My first day in Durban the local coordinator provided a tour in the area. She wanted us to become familiar with the effects of the apartheid and what poverty looked like in the country.
This building is where the black factory workers used to live during the apartheid. Now they are analogous to the “Projects”. The rooms are very small and do not have any private bathrooms or running water in them.
Do you see the railroad? This was literally the line that separated the white factory workers from the black factory workers. The houses beyond the railroad tracks are where the white workers used to live. Now the area is no longer segregated.
This is from a town called Umzali. The land is owned by the government. The buildings were built by people from whatever material they could find. Umzali is a large town that houses over 1000 people. They area has very little crime because the elders of the town handle crime the old fashioned way. The next few pics are from the area.
Within Umzali I visited this orphanage. The orphanage houses 40 +/- 5 children. There are only two bedrooms designated for boys and girls and one small playing area. All of the children lost their parents to HIV/AIDS. Some of them have the disease themselves. The orphanage was started by a couple that lives in Umzali because they felt a need for it in the community. Many households in South Africa are run by the eldest child and often those children are unable to receive an education. This orphanage gives those children an opportunity to go to school.
This is the boys room in the orphanage.
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