Black, Alone, and a Girl

“In 2015 I made up my mind to do something, to go to school, it hurt me because I had no one to encourage me and no one to support me, and I am alone…” - Manyi

By: Le’Jon A. Payne

We walked in eager to work with a group of bright eyed refugee children today at Sud Academy. Upon our arrival Principal George greeted us at the gate,with a warm smile. He then escorted us to the “principal’s office” where we would each sit down to discuss the program and officially sign in. I admired his professionalism and although the school had no electricity and the bare minimum for a facility he still operated and treated the facility with the utmost respect and dignity. This was beautiful sight to see. 

The students were waiting in the backyard for our session to begin. You could tell they had no clue what to expect or what was going to happen next. We began our opening activities and the students were eager to participate. Immediately they got involved and began the drama activities. We then began to focus on our objective of the day. Students were asked to choose a pivotal moment in their life and write a monologue. We broke up into 3 small groups. Immediately I fell in love with the 3 students in my group, a 14 year old Kenyan male, a 20 year old Kenyan female, and a 17 year old Sudanese female. 

The 17 year old Sudanese female, Manyi, left a major dent in my heart. She was very beautiful, her skin was very dark and she spoke the least amount of English. I had no clue that our conversation about skin, gender, and loneliness, would produce a new pivotal moment in my life. Manyi appeared to have some discomforts while working in the group. She kept apologizing for her english. It seemed that she was possibly worried that I was going to judge her. I assured the group that whatever they had to bring to the table in English or their mother tongue was valuable. I began to share a pivotal moment in my life with the group. I explained how it felt and what it was like for me tell my family that I was going to leave home and move across the world. Although it was exciting to me it wasn't that exciting to those who were close to me. Manyi almost immediately could relate, she began to open up about making the decision to leave her home in Sudan because of war and because she wanted an education. She explained how she made the decision at a young age to leave her mother and come to Kenya. She had a pivotal moment was when her uncle came and took her brothers to get enrolled in school  her heartbreak was all over her face when she said, “but he didn't take me, because I’m a girl.” The hole in her heart was evident. She explained that she wanted to get an education and she was hurt because she was being denied the opportunity because of her gender.   

This was a breathtaking, life changing, experience, for me as I looked into her eyes. Before me sat a beautiful black young lady who left her family in Sudan, to come Kenya, who was alone, by choice because she valued education more than staying back in Sudan “just to get married.” She didn't want marriage to be her top priority, she valued an education more. She was hurt and distraught that her uncle helped and supported her brothers but did not support her. She stated, “In 2015 I made up my mind to do something, to go to school, it hurt me because I had no one to encourage me and no one to support me, and I am alone, but at least I am happy.” Happy? How did she find happiness in her frustration? This is the beauty of meeting Manyi and helping her through Necessary Arts develop her voice, so she can tell a powerful story and encourage others. How remarkable, this young woman is, who is on an extraordinary life journey, in the midst of war, choosing to live alone in pursuit of an education. She takes my breath away. 

We worked together to complete her monologue “Girls Need an Education Too”  I was very proud of her and her courage. I began to share with her other speeches and poems by women who valued women's right. I began to act out monologues for her and coach her with her own monologue. At the end she was able to present her monologue. I was so excited for and this major accomplishment.  I asked her could we take a picture together. She smiled and said yes. We both had bright smiles and took the picture. She then looked at the picture and it was almost as if she was apologizing when she said to me, “I'm so black.” Another dent went into my heart.  I looked her directly into her eyes, “Yes you are and you are beautiful,” and I smiled. She began to blush and thank me repeatedly. 

There are so many young girls like Manyi who feel alone, unattractive, and who want more out of life then what society has determined they should have. It is my sincere desire that all the Manyis in the world would know that they are beautiful, intelligent, black young ladies, who deserve an education. I am very proud of Manyi and inspired by her courage. Manyi’s testimony, strength, and monologue have given me life and caused me to be committed to helping young girls around the world identify and develop their unique voice.