screenings can be found at withoutafight.org.

— Lucy Hood ’ 83

When Thelma Perkins moved to Carol Woods, she never dreamed that one day her son would join her! However, as Larry saw his mother thrive in a community filled with opportunities for continued learning, growing and contributing, he and his wife signed up for future residency.

Moving to Carol Woods allows people the time to make a difference in the community that surrounds them. Whether mentoring students, volunteering in the larger community, or interacting with children at the on-site day care, Carol Woods’ residents continue to lead active, stimulating lives filled with meaningful moments!