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| Jamal and his SOS mother are very close - photo: R. Ben Messalem |
A few months ago, Jamal embarked on a new project. The 13-year-old boy was determined to help improve the relationship between children growing up at the SOS Children's Village in Amman, the capital of Jordan, and Jordanian society.
"Many people look down at us for living in the village. They pity us because we have lost our parents. Children are not subtle about it at school and sometimes discriminate against us. Because of this, I felt that it was about time that we changed such attitudes and bridged the gap between the two sides," he says.
According to the village director, Hossam Abou Goab, Jamal is mature and has a positive outlook. "He is very attached to the village and appreciates our efforts. I'm proud that he has taken the initiative to help raise public awareness of the importance of our work and role."
Taking action
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| Jamal believes in strong family ties - photo: Rafif Ben Messalem |
Jamal launched his project in April 2008. He began by assessing a group of children living in the SOS Children's Village, young people who had already moved to the SOS Youth Facilities and SOS mothers and their attitude towards society. The second phase explored his school mates' feelings towards the children living at the village, showing that the majority of the children were unaware of the mission and work of SOS Children's Villages, and in some cases were wary of the children living in the village.
To help raise awareness and address such misconceptions, Jamal invited the same group of school mates that participated in the research to spend a day at the village. Following the visit, during which they closely interacted with the children and mothers, Jamal handed out the same questionnaire he had used during the second phase of the research to the group. "The visit helped change a lot of my school mates' attitudes towards us. Prior to the visit, many were unaware that we grew up amid a warm family atmosphere and received special care from our mothers. The majority changed their negative opinions about us and the village and said that they liked the village and had had a good time," says Jamal.
Jamal put together a 35-page paper, entitled "The Philosophy Between The Two Sides," based on the findings of his research, which he is currently trying to publish.
Attitudes can be changed
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| Sometimes there is discrimination in school - photo: R. Ben Messalem |
In the introduction, Jamal describes how many children have refused to be friends with him because he was an "orphan." "Sometimes my school mates used to offer me donations. They always pitied me and refused to deal with me as an ordinary friend or a school mate who does not need their assistance," he writes.
Jamal believes people's attitudes can be changed. The closing words of his paper are: "There is no need for pity or sadness; we have to understand the reality of a situation and tackle it. Both sides have to better understand and respect each other."
The ninth-grader enjoys reading about history and politics and is particularly fond of the "era of independence, when people were able to regain their rights and sovereignty and not accept to the status quo," he says. "It was all about change and development. This is exactly what I tried to do through my research: change the prevalent mentality and play a constructive role."