Karate Can Kick Hopelessness

Maison de la Gare’s karate program offers a vital opportunity for many begging talibé children in Saint Louis. These children typically have no access to education at home and are sent to the city to learn the Quran. Unfortunately, all too often, they are instead forced to spend most of their time on the streets begging or working to earn money for their marabout. It is a difficult and precarious life for these young people, but thanks to the caring staff and innovative programs at Maison de la Gare, many children have found a safe haven where they can learn, play and grow.

The Maison de la Gare karate program is overseen by partner, Sensei Ignéty Ba of Sor-Karate and the classes at the Maison de la Gare center are run by Bouaro, a karate student of Sensei Ba’s and a former talibé himself, and now an important addition to Maison de la Gare’s staff. Bouaro’s personal story was featured in an earlier Report, titled: Bouaro: A Possible Dream. His mission is to help children through their difficult time as talibés, and to offer them a future that includes an alternative to begging. Children are encouraged to pursue their dreams and learn new skills, while developing their self-confidence and ability to defend themselves. 

Among the many children who attend Maison de la Gare are Amadou and Aliou, two regular young karate students who participate in the morning classes with Bouaro. To fully understand the impact of Maison de la Gare on the lives of Amadou and Aliou, you need to know their history.

Amadou was born into a poor family and was sent to a Koranic school at the age of six. However, the daara turned out to be a place where children were exploited and forced to beg in the streets for their marabout. For Amadou, life was very difficult and living conditions were precarious.

Aliou, aged 12, was also sent to St. Louis by his family in the hope that he would obtain a Koranic education.   However, he soon discovered that life at the daara where he was sent to live was very different from what he expected. He was forced to spend all day to find food, and money to give his marabou. He was often mistreated by the marabout and the grand talibés, the older children at the daara who can often act as “enforcers” for the marabout. Aliou discovered the karate program by chance, hearing the sounds of children training as he was walking by. His curiosity led him to join the classes. Since then, he has become a regular student at Maison de la Gare. He says karate taught him to focus and be disciplined. He is also proud to show the skills he has learned to his friends, and hopefully someday his family.

Aliou explains that karate has helped him to be strong, to defend himself, but also to respect others and to be disciplined. Before karate, he didn't have much hope for the future, but now he knows he can accomplish great things, things he just did not think were realistic before. Similarly, for Amadou, karate changed his life by offering him a family at Maison de la Gare. He has friends who encourage him and teachers who push him to move forward. He wants to keep training hard and maybe even become a karate teacher himself one day.

For Amadou and Aliou, the karate program is more than just a physical activity. It is a way to express themselves, to defend themselves, but also to build a strong identity and develop their self-confidence. Karate has given them the hope and strength they need to overcome the difficulties of their life as forced begging talibés, and has helped them to dream, and to pursue their dreams.

The stories of Aliou and Amadou are examples of how the Maison de la Gare karate program can change the lives of talibé children. By offering them a healthy and productive oasis from forced begging, the program teaches them important skills such as concentration and self-confidence, all which will be useful in the long term, not only in the practice of karate, but also in their daily lives. By learning karate techniques, children also learn self-control and discipline skills, which enable them to manage their emotions and impulses in a positive and non-violent way. Maison de la Gare is a safe haven where these children can train, learn and grow as family and community away from their life as begging talibés, and pursue their dreams.

Thanks to your support, we have been able to offer children hope for a future away from the streets and the difficult life of forced begging, and give them the opportunity to develop new skills and build a strong identity.

We are confident that your continued support will enable Maison de la Gare to continue to offer a safe haven, hope, and so much more to these children. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support.

Links:

• Maison de la Gare website
• Bouaro: A Possible Dream, article

As we approach the end of the year, we want to thank everyone in the global karate community and outside it who has supported Maison de la Gare’s Karate Can Kick Hopelessness project, and ask for your help for the coming year.

Founder of the program, Robbie Hughes and I were able to return to Senegal this summer for the first time since the pandemic began. Thanks to donors, an epic karate tournament for the Maison de la Gare talibé karate kids was hosted that showcased the progress that long-time karateka have made. And, the passion and determination of talibés who are newer to the karate program was truly inspiring. While we were there many new students were invited to join the dojo, Sor-Karate, as part of the Maison de la Gare contingent. And, a grading test and ceremony resulted in many proud, new yellow belts.

The karate program at Maison de la Gare has been an amazing success for the forced begging street boys of Saint Louis, known as talibés. In the eight years since a young Canadian boy, a new black belt himself at the time, brought karate to Maison de la Gare, hundreds of vulnerable kids have benefited from the sense of family and community that karate brings. They have had a chance to develop the confidence, perseverance and discipline that martial arts offers. And for children living on their own, surviving on the streets, forced to fend for themselves, the value of self defence skills cannot be underestimated.

43 talibe karate students currently qualify to renew their memberships at the local dojo, Sor karate, or join for the first time. It will be impossible for them without our help. More students are ready and desiring to be registered in the dojo program now, at one time, than ever before. Dozens more participate in the morning karate classes at the Maison de la Gare Center that Robbie began, now taught by Boiro, under local dojo Sor Karate and Sensei Ignéty Ba’s supervision. When one thinks of the life these kids live, the forced quotas of money they must deliver daily to their controllers, the lack of parental, or any supervision they have, their malnutrition, and lack of educational opportunities, it is not difficult to understand just how important karate is in these kids lives. And, it is amazing to think of respect they have for their senseis, and their discipline, washing and caring for their own uniforms, caring for the dojo, attending classes many times a week, often after hours of forced begging.

For the 43 hopeful students, in order to pay the annual registration fee, the monthly dues for a year, twice a year grading fees, and WKF federation licensing, the annual cost is about $100 each. Each January when the annual registration renewals are due, Maison de la Gare needs to decide how many karate students can be supported in the dojo program this year. 43 kids are hopeful that the answer will be 43. We are asking for your help to sponsor one or more karate students in Senegal, so they all will get to continue in the sport they love, and that is such a wonderful life opportunity for them.

Thank you with all our hearts from the founders, providers, and partners of the Maison de la Gare Karate Can Kick Hopelessness program, and from all the kids who are its benefactors.

Links:

• Maison de la Gare website
• Canada Helps to donate in Canada, select project 5, Karate sport