Inside Life

In an environment like The Gambia, every child is forced to grow up fast. You wake up at 6am to help your mom clean the house before going to school and that becomes a routine. You get used to it until it’s time for feeding, then there is nothing to eat. In Gambia, we survive through hand to mouth. Eating once a day is considered satisfactory by an average Gambian. Schooling tends to be the least of everyone’s worries but I understand their reasoning. Why worry about school when you can barely feed?. I was a lucky one to have went to school and so were a few others. Schooling in Gambia prepares you for any competition out there because everyone had to prove to their parents that the money being paid was worth it. The Gambia is one of the smallest countries in west Africa, but the most content. We didn’t have much but we had our cultures.

Imagine growing up in a country where you have festivals almost twice every month with masquerades, and griots celebrating every event with you. What could be more fun than that?,a country that provides variety to strangers visiting the motherland.

About my culture,

I personally belong to the Mandinka tribe, which is historically known for masquerades, dancing, playing the drums and kora.

One significant role Mandinka has is to provide fun. We do the majority of all activities in the community; we start with masquerades known as "Kankurang," which are very important to the Mandinka tribe during circumcision, as it is said to be a way of perceiving evil. Other tribes like the fulas and jolas also have their masquerades, but they are used for enforcing the village norms. I participate mostly in cultural dances, which involves arm movements and footwork. Our culture has some particular features which distinguish it from other cultures. All Mandinka’s are supposed to get married to one from the same tribe, and girls betrothed at birth to their husbands. When the day comes, a sheep, goat, a cow will be used to pay the girls dowry. With the majority of men being Muslims, they are mostly polygamous, meaning they can marry up to four wives.

So, what exactly happened to The Gambia?

You might have heard about the word “corruption”, if not, it is fraudulent conduct by those in power. It is obvious we all know what greed does, it keeps you from helping others. The Gambia has been in the same situation since 1994(before I was born), and the reason is because we believe all the white lies the politicians tell us. When elected as president, all they do is build more houses, buy more cars, grow their wealth, and the process continues for every term another president takes the sit. And now innocent kids are suffering from their selfish needs, which is very discouraging as they might not even want to keep pursuing their dreams.

This is not a story to pity us, it’s a story to show that not every part of the world has light 💡.