On our last day of site visits we visited Salaam Baalak Trust. As we got out of our rickshaws we were greeted by two young men, in their mid-twenties, wearing matching shirts; they introduced themselves and told us they’d be our tour guides for the day. Runaway children are not an uncommon occurrence among the streets of India. Every day a new child goes missing. Wait by a railroad track and you will see a child jumping on or off in hopes to find a new life. The streets of India are filled with runaways. They enter a dangerous lifestyle in hopes to escape. Some are running from alcoholic parents, some are seeking a better education, and some are hoping to be the next Bollywood star. Whatever the reason may be, these children have entered India’s street life and survival does not come easy. They turn to pickpocketing and begging. The girls are not safe; many of them turn to prostitution in which they must meet with at least 25 clients a day. For each client a girl receives 100 rupees a day, but after 50 goes to her boss, another 50 to her boss’s boss, and another 50 to pay for her living situation, she is then left with a mere 50 rupees ($1.10 USD) for something she is forced into. In order to mentally escape both girls and boys become addicted to drugs. Just listening to the stories can bring tears to one’s eyes. We walked through the slum and learned about homes and services that Salaam Baalak Trust provides to runaway children. We got the chance to meet with a classroom of boys that were excited to meet us, take pictures, and show off their dancing and singing talents. The older ones that sat against the wall in the back seemed a bit embarrassed, the younger ones however, seemed content, some even happy. I loved talking with them, maybe because they reminded me of my brother when he was younger. They just wanted someone to hang out with, talk to and play with. Unlike the girls we had met earlier on our trip they were not concerned about our physical attributes like our hair and skin tone, instead they wanted to know our interests and the kind of music we listen to. We got to hang out with them for quite awhile and afterwards, our tour guide took us to the SBT office to explain his story and how he got to where he is today. He explained that when he was younger he witnessed his father kill his mother, and that his father use to abuse him. As he wished to escape this lifestyle the only thing he could think to do was to runaway. And so he did. He arrived at a SBT home, listened to his teachers, and would always spend his money on videogames; or so he told us. It was inspiring to hear his story or overcoming hardships especially in regards to the abuse he received from his father. It’s stories like these that prove that SBT is a smart and well thought out organization. Our tour-guide went from being a runaway to having a well paying job and being a role model to the Indian youth. SBT empowers their children and the target community of runaways. This element is something that I believe to be necessary in every social entrepreneur endeavor. Empower and teach the target community so that once you’re gone, the business can remain sustainable with it in their hands.
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