To be honest, I don’t remember the first time I met Trevon Rainford. He just kind of seemed to pop up here and there, plus he had a great Instagram feed that I started following. Unfortunately, right about the time that I realized how cool he was and the cool things he was doing as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ouakam, it was nearing the end of his time in Senegal.
Two things stand out in my mind about Trevon. First, although it was obvious that he was miles (and miles and miles) ahead of me as a runner, he was always encouraging and friendly when our running paths would cross. Second, he interacted with talibé boys in such a kind, respectful manner that it truly impacted and challenged me.
I asked him if he’d agree to an interview so that I could get a better understanding of his view of the talibé world and how those of us who are shocked, then numbed, then shocked, then numbed by it can make a positive difference in these boys’ lives.
Trevon, thanks for agreeing to this. Let’s jump right in. What brought you to Senegal?
I was invited to Senegal to work as a Community Economic Development (CED) Agent for Peace Corps Senegal, West Africa.
For those who don’t know, how would you explain the talibé system?
It’s a system in Senegal where boy children leave their families to study the Quran (typically in larger cities like Dakar or Saint-Louis) with a marabout (their teacher) inside a daara (which is the school for the talibé boys) where they often live as well.
What are their living conditions like?
Some daaras are state regulated but many talibés live in dilapidated shacks, sleep on the ground, and lack suitable resources to keep them warm during the cold season and cool during hot and raining season.
What’s expected of them?
Again, the kids are sent from their families to learn the Quran, taught by their entrusted teacher (marabout). Many marabouts cannot support these children and require them to walk around the city for hours in search of food and money. This is supposed to assist with their cost of living as well as teach humility.
Do you remember your first encounter with a talibé?
Yes, the first time I truly interacted with a talibé at my site was during my daily walk to the bus stop. He did the typical (cut you off and force you to be face to face with him, no eye-contact hand gesture, and asked me for money). I gave him about 50CFA and asked him his name. I told him my name and that I now lived here. I also told him that I thought we should be friends.
From that day forward, each time he saw me he raced towards me screaming my name asking me where I was off to and only periodically asked me for money. It was never a big deal if I couldn’t give him money. He continued to acknowledge me every day and even introduced me to his other friends.
For many of us who live in Senegal as expats, we don’t know how to interact with talibé boys. From your experiences, what are things you’ve seen expats do that were good?
I’ve seen a few expats simply acknowledge the kids, which means a lot. Getting to know a kid and spend even 60 seconds asking him questions and explaining that you may not always have money or food for them but that you want to be friends with them will normally create a genuine bond.
Remembering that they are KIDS is what helped me engage with them. I also always thought about the realization that it must feel awful for kids, or anyone, to be shunned away, when they are just following directions and doing what they’re told.
Side note: If you’re ever feeling adventurous, jumping into one of their sporadic soccer games on the street will throw them for a loop and instantly give you cool points! Haha.
I know some people give money, food, clothing, shoes, medicine, etc… Do you think these are useful or does it ‘all get taken away by the marabout‘?
I have given all of the above. Whether or not each gift benefited the children, I cannot tell you. I haven’t heard of food and medicine being a regretful purchase, but I have heard of issues with giving large amounts of money and shoes. For other reasons, I would also stay clear of giving bulk quantities of medicines.
Personally, I prefer to give the children food face-to-face. More often than not, they will eat the food right away and you can see that your purchase is indeed going to their well being. If the food is something that can be divided into portions easily, I would recommend doing that before hand and then giving each person their fair share. Lots of people give the oldest the food to split up and I haven’t heard of many problems with this, but at times there may be some arguing that goes on with this method and can be easily avoided if the food were to be split up beforehand.
Are there things you would suggest we not give talibés?
I would suggest not giving large bills, or anything too expensive. Personally, I haven’t had a good experience with giving shoes.
Let’s talk about just plain ol’ goofing around with the talibés. I mean, we’re talking about kids here. They love to play. How did you engage them?
Exactly my point! Most people forget that talibés are kids and treat them with contempt. Again, I got to know them and engaged in conversation with them every chance I had. We even high-fived one another during my runs and danced in the streets for a few seconds on occasion. But being consistent with greetings and asking them how they were each day was the least I could do and really created a bond between us.
Also, learning a few Wolof or Pulaar words/phrases are pretty essential, as many talibés don’t know French.
Tell us about the Annual Talibé Day you organized.
I just wanted the kids to get to be kids for a day and also raise awareness for talibés’ rights in the Ouakam community. The event was held last March and we had over 100 attendees who joined in a prayer and breakfast followed by activities and lunch. I felt the event was a huge success as the kids ate extremely well the entire day, played and won their soccer games, and were baffled by the amount of resources we were able to donate to their daara, thanks to the event’s sponsors.
Any final thoughts to share?
These kids are just kids doing what they’re told. I would ask that everyone remembers this before they pass judgment on them or shun them.
Thank you, Trevon. Best of luck on your new paths.
All photos courtesy of Trevon Rainford.
For more information on Peace Corps/Senegal talibé projects, you can join https://www.facebook.com/groups/pcsenegaltalibe/ or contact Timothy Van Vliet.
(Disclaimer: The views and opinions reflected in this post do not represent the position of the Peace Corps.)
October 29, 2014 at 8:20 pm
I like to give children’s vitamins. They look like candy and strengthen the boys. My Senegalese friend says she doesn’t give to tallies during the day time but will give coins to the boys if she sees them out after dark. If they are out after dark it probably means they haven’t made enough money and are afraid to return to the daara. I makes sense to me!
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October 30, 2014 at 12:38 am
I’ve worked with talibés as a volunteer in Saint-Louis and I know several (senegalese) people who run centers for the talibés there. Personally I avoid giving money, rice or sugar to the boys, out of principle, as I don’t want to be part of the system that keeps marabouts abusing these small children. (Generally the marabouts demand a quota of money/rice/sugar from each boy every day. The quota often gets bigger with the age of the child.) However that principle doesn’t really help the talibés of today so each to their own. (What Judy said her senegalese friend told her about if you see talibés at night is absolutely true!) I do however recommend talking to the boys and giving them something to eat or wear.
Things I highly recommend giving to the boys: fruit, juice or other foods that are nutricious (I usually ask them first if they’re hungry or I suggest something like fruit to them), t-shirts, shorts, cardigans (in wintertime, the nights get chilly sleeping in a shed or outside!), plastic sandals (if buying shoes, never buy anything fancier than plastic sandals, no matter how cute that boy is begging for Nikes! He will only sell them and if he doesn’t the marabout will most certainly take them and give them to his own son. Same with clothes, second-hand clothes are preferable as the marabout will snatch up anything he likes for his own children or he might even sell it. Even with second-hand it happens all the time.) With food and clothing alike, only give one to each child and make sure they start eating/drinking/put it on in front of you before leaving them.
If you want to help these children on a larger scale I encourage you to search for a center for a talibés in your city and give donations directly to them. If you don’t know the center well I would recommend giving items rather than money, if you know your way around the senegalese markets. (They are mostly trust-worthy but corruption is always a factor, unfortunately.) Asking the centers what they need is always a good start and then go from there. Though they are almost always in need of medicine and medical supply (especially products to clean wounds and bandages etc). I really don’t recommend giving any medicine or medical supply directly to the children as they will most certainly give it to the marabouts and then it will rarely benefit them. (Vitamins is new to me though and as long as there’s not to many in a box and the boys could finish them rather quickly, it could work fine! Though if you distribute items yourself is generally the best way.)
If you want to give clothing or shoes to many children, buying second-hand clothes in bulk and plastic sandals in bulk and then giving it to a center to distribute is another thing that is always in need.
Centers often have activities such as: schooling, tailoring, gardening, a library and some sort of food distribution (sandwich au chocolat for example). Donations to the centers’ activities and toys for outside playing are always welcome.
The centers I know in Saint-Louis are called Maison de la Gare and Taliberté. The former has a very well-developed center and a nice website to read on. You can read more about talibé children on there as well. The latter hasn’t had as much time to develop nor have they had the chance of regular funding, as MDLG has had. They both do great work. There are many centers but the children are thousands so the centers and what they do is never enough.
Long comment but I am very passionate about these children. I hope I’ve added something to the discussion and that I’ve encouraged someone to actively help them! Even just a smile and a salam alekoum goes a long way.
Thanks for posting about the topic, Khady.
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