"Tushinde Pamoja"

Remember that Kickstarter project for the "girl mothers" of Congo? I wrote about it here and here, with an update here when the shooting of the video was complete. If you missed it the first time around, the ten-cent version is this: A friend of mine, a professor, lends her formidable skills and talents to a great number of projects, some of which involve underserved populations in Africa:

One of her former students launched the project, and is collaborating with musicians in Congo to help what are known there as "girl mothers": very young unwed mothers who have been abandoned by their families and society. These young women have decided that they will not be tossed aside, and instead have banded together to mount a fierce fight for their own futures, the futures of their children, and the futures of all of Congo's other girl mothers and their families. 

This is leadership. Leadership, in fact, at a level that most of us can't even begin to imagine. It's difficult, it's frightening, it's dangerous. All the more so in a place like Congo right now, where bloody internal strife is being leveraged and exploited by outside colonizing forces that want to steal the region's wealth of valuable natural resources. 

Now, this Kickstarter project is trying to help amplify these young women's voices. Two popular Congolese musicians, Innoss'B and Maisha Soul, have committed to working with them to create a powerful music video and help send it viral throughout Congo (and, everyone hopes, the world beyond). It's a message of hope, expressed through the cultural commonality of music. 

It's a message that these young women and their children matter.

Now, the video is not only complete, but uploaded to YouTube to make it accessible to anyone with an Internet connection. The goal of these young women and their allies in the group Maisha Soul is to send it viral across Congo. But it's a message that is so important — and the video itself is  so uplifting, so inspiring, so filled with hope — that it needs to be sent viral worldwide.

You can help with that. Click on the video above to take you to its YouTube page. From there, share it via the many different social media platforms that it makes available — a click or two is all it takes. Cross-post it, repost, share it via e-mail, tell your friends.

Let's get the stories of these courageous, strong, beautiful, powerful young women out there.

Chi miigwech.


* If you'd like to read an English translation of the lyrics, they're over the jump, courtesy of my friend rb137.

"Teen Moms/Tushinde Pamoja"


1st Verse:
My dream was to have a better life 
Everywhere I went, I couldn't make it happen 
Now, today I saw the way 
Who knew! that by my own strength I can do it 
Oh oh oh I saw the way! 
Stand up never give up It's never too late!

Let's grab hands Let's succeed/overcome this together 

2nd Verse: 
Yesterday I had problems 
Here in the village I was laughed at 
My whole family threw me/kicked me out ah ah! 
My hunger/desire for life was exhausted 
But today I saw light I learned work/handicrafts 
I have faith now that I will overcome 
Oh oh i have faith now that I will . . . succeed 
Oh oh I have faith now that we will . . . . succeed 

3rd Verse: 
My name is Martha Desanges. 
I dream of being a counselor for construction, for unity. 
I would never dream of being a counselor of division, of hatred or of tribalism . . . . 

4th Verse: 
My dream is to contribute to the development of my country. 
My dream is to take care of myself my whole life long. 
Oh me, as I am a woman, I must be a complement, not a burden 

Stand up never give up It’s never too late! 
Tushikane mkono Tushinde pamoja, (we will succeed together)