By Kevin Austin
Gasira wakes up. It’s her 13th birthday. She doesn’t have great expectations for this day, but being 13 years old means she is now a teenager. That’s something.
The rain has finally stopped. It was pounding on the shipping container roof and making a racket most of the night. Her younger brother next to her was restless all night, but she slept OK. She hopes she won’t nod off in school.
She looks for her mother, but she must be out since the mattress on the floor is bare.
She stretches, dresses, and gets ready for school.
Gasira walks out of the shipping container that serves as their home into a dark passage between other homes. She passes metal sheets, cardboard, wooden boards, more shipping containers, some with interesting paintings — so much variety, so many stories. She hears the noise and buzz of almost a million people waking up: snores, slaps, washing, coughing, cooking, the occasional giggle and singing, radios playing music and news. She hears dogs barking, roosters crowing, food sizzling. She can smell it all too — not all of it pleasant. But all of it reminds her that she is part of a community awakened to a new day with possibilities.
She walks out into the fragrant wetness and weaves her way through the alleys, and around curves, carefully stepping around overly filled potholes, avoiding the occasional rat and pursuing cat. She’s heard that 800,000 people live in her community, Mathare. She’s not sure, but she knows a lot of people live here. It’s crowded. It’s loud. Sometimes it smells pretty bad. But love and laughter also are here.
It’s what she knows. It’s where she lives. It’s home.
Gasira wants to be a nurse. Her mother wanted to be a nurse, but it never happened. She doesn’t know the details, but she can imagine. She has never known her father. Gasira loves her mother and wants to make her proud.
Gasira enters an alley and sees her friend Nyambura. Nyambura means “born of the rain.” That’s funny on this day after so much rain! Nyambura cheerily says “Happy birthday!” and gives her a card she made for Gasira with a badly drawn dancing zebra (neither has seen a zebra in person). It makes Gasira happy. She smiles and hugs her friend. She feels loved, and it feels good. They link arms and march on over the mud into a wider road into the brightening day.
They see some men standing in front of a store on the road. They just need to walk for five more minutes, and they will be safer. Lowering their heads, they pick up the pace. They can smell the smoke of the cigarettes and feel the gaze of the men. It starts to rain lightly; a drizzle. Gasira and Nyambura can hear the men laughing and talking. They glance quickly and discretely, and they see that already, even though it’s early, the men are drinking. The girls know what these men would like to do to them — not with them, to them. Gasira pulls her friend’s arm a little closer and tries to control the urge to run.
They are two against the world — rats, muddy puddles, and men.
Gasira means “one who is brave.” She will be brave. She will.
The Women
Later that week, on a warm and sultry Saturday, two women walk into the Mathare slum. They got up early and took one bus, then another, then a taxi, and now are walking. They have postures of confidence. They walk with purpose. They are not afraid.
Yvonne is tall, with a smile that fills her face. Lillian, a human rights lawyer, is telling Yvonne a story and is laughing. It’s an infectious laugh, and there is genuine joy shared as they walk through the alleys toward their destination: a group of young women, a small group called Thrive Juniors.
Lillian and Yvonne see the girls. There is genuine affection given: hugs, hands held, smiles, and expressions of love. They listen to one another and play games; together they dream dreams, pray, and read Scripture together. They talk about real things: periods and pregnancies, men on the corners, school, fears and hopes.
Yvonne and Lillian follow Jesus into the slum with clear messages for the girls:
Jesus cares.
Jesus is with you, Gasira. Be brave!
Nyambura, you can do it. You can pass your exams.
Jesus loves you, Hanuni. Be filled with joy.
Makundi, don’t be afraid. Jesus is stronger than any force of evil.
When Yvonne and Lillian leave, the girls and some mothers walk them out to the main road where they will take a taxi to a bus, then another bus, and then to their homes. They step over potholes and around dim corners. When they see the men on the street drinking and talking, they look them in the eyes and show not one ounce of fear.
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“Set Free’s vision is all about protecting people who are vulnerable.”
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Global Agents of Healing
What these young women face in the Mathare community is daunting.
There are 15 slums in Nairobi with approximately 2.5 million inhabitants. In the Mathare slum, an estimated 800,000 people live on less than a square mile of land. For perspective, the same number of people live in Indianapolis, Indiana, on 368 square miles of land. The sanitation, water management, education, disease, relationship issues, etc., are beyond imagining by most people.
- An estimated 41% of women experience gender-based violence.
- An estimated 1 million young women miss out on education each month because they don’t have menstrual products.
- One in four women marry before the age of 18.
While the above story is fictitious, it is also true. Yvonne and Lillian are real leaders. They are truly brave, dedicated, and you don’t want to mess with them or their girls.
In 2024, Yvonne and Lillian with their team mentored more than 315 boys and girls in seven locations. Our leaders in Kenya are investing in meaningful, powerful ways. They are also part of the Wunders distribution team, educating thousands of young people about the dangers of human trafficking and gender-based violence while also distributing Wunders menstrual kits. (Learn more about Wunders at wunderspartners.com.)
Yvonne and Lillian are members of the Set Free Movement global team. They are agents of hope and healing. Set Free’s vision is all about protecting people who are vulnerable.
You can join our team. Together we can encourage more girls while providing real tangible help and support.
- You can learn more about the Set Free Movement and how we are ending human trafficking and creating new futures HERE.
- Learn more about human trafficking HERE and HERE.
- Write to me HERE. I would love to interact.
- Please consider supporting this vitally important work with a financial gift today: HERE.
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Kevin Austin, D.Min., is the founder and director of the Set Free Movement. He is also a Free Methodist elder and the author of “Set Free: A Guide to Pursuing Liberation in an Age of Bondage.”
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