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Bacher practices sports diplomacy in Pakistan to confront gender-based violence at home

Tela O'Donnell Bacher

In December, Tela O’Donnell Bacher traveled to Pakistan on a State Department sanctioned, sports diplomacy mission representing the national non-profit, Wrestle Like A Girl. Bacher participated in an eight-day cultural exchange, exploring how sport is a tool to address the topic of gender-based violence. 

She  is the National Camps Director for Wrestle Like A Girl, a board member and runs their camps throughout the country. Bacher is a Homer-grown Olympic wrestler, a 2003 U.S. National Champion, a three times Team USA National Team Member and a 2004 Olympian.

“Gender-based violence doesn’t discriminate against race, age, social economic status," said Bacher, "and it’s really, it’s worth addressing because it affects so many people in so many different ways.

Bacher says that sport is a particularly interesting tool to use because it addresses issues directly and indirectly at the same time.

"When you learn how to get what you want, whether it’s getting a ball in soccer or a position in wrestling, you can see those skills transfer. You know what it’s like to step into a position and say, 'No I really want this and I’m going to work for it.' You can see the girls who do these sports and especially those really engaged in sports, their confidence is on a diffident level,” said Bacher.

Not every girl in Pakistan gets to participate in sports. Bacher says she found, in a country that does not have equal rights, that many of the girls and women are outspoken, determined and empowered, something she hopes can be attributed in-part to their engagement in sports.

“It should be noted that we were in urban areas. Rural areas are much more conservative. But, girls in Pakistan know what their rights are. They know where they want to be. They know what they need I can’t help be my typical American self and say, 'we’ve got the answers.' I felt humbled. They're doing things, incredibly," said Bacher.

In Homer, as she did in Pakistan, Bacher witnesses, first hand, how the skills learned while playing sports translate into everyday life.

"We build a culture that teaches each other, to work through our conflicts, to be able to be in the room with somebody of the opposite gender and be comfortable. And how do we do that?  We do that through play. You know, we’re holistic beings, we’re not just a brain and a body, separate. We put them together. You do that in sport."

Tela O’Donnell Bacher will be speaking at the Homer Public Library at the corner of Hazel and Heath Streets on Thursday, February 20 at 6:30pm.  It’s free and everyone is welcome.

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Health Homer Public LibraryTela O'Donnell BacherWrestle Like a Girl