On one of my rare visits to Maponya Mall in Soweto some weeks ago, I was accosted by a young lady in the car park looking for help.   She appeared to be in her early twenties, was poorly yet decently dressed and quite well-spoken. There was an air of dignity about her, so often lacking in those who have been forced to beg.   Never once did she ask for money. Her first and only request was how she could find work. This request was repeated over and over. The only time she mentioned money was when, in desperation, she said, “I don’t have even one cent.”

Maponya Mall, Soweto

Her story is a sad one. She comes from Mpumulanga Province. She was in Grade 11 but had to drop out of school because, with her mother ill, there was no money to pay the school fees. Shortly after her mother died her father remarried. Her elder brother set out to make his own way in life and she decided to come to Johannesburg to find work. Her younger brother, who was a bit mentally disturbed, remained with the father. Some weeks ago she heard that her father had chased her brother away and she didn’t know where he was. This memory drove her to tears.

Presently she is living with a boyfriend in Meadowlands (one of the suburbs in Soweto). When I asked her what he did for a living she said he did ‘piece’ jobs to try and support them both. Every day she trudges to different shopping malls seeking work. When I met her she had walked from Meadowlands, a very long walk indeed. I gave her some financial help but, even as I did so, I realised the futility of what I was doing. She would have help for one more day and then the weary cycle would begin again.

Meadowlands

I have been haunted by this encounter. I found myself wondering if she would end up prostituting herself just to exist, or end up in prison because she had to steal to keep herself alive. When one thinks that youth unemployment in Soweto is approximately 40 percent, it explains, at least partially, why there is so much crime and a sense of desperation among the youth.   There is no doubt that education is one of the most essential needs here in Soweto. If even 50 percent of young people were employable it would provide some hope for the future. Unfortunately, very little is happening in most of the local schools here as Matric results bear out, while parents struggle to send their children to schools in the city.

I recall that one of Mother Catherine’s founding works was to provide shelter and seek employment for young ladies of good character who might otherwise be led astray. There is so much injustice around us and so little we can do to help.

Berchmans Dowling rsm
South African Province