For Laird Walker, basketball wasn’t just a game—it was where he learned about the society’s hierarchies and what it might take to heal from them. Today, he leads Life Hoops, a program that empowers young Black and Brown men in Kalamazoo to cultivate joy, resilience, and healing through basketball, community engagement, and mentorship.

As a teenager in a resource-rich Chicago Public School on the West Side of Chicago, Laird played games against teams from underfunded schools in the same area.

“I remember feeling uncomfortable walking through schools with poor infrastructure and tight security,” he said, “while we had a new gym, multiple uniforms, fresh shoes, and warm-up gear. It didn’t make sense.”

But on the court, those differences disappeared. “In basketball, hierarchies don’t exist, and mistakes and emotional expression are normalized, something Black and Brown boys don’t often get to experience.”

What stood out most to Laird wasn’t just what happened on the floor, it was the energy in the stands. “Those neighborhoods and communities had so much collective pride in their local high schools,” he said. “When their team won, it felt like the whole West Side won.”

Basketball gave Laird a glimpse into how communities support people through adversity. What he learned planted the seeds for Life Hoops, a program that would channel the spirit of pride, resilience, and brotherhood into a healing-centered culture for youth.

“So many young people are unwell because of false narratives reinforced by society and relationships,” he said. “Healing helps them reconnect with who they really are and creates space for learning, trust, and well-being.”

How Life Hoops Challenges the System

Laird first launched Life Hoops in 2016 as an after-school club for boys often excluded from school. After a year, he paused the program to pursue graduate studies in trauma theory and therapeutic models before relocating to Kalamazoo.

“The disparities I saw in Chicago were present here, too,” he said. “Residential segregation, resource extraction, policing instead of support.”

In 2024, as a STARA Collaborative sponsored project, Life Hoops, relaunched inside the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home. The mission remained the same: to support Black and Brown boys in developing stronger relationships with themselves, with peers, and with their communities through the culture of basketball.

“Most of the spaces these boys exist in are filled with surveillance and judgment,” Laird explained. “So they develop protective behaviors like code-switching, shutting down, and over-generalized aggression. Those might keep them safe short-term, but they disconnect them from their core selves.”

That disconnection, he says, is an adaptive response to systems that aren’t organized to see them as whole.

Life Hoops interrupts that cycle through structured, trauma-informed practices: competitive play, restorative circles, guided reflection, and emotional check-ins using tools like Kimochis, which help boys communicate in authentic ways. Every session is rooted in trust, reflection, and adaptability. Youth feedback helps shape how sessions are structured, when they play, how they process, and how they show up.

“Most of these boys exist within circumstances that limit choice,” Laird said. 

The program works on building both primary control—the ability to change your environment—and secondary control—the ability to reframe your mindset. Laird describes trauma recovery skills that improve well-being and reduce the long-term impact of adverse experiences.

He recalled a recent story where a boy in the program found hot sauce poured into his hoodie during lunch—a prank that hit hard for someone with few belongings and a disciplinary record on the edge.

“He walked into the hallway to confront him, and everyone braced for it,” Laird said. “But he paused, took a breath, and said, ‘You gotta clean that up.’ And walked away.”

Later in group reflection, he said, “I’ve got too much to lose.”

“That’s not behavior management,” Laird said. “That’s a young man thinking about his future. That’s healing and transformation in action.”

Creating a Healing Culture

Life Hoops is grounded in helping young men and boys reconnect with their core selves: the belief that every young person is inherently good, wise, and capable of change.

“We see behavior as communication,” Laird said. “These boys are doing the best they can with the skills and resources they have. So we ask: what’s underneath this? What need isn’t being met?”

Healing, he says, isn’t a destination, it’s a daily practice. “It’s probably the most important thing you can do. Because when you’re on that journey, everybody around you benefits.”

But healing is only part of the equation. Laird insists we can’t discuss youth behavior without naming the systems that shape their lives.

“Outcomes for Black and Brown boys are not random,” he said. “They’re produced. And we’re all implicated.”

He points to one local example: six out of ten guns used in crimes in Kalamazoo can be traced back to local gun shops within the same community or nearby areas.

“When violence happens, people think it’s just individual failure. But it’s a reflection of policy,” he said. “We need collective action to change those pipelines because we care about the lives of our youth.”

He also challenges the idea that young people carry guns out of delinquency. “It’s about survival. They’re doing what they think they need to do to feel safe.”

And that feeling, he says, is shaped by neighborhood conditions. “I grew up between a mosque and a synagogue, next to a community center and a park. I had access to fresh food, supportive adults, and places to walk. That’s what safe communities look like.”

But in under-resourced neighborhoods, Laird says, the only consistent presence is often law enforcement. “That’s not an accident. It’s systemic. But it can be changed.”

Lessons That Dribble Off the Court

The power of Life Hoops isn’t limited to the court. It’s a model for how we all might show up at home, in classrooms, and in community spaces.

Laird invites us to consider the following perspectives:

• Behavior is data. Every reaction is a clue. Instead of judging it, ask yourself: What’s the need underneath this?
• Healing is a daily practice. It’s not a goal, it’s a journey. It’s about showing up for yourself over and over again.
• Consistently check in with yourself. As adults, we’ve picked up emotional habits and beliefs from our lived experiences. What are we carrying, and what do we actually want to pass on?
• We are interconnected. When young people are hurting, it affects us all. Their well-being is our collective responsibility.

“If a basketball court and juvenile home can be a site of healing, then there’s no reason we can’t build it everywhere.”

That’s what Life Hoops is ultimately about, not just better behavior or academic success, but a new way of being in community. One rooted in joy, dignity, connection, and care.

Here are some ways you can help build a thriving community in solidarity with local changemakers:

• Support Life Hoops in creating healing spaces for youth through basketball by making a donation: Donate here.  
• Invest in STARA, empowering grassroots BIPOC focused non-profits in Kalamazoo County.
• Invest and Learn more about community-centered programs that sustain and empower youth and families: Urban Alliance, YWCA Kalamazoo, Charlie’s Place, and ERACCE.
• Participate in an ERACCE 2.5 half-day anti-racism training. Understanding systems of oppression is essential to dismantling them.
• Learn the history that shapes our present. Start with these essential reads:
  • The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
  • Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen
  • The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein
  • The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

Let’s build a community where every person is seen, supported, and celebrated.