THE POETRY FOR THE VOICELESS CHILDREN IN NYANZA , Akech Obat Masira

THE POETRY FOR THE VOICELESS CHILDREN IN NYANZA

The Teach A- Child (TAC) and the Misango Arts Ensemble will host a day's poetry symposium to address the issues affecting the orphaned and vulnerable children in Nyanza Province Kenya through the medium of poetry. The symposium seeks to find means and ways of the empowerment of the children orphaned by HIV / AIDS and also the vulnerable children.

The poetry symposium will be held on the 11th Sept 2007 at the Young Women Christian Association (YWCA) in Kisumu city Kenya. The theme of the symposium is "Poetry for voiceless"

Poets have been drawn from different backgrounds i.e universities, theatre organizations and schools. How will poetry be used in addressing issues affecting orphaned and vulnerable children in Nyanza and how could poetry be promoted to create a voice for the voiceless in children in Nyanza?

See the justification for using poetry in the empowerment of the orphaned and the vulnerable children in Nyanza.

Akech Obat Masira

JUSTIFICATION FOR USING POETRY IN EMPOWERING YOUNG PEOPLE ORPHANED BY HIV/AIDS

Poetry is living art. It is one medium which is easily accessible to young minds given that it is music put into words. Amongst all the genres of literature, poetry is one genre which is enjoyable as young people can associate with rhythms much more easily than one finds in other genres like the novel and drama. Poetry is song, it is musical and it is also representative. That is to say that one poem can represent several voices which makes it easy, and enjoyable, for a young mind to identify with the voice.

Children remember things much more easily when they are put in the form of song. The rhymes and other components of poetry like, sound play, are elements which should be interesting to young minds. Poetry is vivid. It is memorable. It is playful and does not sound very academic. It therefore does not bore young minds as other genres of literature may.

It is therefore imperative to use poetry as the best medium in empowering young minds. Such young minds should be able to hold poetry sessions to improve on many things. Such include self confidence and positive personality.

It is our hope, therefore, that poetry sessions with poets, drawn from a wide background of society will encourage vulnerable and orphaned children to exchange poetic ideas, write their own poems and recite them in poetic fora.

Poetry has so many other advantages. Whereas one needs a sizeable cast to produce a play, poetry is personal and one has the ability to recite poems even alone! The novel, as another literary form, also needs a lot of time and concentration to read.

It is hoped that the poems that we will have will revolve around child issues, particularly children who have lost one or both parents to the HIV/AIDS scourge. Poems anticipated, therefore, will be tuned towards empowering such children and giving them a sense of self confidence. Such children should be able to aspire towards poetic careers and encourage other peers into this beautiful and unique world of poetry.

Ultimately, it is hoped that the literary medium of poetry should work constructively towards the well being of children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Such children should be encouraged to know that they have a life, which they should value and also know that they have a positive contribution to the betterment of society.

This venture should benefit children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. An initial meeting should be held to introduce the target group to the initiative. The meeting, by adults interested in poetry, should have positive outcomes which should trickle down to the children- who may not be present at the meeting.

Arts have, since time immemorial, been related to the sustainability of society in its various manifestations. Education, access to it and its practice are all vital components of any working society. Education is the vehicle that allows for the development of society and its enhancement in various ways. Art is a very critical facilitator of education as shall be highlighted in this paper.

Drama, a performed type of art, is one genre of literature which cannot be underestimated in its inculcation of positive values to the society. Apart from only supplementing education, drama, in various ways, also does so many other things. Drama gives the performers a sense of self identity, as it imbues stage presence to the actor which can translate to a confident sense of identity within the community. Children feel encouraged and recognized when they are given roles to play in a production. It does make them feel that they, too, like everybody else, can have a role to play in the society. This makes children feel wanted whichever type of background or condition they come from. This, a sort of empowerment, is significant especially to children who have been orphaned on account of HIV//AIDS. Most times, such children have been stigmatized against on account of their HIV/AIDS background. Such children have been kept at arms length and members of society have not wanted to relate with them in any way. As such they have always been isolated from mainstream society which has condemned them to live a marginalized existence.

In schools, for instance, some children from such backgrounds have been removed from class thus denying them access to formal schooling. All this has been as a result of the stigma and misunderstanding associated with HIV/AIDS. Drama, therefore, can be a tool of empowerment for such children.

Besides, when children engage in drama, they may be encouraged to perform plays which teach and sensitize society about the reality of HIV/AIDS. There are a lot of myths and misunderstanding of HIV/AIDS and this has led to negative consequences for the affected and infected. Medical experts on HIV/AIDS can be enlisted to present scientific information in artistic ways. A lot of people do not understand HIV/AIDS, partly, due to the very scientific and rather "dry" manner in which information about the same is presented. Artistry is a very interesting, pleasurable, memorable, vivid and easy to understand vehicle for the presentation of such information.

Drama can therefore be used to demystify HIV/AIDS and all other issues surrounding the condition. To that end a drama outfit will be useful to be incorporated in the programme of teaching such orphaned children in Kenya.

HIV/AIDS has a domino effect in the society. These negative effects have direct consequences on children affected by the scourge. The consequences are also all largely negative. They are stultifying to the growth and development of the child. These consequences include malnutrition, poverty, and poor health care.

The use of art, it is intended, should change this scenario in concert with other vehicles that the organization will utilize.

As noted, the catchment areas for the project are Usigu in Imbo and Ukwala in Ugenya. Both localities are in the Nyanza region of Kenya. It is true, as the statistics bear out, that these are areas which have been hard hit by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. This is due to a host of various factors that are general but which may also be unique to these regions. A creative and performing arts troupe can be used in these areas to train children in various related activities including auditioning, stage management and play directing, acting, public speaking, debating and writing, video and film production. The intended production of a newsletter, also, should help children acquire writing skills, editing skills and other skills related to literacy. From here, one may, also, for instance, think about training in journalism- skills which one may continue with and pursue at higher levels, after the four year programme.

Whereas the production and editing of this newsletter, or magazine, shall be done here in Kenya, its circulation should get beyond the borders and reach out to the international sphere for the international market. The articles, essays and other columns of this newsletter should have great emphasis on HIV/AIDS, in all its various facets.

The newsletter envisioned above should also be a mouthpiece for these orphaned children. Their voice is easily and better heard when they can articulate this in a documentary format in- terms of the newsletter. The newsletter can also be used as an educational material. It should, apart from entertaining, offer useful information on a broad variety of issues, especially as seen from- and relevant to- the youth perspective. Such issues which predominantly affect the youth include: early or teenage pregnancies, drug addiction, crime and violence, civic ignorance as well as health challenges.

When children and youth are brought together under the banner of arts, especially by way of theatre, there is the possibility of having programmed art festivals, debating activities and contests, sporting and essay writing competitions, cultural and educational exchange programmes (local and international) . All the above activities will have a major emphasis on HIV/AIDS. Essay writing contests, for instance will revolve around a varied range of themes involving HIV/AIDS. The same will go for other performed activities like debate, public speaking (the art of oration), cultural festivals, music, and dance, narratives, and video and film production. In as far as the visual arts are concerned, the programme shall also envisage the use of media like posters and puppets, which have the added advantage of being easily comprehended even by those who may not be proficient in terms of literacy.

The cooperation between theatre and other stakeholders should also facilitate for paper presentations by experts on a wide and varied range of issues affecting children and the youth. In other words, visiting and resident speakers will have an opportunity of interacting with the children academically in a constructive manner. This should open space for discussions between the children, youth and such experts. Such persons so chosen to make presentations will, though not necessarily, have a bias in their papers towards the arts. They, for instance may sensitize children and the youth on the role of concepts including drama and society, drama and health as well as video and film production. The given scholars could be sourced from around the region and more specifically from Kenya, England, Denmark and America.

The intention of using theatre for sustaining and enhancing children education also has in mind other questions, including: what else, apart from acquiring education, can the children contribute to society? In other words, a system should be put in place to enable for some kind of follow up and support of the beneficiaries of the programme. Such a system will also attempt to encourage these beneficiaries to initiate their own developmental programmes especially by using the said medium of drama and theatre. The development programmes should have a bias towards the reduction and management of HIV/AIDS and its associated elements.

An incooperation of the arts into this worthwhile venture of educating orphaned children in Kenya will facilitate for community involvement in the reduction and management of HIV/AIDS. It will also enable for community participation in the reacceptance and proper placement of HIV/AIDS orphans into normal mainstream society. This is because as they perform, for instance, they may also involve other members of society into their ventures. Community members may involve as, say, supporting actors, directors and stage managers. Indeed, the performances intended by these children are aimed at targeting the community.

The very fact that utilization of oral literature shall be exploited by the drama troupe has a critical advantage. Oral literature, by its very nature obtains from the community in terms of its composition, transmission and conservation. This is all the more reason why the oral literature shall utilize the language of the catchment area- just like films will also exploit the linguistic resources of the catchment area. Thus far, oral literature is a very useful tool for community participation and mobilization towards various ends. Oral literature also has audience participation which directly involves the community as producers in the creative act taking place. This facilitates a sense of togetherness and a team spirit that ultimately has the effect of making the orphaned children part and parcel of the community. This enhances the sense of self identity and the feeling of acceptability in society by such children and other highly vulnerable persons as well as persons displaced by various factors.

All in all, the incooperation of the arts, creative and performed particularly, will add a great boost to the objectives of the programme which are grounded on the intention of accessing and providing education for children of Kenya who are orphaned by HIV/AIDS, children who are highly vulnerable to distressing conditions. It should also help improve the station of the foster communities which take care of such children. It is a deep conviction that this will be of invaluable benefit not only to Nyanza Kenya, but also the East African region, Africa, Britain, America and other international countries. It should also be of benefit to Kenyans in the Diaspora who, in one way or another, have been affected by the HIV/AIDS scourge.

Ultimately, this incorporation of drama into the Tac (Teach a Child) project, it is expected, should help achieve the goal of, "advancement of orphans and vulnerable children’s dignity and access to basic needs by supporting and strengthening grassroots social safety net systems and increasing their commitments to educational prosperity."