Moesha Kibibi Tajiri, also known as Moesha Kay, was born and raised in the slums of Majengo, Nairobi but has never given up on her dream of becoming a dancer, despite setbacks. She's not only forging her own career, but also campaigning against violence targeting women and getting girls off the streets.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00What does life on the street offer a 13-year-old girl who has lost her parents
00:05and is ostracized by the rest of her family because dancing is her passion?
00:09I remember at some point I became a street girl because you know you're
00:15coming into a society whereby they don't believe girls should go to school so
00:19being very passionate about dance I said let me use dance to change my life.
00:26According to a 2022 study by the University of Nairobi approximately 60,000
00:32children live on the streets of Nairobi including areas like Majengo, one of the
00:36city's most disadvantaged slums. How did young Moesha survive growing up on the
00:41streets despite the glaring challenges of exploitation and violence?
00:46I got the strength to survive on the street by seeing first of all let me tell you like this
00:51we all go through challenges as boy child and girl child but let me now
00:55speak as a girl child. The bad experience that I always remember is
00:58when I was almost raped four times. Before we get to know how Moesha finally
01:03got to help thousands of girls in Kenya by teaching them dance let's hear how
01:07she managed to turn painful street life into purpose. That experience has shaped
01:12me in a way that to be a strong woman I am today it has made me you know know
01:18myself more that could be I can do it like I'm stronger than the person that I
01:24think I am. In class 5 she won the Africa Malta dance competition she also
01:29won the Kanyu dance competition in South Africa in 2009 and later joined her
01:35award-winning dance crew from her locality known as FBI otherwise focus
01:40beyond imagination. With the knack for survival how did she manage to keep
01:45afloat with men as the only female dancer? So I got involved with FBI we are
01:51all born in Majengo the whole team you know they are my big brothers we are
01:55family we don't even consider ourselves as a crew and being the only female to
02:00up to today being the only the first young female to represent not only Kenya
02:05but Africa I'm always so humbled it has humbled me and I'm so thankful to God
02:11every single day. So being the only female in FBI dance crew you know it was
02:17a challenge at first at first because but later I came to realize that I'm
02:22stronger than the way I think because I became the physical fitness instructor
02:28of FBI. But underneath the dancing Moesha has a different purpose to help the
02:33less privileged in her society she's helped over 2,000 children by providing
02:37for their needs and paying for their school fees let's have a closer look
02:41while she's giving back to her community in such a significant way. So what
02:45inspired me to start giving back to the society is I know the pain when you
02:51don't have anyone to go to, to lean to, to talk to, to believe in you, to even give
02:56you a hand and you know that thing pushed me in a way that I have to give
03:01strength to other kids to show them like they have someone to love them. So
03:06Divas Power Initiative is empowering through education and talent
03:12development, development sorry. So at first it was Divas Power Initiative
03:17empowering girl child that's where the diva word came from through education
03:22and talent development but now you know at first I had girls only but me I
03:29didn't want to look like it's just I'm focusing on girls I have now I I started
03:34taking boys. The role that dance plays in the organization the Divas Power
03:38Initiative that empowers through education and talent development it's
03:43first of all dance is what began everything. Dance is Moesha, Moesha is
03:49dance. Dance it's who I am it's what made everything happen you know so it's
03:55through dance that discovers all this. At first the biggest challenge I used to
04:00face to face is people not believing in me like what I want to do so at first
04:06people used to tell me like you you or you you have your own problem why do
04:09you have to engage in other people's problem you are still in ghetto what are
04:13you trying to do so people believe it was so hard for people to believe in me.
04:19Would Moesha's life have been different if she was not on the streets and what
04:23still keeps her going as an award-winning dancer and a renowned
04:26philanthropist? What keeps me going is my kids every single day I just see them
04:32smiling it gives me strength you know just to call them in different
04:37counties and hear hey mom I'm okay hey mom I'm happy hey mom how are you it
04:45makes me happy. Mom took me to my dream school which I
04:49dreamt for a long time and I have never I have never missed anything when I'm in
04:56that school. Mom has taught me a lot I thank her very much even when she's
05:02sick she still goes out of my way to make sure that we are okay. The
05:08advice that I can give all the girls number one don't give up don't try to
05:14fit into the society be you. The world is waiting for more of Moesha K's to rise
05:21in the face of challenges to save others with a little hope and love.