En gledens dag

Sondag kveld ble en kjempesuksess - tror jeg vi ma si. Thulanis tale gikk veldig bra, og folk var virkelig rort. Folk i salen grat, og han fikk veldig mye respons. Da han ble introdusert, sa Vishanthie at det er et paradoks at vi samles for a diskutere sosiale problemer men vi motes i femstjerners motelokaler... Thulani var der for a hjelpe oss til a huske virkeligheten og a fa beina ned pa bakken igjen.

Her er talen hans:

Thank you, Vishanthie.

Before I start, I will ask you all to take a moment of silence in honour of our friend Lindani who is in prison for something I as an eyewitness know that he did not do.


Thank you.
Ladies and gentlemen.
First, I want to say thank you for this opportunity. My name is Thulani Jerome Dlamini, and I live on the street here in Durban. Living on the street includes being hushed down. I am therefore thankful and happy to speak. I represent the Young Leaders Development Committee of children and young people staying on the street in Durban, but I speak on behalf of all the people living on the streets around the globe. Although each of us has a unique life story, we also share a lot, and some of those issues were highlighted by Anfani.

We have heard Anfani Okosun’s keynote address, and his mindful analysis of the power imbalance between rich and poor people in this world. I am not an academic, and people like me usually don’t speak at big conferences like this one. But I am well-equipped to give a response. What Anfani has talked about, is not just theory for me. It is my life.

Let me tell you about the struggles of our lives, because street life is not good. We live on leftovers from the rich, even digging in bins for something to eat. Police brutality is making our lives even worse. They take away our clothes, even now in winter when it is too cold. To get our clothes back, the police demand money, and for the girls they demand sex.

When we sleep, people throw bricks and water on us. We are treated like animals, but we are humans. And we deserve to be treated with dignity.

Like all human beings we have wishes and hopes for our future. We want a wife or a husband, we want children, and homes, and nice jobs. We want to be like you all are. And when we get better, we want to help others so that they can reach the stage where we are.

I have always said to myself: don’t give up on life, because you never know what God has for you. I am happy to say that I now see the first beginning of a brighter future. I just started working as an intern with the organisation Umthombo, in the advocacy department, and today I am standing here before you – speaking on behalf of people who are not usually listened to.

I mentioned in the beginning the Young Leaders Development Committee, which is a committee we have just started. We want to defend our rights. We also want to change the life that we are living. We are still in the beginning phase of starting up our own small businesses – in a way similar to the counter-corporations that Anfani so warmly argued for. He is right that today’s mainstream, traditional approaches cannot change our lives. One reason is that leftovers, band-aids and hand-outs come with no dignity.

To the politicians and policymakers who are sitting here tonight, I want to ask you to include us when you make decisions that affect us. We want to be included, heard and involved. The same goes for you social workers and social work educators: Listen to us and include us in your programmes. Teach your students that we are human beings with aspirations, opinions and knowledge. Remember our dignity in everything you do, and we will together see a change that reflects our needs.