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Street Living
Street children are forced to be independent of adults at a very early age and some thrive on this freedom. We have found there are three common misconceptions about street children:
- That they lack food, shelter and medical help.
- That they are incapable of achieving anything very much in life.
- That they are downtrodden and pathetic.
Many street children tell us they enjoy their lives and the freedom a life away from adults gives them. Some earn reasonably good money scouring arriving trains, sorting rubbish or becoming expert petty thieves. So for a number of street children food, clothing, shelter and medicine are all within their reach, albeit without the consistency of a 'normal' life. The downside of this is that other attractions are there as well and can be paid for. Their fundamental deficiency is therefore none of the above, but rather that they lack a loving, caring home life, values, the guidance of a responsible adult and opportunity. The perils of life on the street are made worse by the easy availability of certain drugs and glue which are often used to overcome the depression that all children face. Given the chance at a young age they can achieve as much as any other child from a more privileged home and the Future Hope children are the living proof of this. |
