Stories from the street

Chapter 5, “Stories from the street: An intricate sidewalk ballet”, highlights the voices of the entrepreneurs we encountered during this research. Stories of the street scenes where goods are being hawked and haggled over in shops and markets will be told alongside the voices of entrepreneurs – the street vendors, textile workers, carpenters, painters, recyclers, beauticians, barbers and cooks. The atmosphere in these settlements is buoyant, friendly, exuding community cohesion and trust. The slums provide examples of organic growth where the poor are agents of change. Place attachment provides a feeling of community uniqueness and irreplaceability. With a sense of belonging, feelings of loyalty, trust and a life with value and dignity, there follows a desire for bottom-up approaches to alleviating poverty. It is an ‘infectious’ atmosphere, with the poor focused on their family, neighbourhoods and the next generation.