The United Slums of America
What time in Nairobi and a theft taught me about what’s happening in America
Maxwell curved the van around a few piki-pikis with practiced ease. Those are the motorcycle drivers whose antics cause terrible problems with drivers, but the locals are used to them. If you hit one, an entire gang might show up. Then, you’d be lucky to leave with your life, much less your vehicle. Doesn’t matter if they were in the wrong. The police don’t intervene either. I hire drivers. They know what to expect.
As we wound through Nairobi, Maxwell, who works for my safari company ETrip Africa, explained what I was seeing. Slums spread in all directions, just like desperation. Too many people, too few jobs. Rich folks to the extreme living in close proximity, pushing the poor to face just how poor they are as happens all over the world.
There are about two and a half million people living in Nairobi’s slums, which are the biggest in Africa. Most people live on less than a dollar a day. Maxwell knows; he lived there for a while. What I learned about life in the slums from him was instructive. Many of those who live there don’t have any interest in improving their lot in life, for they don’t want the responsibilities that come with rental or home ownership with all the bills and headaches those entail. Those are…
