Shadia’s life changed the day her mother died.
From what I can tell, Shadia grew up in a loving home; she attended school and was cared for by her mother. But when her mother passed due to complications from AIDS, everything changed. Now 17, Shadia has been on the streets of Kisenyi for over two years.
She says she left home because her grandmother was not nice to her. She tells me she was forced to leave school and go to work instead. We are still piecing together her story, as we do with all the kids we meet. It takes time to figure out what exactly transpired and what motivated these kids to leave home and not want to go back.
Kisenyi, one of the largest slums in Kampala, attracts children from across the country because of a myth that has been conjured up over time. Many children run away to Kisenyi to escape the abuse and mistreatment they face at home, thinking life on the streets will somehow be better. But they quickly become disillusioned by the harsh realities of street life.
Shadia is one of many adolescent girls who have made their way to Kisenyi. She tells me that her life in Kisenyi is much more challenging than the one she left behind but prefers life on the streets over living with her grandmother – something I have a hard time wrapping my head around. Could her home life be that bad since her mom died? I wonder. Could living in the confines of a slum, not knowing where her next meal is coming from, sleeping on the ground, and being easy prey for sexual assault be better than living with her grandmother? We are working to find out.
Living on the street forces these kids to grow up fast, but you can still catch glimpses of a child in them. With Shadia, it’s playing football or listening to her talk about becoming a singer and dancer one day. She mentions that she wants to return to school, but, like so many other girls her age, she is no longer age-appropriate for the level at which she should return. This conundrum leaves girls like Shadia vulnerable to abuse, childhood marriage, teenage pregnancy, drug and alcohol addiction, STDs, and HIV.
Shadia is an impressionable teenager who can easily talk about things, which makes me scared for her. I quickly realized that her friends were trying to get her to get things from me for themselves. But I had an immediate connection with Shadia. All she wants is to be liked and fit in, to have somebody care for and love her.
She asked me repeatedly, “Why do you like me so much?” And I would look at her and say, “I just do.”
Life on the streets is not a life for Shadia or any kid.
Shule Foundation has rented a five-bedroom home to be used as a rehabilitation center for the children of Kisenyi. In groups of 20 at a time, we will move at-risk children like Shadia off the streets of Kisenyi and into our home. There, we will provide rehabilitation services, help locate their families in the hopes of resettling them, and prepare them to return to school.
