Unlikely Heroes: Helen Lieberman at TEDxEuston
## People - Speaker + speaker (Implied role in recounting the story). - "thousands of people who worked very quietly on the ground" + role (The core workers supporting the speaker). - "South African mamas and some tatas" + role (People the speaker walked alongside). - "Tuti" + role (Person who initiated the opening of care places for seniors). - "Nomsa" + role (Lady who led the effort for children's care). - "Mandela" + role (Visited the mamas and asked for one thing). ## Organizations - Ekumba Labanu + organization (A non-government organization owned by the people on the ground). - CDC (Clinton Global Initiative) + role (Source of an invitation to present/opportunity for the speaker). ## Places - Cape Town + location (Beautiful location where the speaker's story begins, features Table Mountain and a peninsula). - "The other side of Cape Town" + location (The Cape Town the speaker found when she was a young girl). - Townships + location (Area where the speaker's work is focused, where people live in shack land). - Kaichi + location (Very large township where the speaker noted visual problems). - "the sand dunes over there" + location (Where 6,000 children were located without schooling). ## Tools, Tech & Products - No specific tools, tech, or products are extracted. ## Concepts & Definitions - "Vulnerable children" + concept (Children who are in preschools or are orphans). - "Health center" + concept (Center built which focuses on preventative health). - "Eullequeeni" + concept (The name given to the health concept, meaning freedom). - "Parent center" + concept (A needed resource where people can be coached on child development and support). - "Black position" + concept (The initial position the speaker took at a major hospital in Cape Town). ## Numbers & Data - 20, 21 + age (Age of the speaker when she started walking with the mamas). - 14 + number (Number of children one example mama cared for). - 19 + count (Number of centers the speaker has established). - 6,000 + count (Number of children found in the sand dunes who could not read or write). - 20 + count (Number of women who were able to read and write among the 6,000 children). - 10 + count (Number of years it took for the preschool to spread after its initial start). - 45% + percentage (Percentage of children in Kaichi who had visual problems). ## Claims & Theses - The speaker asserts that she is humbled to share a story of thousands of people who worked very quietly on the ground. - The speaker claims that Ekumba Labanu is a non-government organization owned by the people on the ground. - The speaker claims that while there is freedom, the people do not have economic freedom. - The speaker claims that the care for senior citizens is not non-existent at all. - The speaker claims that by the time she spoke, she had 19 centers with help desks and activities. - The speaker claims that communities run their own meetings, not the organization. - The speaker claims that she ran youth programs, citing the chess example. - The speaker claims that nine of the children from the chess program are now South African chess champions. - The speaker claims that the training remains meaningful and appreciated when conducted in indigenous language and done by own people. - The speaker claims that the feeling of pride for a barely literate mama who graduates with a Sitta accredited certificate is something that cannot be understood. - The speaker claims that the centers are places of joy and wonder. - The speaker asserts that the ultimate goal of many preschools is to create and grow children. - The speaker claims that the health center is not about providing health services but about understanding and taking responsibility for health issues. - The speaker claims that the speaker is not getting the profile or praise for something she did because she sacrificed very little compared to the true builders. - The speaker claims that the women on the ground were the backbone and the builders of the country. ## Mechanisms & Processes - Care for vulnerable children is done by the mamas, who take in the children. - The process of improving a preschool involves creating one that looks like the current, established example. - Seniors are provided centers designed to keep them enjoying their lives and being productive. - The process of establishing centers involved buying land from a corrupt official and registering it in the community's name. - The process of community organizing cascades from smaller groups of mamas meeting in area forums into larger groups covering orphans, preschools, after-school programs, seniors, and youth programs. - The process of establishing the health center involves educating people that they should not wait until they are ill to seek health care (preventative health). - The speaker's early career involved working at a major hospital in Cape Town, where she served in the "black section" with limited apparatus. - The discovery of the reality in townships involved the speaker locating patients in townships after being restricted by the military and police. - The speaker's subsequent life path involved being followed by security police after gaining notoriety from her work. ## Timeline & Events - From when the speaker was 20 or 21 + event (Began working/walking with the mamas). - 1963 + year (When the speaker saw the "hell and horror" in the townships). - When the speaker was a young girl + time (When she first saw "the other side of Cape Town"). - Today + time (When the speaker presented at the Clinton Global Initiative). - Next into this center + timeline marker (Refers to the center built which was launched on the 2nd of December but had been running for a year). ## Examples & Cases - The initial model of care was exemplified by a mama who has 14 children and can love them. - Example of a child-headed household (two sisters) that the speaker helped care for. - An example of a preschool being established, showing the before and after images. - The story of turning seniors into centers where they are productive and enjoy life. - A case where the speaker found a corrupt official willing to sell her land cheaply, which she bought and registered in the community's name. - The chess lesson example: A young man from America offered chess lessons; the group in the shacks near a big center requested lessons, leading to a whole setup involving feeding and safety. - The story of a barely literate mama graduating with a Sitta accredited certificate and becoming a registered homebased carer. - The example of the new experiential learning ECD college, which includes a parent center. - The health center story: Demonstrating that one should not wait until ill to take responsibility for health. - The men's health example: Showing that men find it difficult to go to a doctor with problems because they are "macho." - The eye clinic case: Finding that 45% of children in Kaichi had visual problems preventing them from attending school. - The speaker's early professional experience: Working at a major hospital in Cape Town in the black section with limited therapeutic time for severe cases. - The initial discovery trip: The speaker found the townships after being helped by a friend who initially hated her because she questioned her at the hospital. - The start of her fight for the townships: Getting her first warning letter after bringing the baby back from the townships. - The establishment of initial care: Wonderful women coming to the speaker because there was no preschool, senior center, or formal place for orphans. - The Nomsa case: Nomsa was the lady who said there were children all over and initiated the first preschool, which later spread. - The Sand Dunes case: A woman telling the speaker about 6,000 children in the sand dunes who could not read or write, leading to the building of a school. - The Mandela visit: Mandela visited the mamas and asked for one thing. ## Trade-offs & Alternatives - The trade-off in early healthcare: Superior suggesting the black section did not want more services, versus the speaker challenging this and finding the need. - The trade-off in the townships: Living in shack land vs. needing a place to meet (leading to community centers and area forums). - The trade-off in early life: The speaker being told "Leave it. Leave it. Don't do it," versus continuing to advocate for more work. - The comparison between the speaker's current praise and the actual builders: The speaker notes she is receiving praise for something she did with "sacrificed very little other than a few friends." ## Counterarguments & Caveats - "There is no parent center." (Stated as a gap that needs filling). - The speaker admits she "can't tell you the things that I did" due to the volume of stories. - The speaker caveats that the historical events were "terrible" and she "still get nightmares about" the 1963 experience. - The speaker acknowledges she was "too young and naive and stupid" when the wonderful women came to her. - The speaker suggests that the great leaders should not be the focus, but rather "the women on the ground." ## Methodology - The speaker used personal storytelling to illustrate the work done. - The speaker utilized visual evidence (slides/photos) to show the before and after of community centers and preschools. - The speaker describes grassroots, community-led organizing rather than top-down institutional processes. ## References Cited - Mandela's visit (Reference to historical interaction). ## Conclusions & Recommendations - Call to action: To stand up and praise the women on the ground who sacrificed their lives and built the country. - Recommendation: When thinking of South Africa, do not think of the great leaders, but of the women on the ground. ## Implications & Consequences - If the children in the sand dunes were not addressed, they would continue to be illiterate and unschooled. - If people wait until they are ill to see a doctor, they miss the chance for preventative health. ## Open Questions - How to support the new experiential learning ECD college (The speaker stated it needs support). ## Verbatim Moments - "I feel rather humbled to stand here because I just have a little story of thousands of people who worked very quietly on the ground." - "So there isn't really much improvement. Although there's freedom, we don't have economic freedom." - "It's about preventative health. It's about understanding yourself and those that you care for and how to remain well." - "Eullequeeni means freedom." - "And I stand here as the fairy godmother." - "My words are don't think of the great leaders and they're not such great leaders. Don't think of all the other things. stand up and praise the women on the ground who sacrificed their lives..."