THUNDER BAY – The Harlem Globetrotters are stepping it up on the issue of bullying.

Known worldwide as the “Ambassadors of Goodwill”™, the iconic Harlem Globetrotters are debuting a new community outreach program, “The ABCs of Bullying Prevention,” in an effort to impact schools and communities around the world.

The Globetrotters designed the program in coordination with the National Campaign to Stop Violence (NCSV). The program focuses on Action, Bravery, and Compassion, comprising the ABCs.

The program targets 6-14 year-old students and involves Globetrotter players discussing the three key words in the ABCs and tools that kids can use on a daily basis to reduce bullying. The Globetrotters equate what it means to be part of a team to how kids can offer support to one another to help stop bullying.

Globetrotters Take on Bullying

The important message of bullying and violence prevention is conveyed with student participation — and the team’s signature ball handling skills and humor — for a well-balanced program that informs and entertains. Teachers and/or administrators are also provided with program certificates to be distributed to the kids to take home in the days after the program is presented.

NCSV, a non-profit organization that works with middle school students, firmly believes that young people, who think about their actions in the non-confrontational ways that this program extols, can create a culture where aggressive behavior is frowned upon and violence is thereby reduced.”

Students frequently cite bullying as a cause of violence that they experience, and the rate at which students are reporting this cause is increasing. We hope that by reaching these kids early in their lives, they might be taught valuable lessons in character and empathy from the positive role models of the Harlem Globetrotters.

The Globetrotters will bring “The ABCs of Bullying Prevention” to over 300 schools and youth centers as part of their 2013 “You Write The Rules” World Tour, celebrating the team’s 87thconsecutive year. Cities in which the program is presented will greatly hinge on the team’s touring schedule.

To request “The ABCs of Bullying Prevention” program, fax the Harlem Globetrotters Public Relations Department on school letterhead at 602-258-5925 and/or email your request to info@harlemglobetrotters.com.

Things to know for the school:

• The assembly can take place in any large space that can fit the entire school — we do NOT need a basketball hoop.
• We have no limit to the number of kids who attend the assembly — all students ages 6-14 are encouraged to attend. We have performed school assemblies for over 1,000 kids in the past.
• Teachers can set up the students in “assembly style” with a row down the middle (if they are seated on the floor).
• A stage is not needed — just enough room at the front to move around.
• We prefer a microphone and a CD player for Sweet Georgia Brown (or use the mp3 file provided by the Globetrotters to set it up in advance).
• Program lasts 30-45 minutes.
• The Globetrotters will provide a program certificate via email, which we ask schools to print and distribute to the students to take home.
• We request permission to invite media from local TV stations and newspapers. If any restrictions are in place, media can simply be alerted as to which kids cannot have pictures or video taken of them. You may take your own pictures and video during the presentation.
• You are also more than welcome to invite any parents that wish to attend.