Last June 11th the prison of Potenza has joined, as every year, the initiative – unique in Italy and Europe – of the non-profit organization “Bambinisenzasbarre”, which fights for the right of children to maintain their parental relationship even in prison.
This is the eighth edition of the “Game with mum and dad”, the long-awaited meeting between detained parents and their children which opens the doors of penitentiary institutions to their families and this year marks the tenth anniversary of the signing of the “Charter of rights of children of imprisoned parents”.
There “Game with mum and dad” is organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice Department of Penitentiary Administration and on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Charter, the “Match with mum and dad” next autumn will be carried out at European level for the Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) network of which “Bambinisenzasbarre” is a member and sits on the Board of Directors.
This year too the event coincided with the European awareness campaign “Not my crime, but my condemnation” active during the month of June.
There “Game with mum and dad”, which at the Prison of Potenza, on the initiative of the Management and the Educational Area, saw the introduction of a new element: an original and unique initiative entitled “the real game is making pizza with mom and dad”.
A day where it was possible to play and “knead” with mothers and fathers, normal for all the other children, but which was exceptional for these children and their families, thanks to the collaboration of the Penitentiary Police personnel, of the master Pizzaiolo Lopez, of Annarita Marchionna of the APS Officine Officinali and of the Coop Centostrade which with its Ludobus made children and adults go crazy with joy
The “Game with mum and dad”, created by Bambinisenzasbarre, was born in 2015.
The initiative started with the participation of 12 institutes and the participation of 500 children and 250 fathers in prison, and was held every year until 2019. Interrupted for two years due to the pandemic, it had a strong impact on the resumption edition of June 2022 (76 institutions, 82 matches, 4100 children, 1900 parents) which established the reopening of penitentiary institutions to families.
The seventh edition, played in 2023, saw the participation of 79 Italian institutions where 83 matches were played, involving Penitentiary Police officers, educators, 4250 children, 2050 detained parents and their families.
The objective is to raise awareness on the issue of social inclusion and equal opportunities for all children and aims to bring to the fore the issue of prejudice and marginalization of which the 100 thousand children in Italy are often victims (2 .2 million in Europe) who have their father or mother in prison.
The Director of the Prison declared Dr. Paolo Pastena:
“This initiative represents a strong call for social co-responsibility, an opportunity to broaden our gaze and include the families of prisoners: children, spouses, parents, who must not be unfairly discriminated against for something they did not commit.
We know that the topic of prison generates some resistance, but we can begin to change our perspective from caring for relationships and the rights of the little ones.”
