Personal Statement: Why Streetwise?

Although my initial interest in Streetwise was one of only moderate enthusiasm, it's recently increased dramatically due to the book What is the What by Dave Eggers. Multiple friends recommended it to me, but I never really wanted to read it until this January, when I went on a roadtrip and needed an audiobook to listen to (otherwise I would have gotten at least one speeding ticket).

After listening to all twenty-one hours of What is the What - some on the trip and many more once I returned to New York - I was engrossed in the history of the Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya to a degree I never would have predicted. I've spent time tracing the approximate route the Lost Boys of the Sudan walked from Sudan to Ethiopia to Kenya in search of home safe from civil war and terror. I've tried to imagine a life similar to the one Achak describes, both in terms of the horrific living conditions as well as the dreams he harbored - dreams of things I've taken forgranten.

One of the central themes of Achak's story is his desire for a higher education. He describes in detail the education he received in the refuge camps and his longing for a college education if or when he gets relocated to America. Getting an education is something to be proud of, something for his family to be proud of. When he returns to his village in southern Sudan, his education will render him an asset to the family and his father's business. Most, if not all, of his dreams revolve around getting an education.

Education is the thread that connects my interest in Achak's story to the children on the streets of Ghana. Although Ghana and Sudan aren't close in proximity and don't share the same history, they absolutely share the same need for their children to be educated. Education has always been readily available--mandatory even--for me, so I'm not familiar with the struggle to obtain an education, but I can certainly appreciate it. This appreciation inspires my commitment to my thesis - the Streetwise project.