ARCHIVES: MAVERICK CITIZEN OP-ED: Down but not out: Why so many homeless people in Joburg reject municipal shelters
Tshabalira Lebakeng is a writer with the Homeless Writers Project. This story was written by Lebakeng with assistance from Harriet Perlman.
We also knew restaurants where people were throwing out food not eaten that evening. They knew us. If we were lucky, we ate spaghetti, meatballs and cheese for supper. We felt like movie stars. I met Siza . He’s 30 years old, comes from KZN and wears an old orange jacket with “Security” written on the front. He sits on his trolley. He waits at Park Station and when he sees travellers with too much luggage to carry he offers to help them.He is drinking his coffee when I meet him. It’s very cold in Jozi this morning. I ask him what time he left the shelter. He looks at me like I’m crazy. He says he is not a friend of shelters and doesn’t stay there.
I make my way to the Diplomat’s Night Club. I want to find Dladla. That guy, he can marinade, and I often buy food from him. Dladla is a good looking young man. He is clean and smells good. He is friendly and everyone around here knows him. I greet him. He is surprised to see me after such a long time. He asks about my acting career in movies. I tell him life it’s still difficult on my side. But, for now, I’m writing forHe tells me he works at the taxi rank every day, washing taxis. He has more than 10 clients – taxi drivers who trust him. “They know they can leave money or belongings, their keys or cell phone in the taxi while I wash for them.
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