Charity Gives Low-Income Kids an Education and a Childhood Leigh Thelmadatter - Mexico News Daily
go to original September 19, 2022

The Oaxaca Streetchildren Grassroots (OSG) organization is helping poor children in Oaxaca not only get an education but also a childhood they might not otherwise have because their families need them to work.

Anyone who has visited the state of Oaxaca can attest that it is a magical place. Mexican and not Mexican at the same time, it distinguishes itself from the rest of the country by preserving many of its socio-political structures from the past. However, there is a downside.

Much of that preservation exists because of historical, geographical and socioeconomic isolation.

Like the rest of Mexico, Oaxaca is mandated to provide free, public and secular education to all the state’s children. But as one of the country’s poorest states, making that a reality requires more than just laws and regulations.

“Free” education comes with costs to families, including school uniforms, books and other supplies. Plus there is the hidden cost of lost income from children who could be earning a few pesos the family often needs to make ends meet. Almost 70% of the state’s population lives under the poverty line, and about 30% in extreme poverty. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the dropout rate by seventh grade was already at 15%, one of the highest in the country.

During the pandemic, OSG provided computers and internet access, a luxury most of the children they support don’t have.

Oaxacan children, on average, complete only 6.4 years of schooling, compared to the national average of eight years and 10.5 years for Mexico City. The situation is worse in the rural and indigenous communities, but it is also a serious problem in the city of Oaxaca, in part because it receives migrants from other parts of the state.

There is nothing but praise for the Oaxacan Streetchildren from organizations such as Guidestar, Charity Navigator and Great Nonprofits. They have also received support from foreign organizations such as Grassrooots Volunteering (its parent organization), Grace Lutheran Church, the Rotary Club and Social Work Sin Fronteras, which does cross-cultural immersion in Oaxaca and is organized by the University of California at Berkeley’s School of Social Welfare.

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Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico 18 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture in particular its handcrafts and art. She is the author of Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta (Schiffer 2019). Her culture column appears regularly on Mexico News Daily.

  Learn about Oaxaca Streetchildren Grassroots