Uganda's Ghetto Kids make Britain's Got Talent history

Uganda's Ghetto Kids make Britain's Got Talent historyThe recent success of the Ghetto Kids, on Britain's Got Talent has shed light on the issue of institutional care for children worldwide.

by The Conversation

05-06-2023 15:46

in Entertainment

The performance by Ghetto Kids on Britain's Got Talent won them new fans across the world. Image: The Conversation.

A group of talented young dancers from Uganda warmed hearts around the world after earning the coveted golden buzzer on Britain's Got Talent. The Ghetto Kids are a dance troupe of children between the ages of five and 13 growing up in a child care institution in Uganda. Putting on electrifying performances that showed off their personalities and impressive choreography, the children made it to the final.

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The attention on Ghetto Kids presents a chance to acknowledge the lived realities of approximately 5.4 million children worldwide growing up in institutional care. For many of these children, there are deeply troubling reasons for their entry into care, and many have challenging childhoods away from their families.

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The Ugandan Care Leavers Association has released a balanced yet strong critique of the promotion of Ghetto Kids on Britain's Got Talent. The campaigners recognise that the public support of Ghetto Kids is well intentioned. But they highlight, through sharing their own experiences, how detrimental the lifelong impact of institutional care can be.

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Ghetto Kids home Institutional care refers to large numbers of children accommodated in one home and cared for by a relatively small number of staff. They differ from smaller scale residential children's homes that often care for around five to ten children, offer more family-like care and are embedded in the community. The Ghetto Kids home looks after over 30 children, and the founder, Daouda Kavuma, has stated on the show that he has ambitions to grow this number.

Globally, it is estimated that four out of five children living in institutional settings actually have family. Save the Children's research found that 98% of children in institutional care in central and eastern Europe, 94% in Indonesia, and 90% in Ghana have at least one living parent.

Despite this, many organisations that care for these children still refer to themselves as orphanages. The word evokes stories of caring for a relinquished child. This is a powerful narrative for organisations in low income countries to increase charitable donations.

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Studies have revealed that numerous children are victims of exploitation and trafficking into institutions. In some cases, orphanage owners recruit or traffic children to establish voluntourism programs. They can profit from overseas volunteers who pay to spend time with orphans .

The orphan myth In my research in Thailand parents told my colleagues and I that they were dissuaded from visiting their children in the homes. This was to avoid the parents encountering donors who believed the children were orphans. Researchers describe this false narrative as the orphan myth .

There is no evidence that the Ghetto Kids home engages in these exploitative practices, but Britain's Got Talent risks perpetuating this myth in how it frames their story. Press coverage, and the children themselves, refer to the home as an orphanage. However, Kavuma Dauda, the founder of the troupe, has only said that some of the children are orphans. (Britain's Got Talent did not respond to The Conversation's request for comment.)

In many countries, children are rarely placed into care due to orphanhood or concerns about abuse. More often, the driver is poverty and resources. In Thailand we found that parents often placed their children in care to ensure access to basic needs, food, healthcare and education.

For a family living in poverty, the experiences of children from organisations like Ghetto Kids - attending university, finding career success or international dance fame - might present an opportunity to give their children a better life. However, these opportunities can come at a significant cost: a childhood apart from their families.

Orphans In my research in Thailand parents told my colleagues and I that they were dissuaded from visiting their children in the homes. This was to avoid the parents encountering donors who believed the children were orphans. Researchers describe this false narrative as the orphan myth .

ALSO READ: EISH WENA: Uganda's Ghetto Kids performing Waka Waka' at Britain's Got Talent [viral video]

There is no evidence that the Ghetto Kids home engages in these exploitative practices, but Britain's Got Talent risks perpetuating this myth in how it frames their story. Press coverage, and the children themselves, refer to the home as an orphanage. However, Kavuma Dauda, the founder of the troupe, has only said that some of the children are orphans. (Britain's Got Talent did not respond to The Conversation's request for comment.)

In many countries, children are rarely placed into care due to orphanhood or concerns about abuse. More often, the driver is poverty and resources. In Thailand we found that parents often placed their children in care to ensure access to basic needs, food, healthcare and education.

For a family living in poverty, the experiences of children from organisations like Ghetto Kids - attending university, finding career success or international dance fame - might present an opportunity to give their children a better life. However, these opportunities can come at a significant cost: a childhood apart from their families.

The harms of institutional care Decades of research has highlighted the negative outcomes for children in institutional forms of care around the world

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