Linn’s Year Ablog

At a busy intersection outside a McDonald’s in the Rosebank neighborhood of Joburg, where I work, I decided to take out the recorder for a quick interview with a 17-year-old homeless guy named John. Some of it’s tough to understand, but some is interesting–and he was very candid. He collects trash from people’s cars for tips, as they wait at the robot (stop light), and he uses the money to take care of himself and his elderly grandmother, who lives far away.

He buys his food at a nearby garage (gas station), and he sleeps on a piece of cardboard behind a electrical box with a few tattered blankets. When asked if he feels lonely, he says he actually wishes fewer people were around to bother him.

He has big dreams for the future, but, at least when speaking to me, he is unbelievably not upset by the obvious unfairness of his situation. He doesn’t appreciate other homeless folks who steal his stuff or cops who harass him–because they think he’s associated with local prostitutes–but all the rich folks living in mansions 100 meters away get a free pass. Nice cars and houses are simply things to strive for through hard work.

The Communist Party may be part of SA’s governing coalition, but Micky D’s Capitalism won this country’s hearts and minds long ago.

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