The 'place' of street children in Kampala, Uganda: Marginalisation, resistance, and acceptance in the urban environment

Abstract

In this paper I examine the 'place' of street children in Kampala, Uganda, highlighting their ingenious and resourceful use of the urban environment. Considered 'out of place' in urban public space, street children create their own niches in the marginal spaces of the city. By looking at untouchable spaces, underground spaces, and rooftop spaces I show how they develop their own place identities. For survival, street children react to their exclusion by resisting this out-of-place image and encroaching into crowded spaces or by dominating the street under the cover of darkness. However, in certain city spaces, street children are also legitimised and accepted by other street users if they conform to the desired behaviours of that space. The place of street children in Kampala is one which is contested, resulting in a multiplicity of street children's niches being created which vary both spatially and temporally.