Working in a slum!

This week we were working outside Nairobi in Thika at Kiganjo primary school redoing a classroom for special needs children. Before going, I was picturing a Canadian-like classroom with electricity, lights, school supplies and books. The classroom had none of these. It was a tiny room with some broken windows, dirty walls and a stack of tyres in the back of the class that are used as toys. The classroom has no lights, electricity, or fans, just three windows and a door.

For several days, we woke up at 4:30am for the two hour drive to Thika. We cleaned the room countless times, painted all the walls, repainted the chalkboard, hammered things into cement, decorated then cleaned everything again. While working, we were being harassed by a group of local teenagers.  We went for a walk to try to take a break but they followed us, yelling obscenities and throwing rocks. It was really disturbing and scary to experience but luckily not life threatening as other events we have read about throughout the world. 

One of the most difficult things to overcome this week was being a visible minority. The area I am from is predominantly white so I’ve never experienced it to this degree before and it made me really uncomfortable. We were working in a slum on the outskirts of Nairobi where there are very few white people so we were seen as objects of money and gifts instead of human beings.  

We had numerous similar events where people would follow us, yell, wave in our faces or just stop and stare at us. It made me stronger because I had to learn to ignore it, move on or stand my ground and tell them to stop.

It’s hard to get upset at the younger children for it because that’s what their society teaches them. They’re taught that white is ‘Mzungu’ (a swahili word for white person). The children would yell “Mzungu, mzungu” to get my attention rather than my name because that’s what they’re taught.  

I wish people could see beyond the colour of their skin. I wish adults would acknowledge the power of their words around children. Children are the next generation of the world and we should fight for equality no matter what your skin colour is.