Page 23 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 22

Community

the neighbors in that society. And
then when this intervention, is dis-
regarded and presented by someone
who says, “You can’t even afford
where I take my child to school.”
But that’s not what we’re discussing.
Here. We are discussing about a hu-
man being, but you’re still attaching
this child’s identity to an institution.
That institution can come to an end
any time. But what will remain? So, I
think for the middle class, one, is to
address trauma. And then number
two, to realize that true satisfaction
is not in an institution, true satisfac-
tion is not in how much you earn, or
even the car that you drive, or in the
school that you go to and all that.
All those things contribute to, let’s
Celebrating international women’s day with such gifted girls and their facilitators in say, your worldview. So the best way
prison is, first to bring a sense of healing,
and that is where I think I would
MCA, senator, or something like middle class? And how do we say our conversations as a society
that. But making sure in your home, reach them with programs like should not actually start from our
in your village, in your community, these, and restore them to a place economic empowerment, we should
there is truth, there is justice, and of accuracy? Because I think start from addressing collective
there is healing taking place. Because they can have a huge amount of trauma, and addressing individual
if you do so, no matter what people impact. trauma as a people. Why do we
say and do, everything will be okay have people insulting each other
for your society. I think I would respond with a in organizations? Why do we have
question. Who are these people who people bringing down each other in
Thank you. I want to talk about isolate? Someone who is isolates is an organization? It’s simply because
one group in society that I find, someone who is traumatized. And of trauma. So, where there’s pain,
I don’t know if marginalized so how the middle class and how people tend to isolate where there is
is the right word, considering our society is behaving today, it is injustice, people tend to isolate. And
that they have a large amount of a result of social trauma. There is what trauma does, drives someone
wealth. But I just find that even individual trauma and there is collec- to a place of feeling helpless. And
socially speaking, the middle tive trauma. Collective trauma we so we learn how to be helpless. So,
class are a group of people that have injustices, corruption, we have I can only do with bare minimum.
seem to be more lost than ever, all those things. Individual trauma, And that’s where people graduate to.
even in the middle of having a what is happening at home, you As long as it makes me happy, I will
certain type of abundance. They find that there’s a lot of emotional do it. Which is wrong.
have resources, they have homes, abuse, there’s financial abuse where
their children have clothes and we control each other based on how What are the sources of this
food, they’re going to school but much I earn, how much you earn. trauma?
there’s an isolation that is hap- And then the other thing is our defi- Sources of this trauma, of course,
pening in that group that keeps nition of success. So, how I define we have injustices in our society.
them living a fake life, even when success is maybe the car that I drive, Like now there’s a child in prison I
they have pain, and also not par- maybe the place where I live, maybe was asking this child, “What hap-
ticipating in society, and contrib- the work that I do. And a good pened?” And the child says that,
uting to society in a way that can example is in this community where “I was framed by my stepmother.”
positively transformative? What a child is misbehaving. And then And there are so many cases of
do you think is going on with the there’s intervention from let’s say, stepmother-stepdad, stepmoth-

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