At 4:00PM, Luzaras picked me up to go to Ruaraka. I wasn't sure what to expect, but off I went. It was quite a long trip time wise because of the horrendous traffic. We got to the place around 5PM and met David. He took me on a tour of the EPZ and pointed out the various factories and what they made. The textile factories produce for Walmart, Target, JC Penny, etc. As I said before, it is piece work that is done in fairly oppressive conditions. There was also two pharmaceutical companies, but I'm not sure what they made.
Rather than going down into the housing section of Ruaraka, we stayed up in the market stalls. They had arranged to meet in the back room of a restaurant. It ended up being about 35 people in the room. The division of men to women was similar to that in the factories so I would guess about 3 to 1.
I shared about my experience living with HIV for about 10 minutes and then opened it up for questions. We shared informatiuon for about an hour and a half. I did ask 3 questions that I think really drive home the impact of HIV in Kenya. The questions were:
- How many of you know someone who has died of HIV/AIDS?
- How many of you know orpans as a result of HIV/AIDS?
- How many of you know someone who died of HIV/AIDS, but would never admit it while they were sick?
For each question, EVERYONE raised their hand. I certainly don't think the same thing would happen in the US. Also, the level of stigma is still so great that many people will not admit there status.
I would have continued to talk, but it was getting on to 8PM and so it was best to take leave and head back to the hotel. I know that David appreciated my discussion because he held my hand the entire way back to the van. In Kenya, that is a sign of friendship and warmth.
An hour later, I received the following text message, "Great! John. Don't go weary in doing good. Keep up! God has much in wtore for you. He has a plan and a purpose for you" Needless to say, I slept very well with a feeling of comfort.
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