An unusual project has taken root in the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan. In a country where women are not allowed on bicycles, Skateistan — a grassroots project that has now grown into a full-blown NGO — aims to empower Afghan girls by giving them the chance to skateboard.
Australian skateboarder Oliver Percovich had the idea to use skateboarding as a tool to reel kids into schooling.
When UK-based photographer Jessica Fulford-Dobson read about this initiative in a tiny newspaper article, she flew to Afghanistan to document the girls’ progress. The result was a photo series entitled “Skate Girls of Kabul”.
“You’d see the girls, so nervous and timid to begin with, and then they’d go down the ramp and they’d be filled with this pride. It has an amazing power I could never have anticipated,” Fulford-Dobson said.
At Skateistan, now entirely run by Afghans, the street sport is used as an initial draw in order to educate poor children. With Skateistan’s back-to-school program, younger kids aged 7 to 12 are mentored by older children, and taught three years of material at an accelerated pace.
Once the children complete the program, they are often able to enter or re-enter the public school system.
And the skateboarding? After a day of learning, the children are rewarded with an hour of skateboarding nirvana.
Skateistan also provides the kids with a warm meal before they are sent home.
More than 50% of the students work and play on the streets, and over 40% of them are girls.
Since being founded in 2007, Skateistan has spread to Cambodia and South Africa.
“I want to give them some sort of control over their own destiny,” Percovich said.
“A lot of foreign aid agencies here tell them what they should be doing or what they should know, but it’s incredibly important for the children to decide these things for themselves.”
For most of us, the skateboard is an item relegated to the garage, but for these girls, it’s carrying them to well-being, an education, and a better world. If you are interested in donating to Skateistan’s program in Kabul as well as other cities, you can do so here.