Meet the Team

Click here to go straight to an interview with Biza, ex-street child and current outreach worker at Umthombo, our partner in the Street Child World Cup. Or read on for an interview with the fantastic Mxolisi Sithole, Creative Arts Director at Umthombo and someone who we're working very closely with in the run up to the World Cup.

Mxolisi is working closely with us to design the Durban Exhibition. Having completed his degree in Fine Art at the Durban University of Technology in 2007 (picking up numerous awards and prizes along the way), he began teaching art in high schools and community based art organizations. He now works with street children, organizing live music concerts, art exhibitions, and workshops. We’re really lucky to have his experience on board with the Street Child World Cup project, and are grateful that he’s given his time to have an interview with us.

Why are art programmes important for children living on the street?

I personally think art is important for children living on the street as it works as a tool for building a relationship of trust with the children. It also works as a healing tool for them - or should I say works as therapy. It draws information from the children indirectly rather than directly. In most cases you need a tool which helps you get the information indirectly and that is when art comes into play. And street children are just like any other children, they deserve play time and that is what the art program brings. Art also motivates and empowers the children, enabling them to identify their area of passion through art mediums.

The Street Child World Cup has an exhibition planned for Durban in March. I know that plans aren’t finalised yet, but what projects do you hope to exhibit there?

When I talk about art I’m not only referring to visual art: but looking at art as this huge embrera. So we’re looking at having visual arts, perfomance/ drama, music, video, street projections on buildings next to the Durban art gallery and conferences.

It should be a fantastic experience for the children who travel here for the SCWC. How do you think the arts programme will affect them? What messages will they take home from the experience?

Yeah, it’s definitely going to be a fantastic experience for the children, as they are going to be meeting new friends while having the time of their lives. The program is going to affect children as it will reflect on their problems and experiences on the streets, work as therapy for them, educate the public and create these beautiful pieces of Art. For me the message they will take home is that the problem of street children is not only in their country of origin, but it an issue that the whole world is facing. They will feel appreciated, as the Deloitte street world cup is the first ever: and going to bring people together to look at the street children issues and try come up with the solution to help this children: these will be done together with the kids themselves.

Is there a potential problem that people will come and see the exhibition, and just treat it as a series of pretty pictures? How will you ensure that the public really engages with the issues it raises?

I can’t say we have a pin down solution for people who will come and treat the children art as this pretty pictures, but what we can try do is to make sure that both the children and the artists make pieces that showcase the childrens experiences on the streets. We going to have walkabouts during the world cup/ art exhibition around the gallery, where the children will take the viewers through the show explaining their work. But people respond differently to different arts pieces, someone might read something total opposite to what the child and the artists where trying to say: but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.

This project is designed to showcase the creativity and potential of street children. You must’ve worked with some amazing people; could you please share a story of someone who really inspired you to continue working with street children?

For me the kind of work that I do is a calling from the Lord. It is more than a job: it is my life. I grew up with my uncle Mr. Vusi Sithole who does a lot of community work: as a child he used to take me to a Juvenile prison where he used to work and I would do art and sports with the prisoners there under his guidance; I guess that’s where it all began. After finishing school I spent time with a late friend and artist Miss Gabisile Nkosi, she’s the one who inspired me to work with vulnerable children. But when I joined UMthombo the person who really inspired me to stay and continue doing the incredible work was Annabelle Burns, a friend and volunteers from England. No matter how bad the situation was, she would say Mxo don’t worry it will get better tomorrow. She believed in the art program when nobody did, we grew the program from two children participating to 27 children: the children loved us both. But more than just one person inspired me to stay at UMthombo, there’s also additional people like Lindelani Magwaza, Donation, Eugene, John from Momentum and Sosha.

You’ll be able to see the results of Mxolisi’s hard work with the Street Child World Cup project in our art gallery in Durban, opening March 2010. In the meantime, look at the UMthombo arts blog (http://umthomboarts.blogspot.com/) to get a flavour of the work that he’s doing at the moment.

 This is Biza

Biza looks like he can take care of himself – and he can. Biza left his abusive family at the age of 7 to go and live on the streets in South Africa, joining tens of millions of children who scrape a living on the streets of cities. Twenty years later, he’s gained qualifications, works as an outreach worker, and is coach to the South African Street Child World Cup team.He came round to lunch at the Humanitarian Centre in Cambridge with John, Director of Momentum Arts, and one of the founders of the campaign. Biza gave a fascinating and highly personal account of his life on the street.

He told us that he left his home because of his abusive household. “I didn’t have a chance to learn to talk as a child. I didn’t get that phase of being a child. I remember as I was growing up I was called dumb, a walking zombie, because I couldn’t say anything. And then when I was about seven, I got tired of being picked on. So I made new friends – at that time I was still at school. Those friends introduced me to street life.”

Biza dispelled the idea that children live on the streets for fun; “They’re not there because they want to.” Life on the streets was tough. “I remember there was another time, a friend of mine passed away just in front of me. At that time I didn’t understand anything about gangs, but I saw them beating up a friend of mine, they beat him up like hell. This guy took a big stone and threw it in his head. And then I went to him – I thought maybe the stone just hit him on the head and he was just lying there, and then I tried to wake him up, and I was shocked that he was gone – I couldn’t believe it. I thought maybe he had just fainted, only to realise as the hours went by that he wouldn’t wake up at all.

“And that’s when I realised that it’s tough. I remember starting talking because he was the guy who was looking after me, and unless I made new friends… I said a bad word for the first time, and that to me it was good. I said that word – the f word – the whole day, because it was a breakthrough. And then other kids started talking to me, they became my community and my family. People who understood me, - they didn’t care about my past – in the street you just start a new life.

Biza’s now the coach for the South African team in the Street Child World Cup. “I used to be one of the best players in the team when I was still in the shelter” he told us, with a hint of pride. Biza has been doing his part in promoting it, travelling around the country to speak to schools, churches, celebrities, and politicians. He went to 11 Downing Street for the launch of the campaign, and ended up staying several days there. He chuckled when I asked him about it. “Yeah, from a rubbish dump to Downing Street – it was an awesome moment.”

He’s sure that the Street Child World Cup will really make a difference. “I think the Street Child World Cup will turn their minds, their thoughts, how they perceive street children,” he told us. With the media and public excitement that the campaign is generating, it would be hard to disagree.