United Nations Association Film Festival
Stanford, California
Screenings will take place:
October 22-31, 2010. Showtimes: TBD
South Africa vs. Chile
Melbourne
South Africa played their first game today against Chile. It was a tough match–an intense game for Rasta, the goalie, in particular. He did an excellent job blocking many solid shots. It was the best I have seen him play to date. About a week before we left, he had injured one of his thumbs, so I think was playing it cool in practices to maintain his hand for the actual tournament. Rasta is fierce on the field!
South Africa had taken the lead in the first half but ended the game tied. In street soccer, when teams end with even scores, each team picks two players to participate in a shoot out. When it comes to winning in this situation, much of the pressure is on the keeper/goalie. Each team takes a turn with one of their chosen players trying to score a goal. Essentially, whoever misses first loses. It was a high intensity game with quite a few rounds going back and forth during the shoot out but eventually, South Africa won! There were South African supporters in the crowd who now live in Australia and were so excited for the team. It was great to see the guys celebrated after the game.
Rasta getting pumped
Ethan scoring
After the first match, we spoke to Thapelo, the team’s captain. He was not entirely pleased with the way his team played, although they were able to win the game in the end. He believed they needed to be more focused and precise and work better together as a team. Also, he said that it was a difficult game because the turf they are playing on here feels very different to what they are used to back home and so running and controlling the ball was more of a challenge.
Sandile and Thapelo
Sandile in Action
South Africa will be playing three games tomorrow against Germany, Kenya and Greece. Hopefully they will rest up tonight and show up refreshed, focused and energized for such a big day.
The coaches
Celebrations: Sandile, Vuyo and Ethan
Rasta getting some love post win
South Africans in crowd
Ethan
Riaan
First days of the 2008 Homeless World Cup
Thapelo in Opening Parade
Sicelo in Melbourne
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We have now been in Australia for two days. As traveling usually is, it has been quite a whirlwind of events. There were several near missed flights with our crew running through international airports, Sandile spent a night alone in Johannesburg due to a flight mix-up, the second crew had trouble leaving the country and so missed their flight from Hong Kong to Australia and ultimately canceled the first day’s games. However, everyone is now safely in Melbourne and so far, having a magnificent time.
Players from India
Player during opening festivities
The opening ceremony was a special event. Local musicians and indigenous Australian dancers performed for all of the teams. Mel Young, the creator of the Homeless World Cup, spoke to the crowd, encouraging each player on their journey. The event ended with a drumming crew playing through the hall and many of the players from around the world dancing together on the stage at Melbourne University, where the event is being held.
I was moved nearly to tears several times during the ceremony. There are 56 countries from all over the world represented at this year’s event. It is a beautiful sight to see flags, country colors, jerseys and hundreds of excited faces from so many places and cultures. Multiply that by the scenarios these athletes have lived through and the hope that is inherent in their presence here, at an international competition, and I was more inspired than I have been even by the Olympics. There are some absolutely phenomenal individuals at this event and the city is buzzing from it all.
Portugal
Namibia women
The Netherlands
New Zealand
Melbourne has done what seems to me to be a fantastic job of organizing for the Homeless World Cup. Over 900 volunteers are coordinating all of the games, the crowds, the set up, etc. Local schools have assigned different teams to their various classes and so each team has a solid fan base and is being chased by kids who want the players’ autographs and arrive enthusiastically, country flags painted on their cheeks in each team’s colors.
Supporter of Ethiopia
East Timor
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The games began yesterday and every team showed up ready to fight. These preliminary rounds are the placement games. Because no one is allowed to play in the HWC more than one time, each year it is unknown which teams will be the strongest. Last year, Scotland won first place. From the matches I saw yesterday, many were close calls between equally solid teams. There were a few significant wins, however. In particular, the team from England is tough. They scored goal after goal and all of their players showed up with incredible strength and ferocity. From the sidelines with my camera, I thought I might lose my head a couple of times. Also, the women’s team from Kyrgyzstan did very well. Their team looks young and potentially passive but their skill and footwork was impressive and they won a solid victory against Australia, as well.
England (in White) Vs. Sweden
Players from England
Street soccer is a bit different than field soccer. Each team has 3 players on the court and one keeper/goalie. One player must be on their side of the court playing defense at all times. The court is much smaller and the games are 15 minutes each, played in two halves. The walls of the court are used to bounce the ball off of and pass it to other players so to win, one must be ready for a lot of fast running and brave handling of a ball that is being shot with great power around the court.
Thapelo signing autographs
South Africa supporter
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Our guys play their first game at 4:40 today. They are more than fired up and excited to get out there and play. They will be playing Chile, in this round. Tomorrow, they are up against Greece. Send up some good thoughts for South Africa!
Australia Bound
South Africa's 2008 Homeless World Cup Team
Today was a full and beautiful day. While most of our home country celebrated Thanksgiving, Demetrius and I awoke with the sun to meet up with the Homeless World Cup team for their send off ceremony. We all gathered beforehand and the guys were given their uniforms and warm up suits, shoes, toiletries and duffel bags for the trip. It was a fun time with a lot of energy in the air. Many of the guys said they couldn’t sleep last night, they were so excited about the journeys ahead. We took some team photos then headed to City Hall.
Riaan, Ethan, Vuyo and Sandile
Riaan and team
Riaan, Ethan, Vuyo and Sandile
Thapelo, Sicelo, Rasta and Martin
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The Deputy Mayor gave a short speech and affirmed the team in their abilities to represent South Africa positively while in Australia. Fifty-six countries will be represented at this year’s Homeless World Cup and the team is carrying the baton of not only representing themselves as individuals, or even as a team, but as a country.
Deputy Mayor of Cape Town
Mayor greeting team
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Martin stuck by the team all day. He has passed his title of captain to Thapelo, who he believes is a strong player and role model for the rest of the team. I know this part of the experience is very painful. I believe Martin will come back strong next year, ID papers in hand, ready to lead the 2009 team to victory. All of us deeply hope so.
Thapelo, the new team captain
This evening, we joined David Abrahams at a going away party that Ethan’s family was throwing for him before he leaves for Australia. It was wonderful to see how much support Ethan has and to see what a symbol of hope he is for his family. We met his siblings and parents, godmother, girlfriend, cousins and friends. I felt blessed to be included in such an intimate gathering and thought, in lieu of Thanksgiving with my family, sharing fried chicken and samoosas with a beautiful family near Cape Town was just about perfect.
Ethan's friends and family
Ethan's family
Ethan's baby brother
Ethan's mother and brother
Ethan and his friends
Ethan and his girlfriend
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Tomorrow, we hop on a flight to Hong Kong, ultimately to end up in Australia. I’m interested to see how these brimming with energy athletes hold up while stuck on a 16 hour flight. As always, many journeys ahead!!!
Rasta, Riaan, Sandile, Sicelo, Demetrius, Thapelo
Riaan, Sandile, Rasta, Sicelo, Christina, Thapelo
Last Days in Cape Town
View of Table Mountain from Robben Island
A Cafe in Cape Town
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It’s hard to believe this part of our journey is almost complete. In two days, Demetrius and I will join South Africa’s 2008 Homeless World Cup team on a flight to Melbourne, Australia, for the long awaited international competetion. The air around us is full of energy, excitement and also some fears. We are all dreaming of Melbourne, looking her up on the net, talking about what she could be like. It’s almost time to find out.
Knowing we only have a few days left in Cape Town has kept Demetrius and I fairly busy. Over the last few days we spent time with a local graffitti writer and artist, Faith47, learning more about her processes and voice in the community. We visited The Oasis, another organization that uses street soccer to reach local youth–particulary at risk individuals–and builds relationships through the game in order to then mentor and assist the players throughout their life development. We spent a morning with another community leader who also uses street soccer to reach homeless guys and interviewed several members of his team about their experiences, first hand, working with these guys.
The stories are the same: street soccer is the cheapest and most effective way to reach street kids. All you need is a ball and the kids will come. Once the kids have gotten to know the leaders a bit, they will begin to open up. Once they know they are loved, many of them no longer want to use drugs or live on the streets. I know it sounds much simpler than it is but the bottom line story we are hearing from all sides is that these guys need to know they are loved and need to be heard in order to begin on a healthier path. Street soccer is a way to begin to build relationships as well as to offer a physical outlet, goals the players can work towards and reasons why they are needed, as well. The team needs each other. The younger players need the older ones to act as big brothers/mentors. Once they are hooked into a community, their leaders can help them find other opportunities for work, creative outlets, education, sometimes counseling. But it all begins with the game.
Boys in Happy Valley
Fruit Stand in Happy Valley
During several interviews, we were also taken on a tour of some of the townships in Cape Town that are less “famous” than Khayalitcha. They don’t end up on the news so much or in people’s debates and conversations but the stories there are just as real and challenging. There are no schools whatsoever in Happy Valley and so the children have to ride sometimes two hours and/or walk long distances to get to school in neighboring townships. We were there on a Monday afternoon and there were kids of all ages, everywhere, not in school. We also visited a newer settlement that was a squatter’s town but has grown to be a full community. Theyhave organized their own local leaders who are internally recognized. There are 2 outside pumps for water access and several outhouses and that is this community’s main access to water and toilets. There are no schools, but there is a recently opened creche for the babies. Many people who live here were once homeless but have come together and made a community for themselves, have homes and some level of stability and protection here.
Water Pump
In the afternoon, we went to Robben Island for a tour of the prison Nelson Mandela lived in for 18 years (he spent a total of 27 years in prison, but 18 of them were on Robben Island). It is a very stark place. Now, a historical site and tourist attraction. Many of the tour guides were once prisoners there, themselves. I am blown away by the courage it would take to be back there, guiding tourists through your old cell every day. Most of the prisoners on Robben Island were political prisoners who were against apartheid and arrested and tortured for fighting for their freedom. Many of them were very young men who were torn away from their families and loved ones, tortured and discrimated against and shipped off to an island off the coast of Cape Town. It was a prison for Colored and Black men only. There were separate facilities around the country for women and white men. There is something both haunting and hopeful about seeing a gift shop on a former such prison. I do not really know how to process it.
Nelson Mandela's former cell
Outside of the Prison
Off the shores of Robben Island
We have one more interview today and spend tomorrow with the team and gathering last bits of footage before packing up and leaving for Australia. There are many stories ahead of us still, I know. May the journeys continue!
Final Training
It’s official. Martin Africa will not be able to go to the Homeless World Cup. At least not this year, not with this team. He still has not been able to get official papers and there is no longer time enough to process the paperwork necessary to get his visa, even if an ID were to miraculously show up for him tomorrow. When he was informed that he would not be able to go, he said that he had come to that conclusion a week before on his own and has made peace with it.
He has, however, continued to train with the team and to support them, taking his responsibility as team captain seriously. He is encouraging the rest of the players and will also choose another member of the team to take over for him, as captain, in his absence. Everyone wants Martin to succeed and to hold onto the hope he has found over the last few months. I am hoping the weeks while the boys are in Australia are not too difficult for him.
Practice on the Beach
Over the weekend, the team went on a training retreat outside of Cape Town. They were up with the dawn every day, running and training on the beach at 5AM and following a rigorous schedule from there. The energy and excitement is building as Friday morning’s flight to Australia comes closer and closer. Some of them have expressed fears that they may find out last minute that they also will not be able to go. Some are in the middle of exams for school at the same time as they are training and preparing to leave. Some are experiencing health problems that are inhibiting their abilities to play to their fullest capacity. But all are fighting hard and have their eyes set on that cup, wanting to represent South Africa well and with pride.
A neighbor
The community
ETC Crew and The ARK
Soccer Stunts from South Africa Street Soccer Docum on Vimeo.
Yesterday, Demetrius and I spent the morning and early afternoon at The Ark, a community for individuals dealing with homelessness and/or addictions. It is a fenced in community in the township of Khayalitcha that has been around since the mid 80s and now has a full school, provides housing for families, men, women and children, offers rehabilitation programs, meals for the students, athletic and creative opportunities, as well as social gatherings. It is entirely volunteer led by individuals who have come through the programs and community there. Riaan and Thapelo, two players on the Homeless World Cup team live at The Ark.
ETC Crew
In the afternoon, we went to film the ETC Crew in their studio and captured three of their tracks. Demetrius and I are excited to use this music and footage to support the rest of the story. I’d tell you how, but then you’d have nothing to look forward to….
This morning we got up and spent some time at the team’s practice. They are still down one man due to sickness, and Rasta, their keeper, has injured one of his thumbs and is a bit slower than usual. It is not looking promising that Martin will be able to go to Australia. The closer the Homeless World Cup gets, the less likely it is that the pieces will come together in time.
Riaan at Practice
Tonight, we headed to Zula on Long Street for the ETC Crew’s show. The house was packed–we were on the second floor of the building and the floors were shaking as the crowd jumped and danced along with the crew. I can’t lie, there were moments where my mind drifted to pictures of the floor caving in and what kind of stories they’d tell my mother when the news hit. It was nothing but good energy, however, and the guys put on a great show. They have a solid following who are full of energy and excitement.
All in all, it’s been a great few days and we have a packed week coming up, as well. Stay tuned….
Martin Afrika
Martin's first home
This morning we went to MyLife to meet Martin Afrika. There are still many complications concerning his legal identity, ID card and passport. Without proof that he exists and is a South African citizen, he cannot get employment, purchase a car, purchase or rent his own home or travel. The hospital he was born in shows that he was born on the same day on two different years and cannot verify his birth. The school that he grew up in burnt down and lost all their records. Many members of his family have passed away or are no longer in communication with him. He has been in the Department of Home Affairs office every day for the last two and a half months trying to sort this situation out.
After venturing to the Department of Home Affairs with him, Martin took us to the MyLife house where he lives. After visiting his current home, Martin took us to several of the places he lived for over 15 years on the streets. He left his home to live on the streets when he was ten years old due to abuse in his home. Over the last 20 years, he has also spent several in prison before trying to make positive changes to his life.
At the Quarry
The first place he took us was in the side of a mountain. It’s known as the Quarry. He took us on a detailed tour of the area, where he slept, where he made fires to burn the rubber off of copper wires in order to sell the metal, and introduced us to several of the people he lived with and made money with. There is no way Demetrius and I would’ve been able to be there, as Americans, with huge cameras on our own. At one point, while Demetrius was closely filming Martin, I turned around and saw a young man looking at us and twirling a gun in his hand.
Afterwards, we went to an unfinished bridge that Martin used to sleep under. Well, more like sleep inside. There were holes in the top of the bridge and twenty or so people could climb into these holes and sleep between the upper and lower levels of concrete on this bridge. On one side, it is connected to the highway. On the other, it just ends and people apparently have fallen off or been thrown off of the end. Because people can only enter from one side, Martin said it was safer than many places but it was dangerous because if anyone did come, there was no where to run to.
Martin on the bridge
The third place he took us was the first place he ever lived when he moved to the streets at age 10. It was under a highway overpass and clearly people are still staying there. He lived there for many years and told us the stories of transitioning from one side of the bridge to the other, why the first side was better and safer because it was harder to get to and it was close to a fence that opens to train tracks, which was a good place to jump and hide. Behind the bridge was an area that he used to hang his clothes to dry and he would go to chill out when he was stressed, if he was having problems with his girlfriend, etc.
Finally, we took Martin back to his house, where he has lived for the last 2-3 months. Once he joined the soccer league, he moved off the streets. He believes soccer changed his life and the volunteers at MyLife claim they’ve never seen such a swift success story before. Once he got onto the team, he stopped using drugs all together–after having used them since he was 13. He captains a team of younger homeless guys, is in charge of maintaining the food in his house and is clearly a leader among his peers. I can’t imagine what circumstances were like for him on the streets for so many years and from such a young age. The community is now rallying around him, hoping these changes last in his life and that he is able to move forward in the positive ways he hopes to. Getting a proper ID and affirmation that he does exist, I think, will be a helpful step in that direction.
Martin's bedroom at MyLife
It takes a village
We have now been gathering stories for two weeks. Stories of artists and athletes, young people who have lived or are living on the streets, educators, community developers and the like. One of the most interesting things so far has been to see the similar topics that are addressed by each community and to hear their perspectives coming from sometimes very different points of view. Ideas of what South Africa is today, what has transitioned since the end of apartheid and what has remained, who can be trusted or seen as “safe” have all been addressed in one way or another and are pertinent issues to each community.
Yesterday, Demetrius and I spent some time at a local NGO, MyLife, where several of the players of the Western Cape Street Soccer League are connected and have found rehabilitation. Martin and Rasta are both a part of MyLife and have opportunities for projects and work lined up for them upon their return from Australia.
Several of the guys from the team were at MyLife when we visited. Many of them are coming down with physical ailments of one sort or another. Sandile was laid out on the couch and was taken to the hospital after we left. Martin’s eyes were swollen, almost shut. Linzy shared several stories with us of past students that came down with sometimes severe ailments before opportunities to leave the country for the first time. Her thought was that it is most likely adrenaline and nerve based in anticipation of such a big transition and that once they leave, they will be fine.
Linzy Thomas
Traveling the world is a big transition for anyone. For these players, the idea of traveling to Australia and playing on a team that represents their country as a whole is daunting, at times. Yet, in the midst of day jobs, families, organizations to run, lives to live, the leaders of these organizations are running around town, finding students to complete paperwork, drive them to practice, organize practice games, provide meals, take the players to hospitals and prisons and where they need to go in order to get all their ducks in a row to be a part of this team and to travel the world. The village is gathering round and I believe these guys are on the brink of something special.
Welcome to Cape Town
Singing in Cape Town from South Africa Street Soccer Docum on Vimeo.
Martin Afrika
Upon arrival in Cape Town we met up with David Abrahams, who runs the Western Cape Street Soccer League, and joined him as he traveled to Atlantis, a community where Vuyo, one of his young players lives, to get some paperwork signed that will allow him to play in the Homeless World Cup. Atlantis is a Colored community and without any traffic is about an hour outside of Cape Town. Most of the residents of Atlantis work in Cape Town and commute on community-devised public transportation every day.
David is the volunteer president for the Western Cape Street Soccer League. He has a full time job yet spends full time hours also making sure these boys have everything they need to get to the Homeless World Cup, pursues them when they go missing, and works with local NGOs who provide support to the players outside of practice and games. After running to Atlantis, we stopped by MyLife, a local NGO, to check out paperwork on the prison records of two of the team’s key players.
Martin Afrika is the captain of the team. He has been living on the streets since he was a little boy and is now almost 30. He’s been in and out of jail several times and is vigorously trying to move his life into a healthy place. Martin is full of smiles and openness to share details of his life story. He shared with us that he struggles to find a place to call home because when he goes back into his old community, they are afraid of him, based on his past behaviors, and he is afraid to get lost in that lifestyle again. He has begun to form a family with his fellow teammates and speaks fondly of them and the bond they are beginning to form as brothers.
There is currently no found record that Martin exists. Right now, he is unsure of whether or not he will be able to make it to Melbourne because he has no birth certificate, no ID card, no proof of when he was born or where he is from. The prison system has not been helpful thus far in providing any records of his stays there and so the hunt is on for his prison records, in hopes that this will prove that he indeed does exist and can get a plane ticket to Melbourne. Martin has made it clear that this soccer team, this trip to Melbourne to play in the Homeless World Cup, are his main life sources right now. This game, this community, are what is keeping him away from drugs and alcohol, what have helped him get into a home, find a roommate and a purpose.
The next few weeks will continue to be packed from dawn until dusk. We have interviews lined up, more shoots and meetings with artists, days spent with individual members of the soccer team and, of course, the journey to Melbourne for the Homeless World Cup. There are many hoops that must be jumped through and details that must be completed for the 8 members of the soccer team to all make it on a flight and to the events in Australia. They are all full of excitement and hope and their community is rallying around them. We are anxiously waiting to see how the rest of the story unfolds.
Interview with Greg Homann and Uju
Today we visited the University of the Witwatersrand to interview professor, Greg Homann on youth in South Africa. Afterwards, Uju came in for an interview. It was helpful to hear various perspectives on this new generation in South Africa, the post-post-Apartheid generation and how they are defining themselves. We will soon be meeting with the players of the 2008 Homeless World Cup team from South Africa and they are all between the ages of 16 and 30, certainly falling into this generation. We are looking forward to beginning the next leg of the journey.
Tomorrow? Off to Cape Town.
