The conditions in rural Varanasi were unlike any I would have expected. Living there for two months was a shock that has introduced me to pumping gallons of water a day for hygiene needs, living with no electricity in 110 degree temperatures, consistently being covered in dirt no matter how hard I tried to stay clean, milking cows to get milk, and climbing trees to get my daily fruit. It is a lifestyle that has taught me to appreciate all the things that usually come within minutes, if not seconds, of request – running water, grocery stores, cars, constant electricity, air conditioning and heating systems and all the other basic components of my familiar suburban Long Island lifestyle. However, it has also brought to me a number of unpleasant surprises.
The most prevalent of these surprises is the conditions of the Mushahar community in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. This is a community that is underprivileged in every sense of the word. The children wake at 4:30am daily for the slim chance that they receive breakfast by begging for food in nearby villages, for which they have to walk several kilometers with little certainty of sustenance. These same children often “bathe” in the same water in which pigs cool off, garbage is thrown, dishes and clothes are washed, and other pollutants are washed away. Consequently, the children are never exposed to sanitary conditions. After the morning and early afternoon spent begging, all of the children – no matter how young – join their parents in manual labor, including collection of leaves – used to create disposable plates – picking of garbage and plastics, and other tasks that yield them 100 Rs-/ (roughly $2) a day if they are lucky. It is usually less.
All of this leads to a lifestyle that is disadvantaged socially, politically, economically, and emotionally. Little work is done for the Mushahar people in Indian government, as they are divided into hundreds of different villages and, thus, have no united force or political say. The unfortunate reality of the situation is that they are abused in all institutions and have few people offering a helping hand in bringing them out of these conditions.
Even more disconcerting is that there is no single-faceted solution that would make the lives of these people. I came here with the intention of teaching kids English and hoping that would make a difference, but I was rudely awoken to the reality that without good health, education was meaningless, that without a good education, good health was meaningless, that without good conditions for growth, all other assistance was meaningless. Too often, I have noticed, offered solutions only contribute to one aspect of problem; however, without addressing more facets of the issues-at-hand, whatever solution is produced doesn’t do all that its supposed to despite noble efforts and intentions.
This has brought me to the development of a program – Training for Independence – to address all of these concerns. This program will take 30-40 Mushahar children every day of the year and provide them with an environment that caters to their forward growth. They will be shielded from the bidi (small homemade cigarettes), alcohol, and gambling that is ever present in their home communities. They will be given proper conditions for hygiene with soap, shampoo, toothbrushes and toothpaste. Providing these children balanced meals every day along with regular medical treatment, the children in the program will be offered all conditions for healthy living that provides for their development into individuals ready to sustain their own lives independently. The program will also provide the children with an academic and vocational education with the help of trained teachers and local merchants. It is most certainly a daunting task that will takes lot of work and dedication, but this is work that is needed if this community is ever to rise above the oppression and other hurdles they have struggled with throughout their history.
Fortunately, lots of communities have thus far been extremely supportive of this work, and we have been extremely blessed by all the people and organizations that helped us raise the $12,000 needed for the first year of operation. That includes the Givology community, and I’m extremely thankful for all the help you have provided simply in being a part of it. Givology is a community-driven organization that is what it is because of people like you that support the organization with your small donations that aggregate into the awesomeness that has been Givology’s success in the last few years since its founding. So thank you for helping all the students and projects that Givology sponsors, and thank you for making 2011 possible for the Training for Independence project and making change within reach for the Mushahar community.
