It has also been great seeing many of the Acholi friends I made last year, especially from the Gulu Disabled Persons Union. The culture is extremely welcoming and receptive towards visitors.  Once you have made a friend in Gulu you have made a friend for life. What works out well for me is how polite and considerate the Acholi are. Whenever something remotely unpleasant happens you will be greeted with a sea of the most sincere condolences you will ever hear. For example, I was walking through town at night with Alfred and I fell in a trench (Night in Gulu = total darkness for foreigners). Alfred thought I disappeared like David Blane. By the time we figured out what happened every onlooker within a 30 meter radius was saying sorry to me. As a clumsy individual prone to tripping and walking into things I must say it is great to have my uncoordination praised!

However despite the consideration and warmth I am also receiving many strange looks. To show my appreciation for Alice’s hospitality I have been contributing to many of the household chores, including washing clothes, fetching water and some basic cooking. Apparently such duties are reserved for women and children. As a result I have been the subject of many furrowed eyebrows from baffled onlookers. Perhaps I can be the Rosa Parks of Gulu with respect to men getting off their butts and do something!  I was even playing a children’s game involving catching a rock with some of my little neighbours that drew much laughter as this game is only played by girls.

Click this link to open up a quick video I made of the rock game!

Rock game that Acholi girls play

Gulu Disabled Persons Union (GDPU)

I am very excited about my work with the Gulu Disabled Person. After meeting with the chairperson (Onong Simon), the coordinator (Fred) and the program officer (Ojok Patrick) with regards to the needs they are looking to have met it looks like I have my work cut out for me. To facilitate the general creation of human rights for persons with disabilities (PWDs) we are looking to build a few accessible toilets in the surrounding parts of the regions where services for PWDs are extremely limited.

Another issue the GDPU is looking to tackle is to improve the livelihood PWDs. If you have a disability in Northern Uganda equitable opportunities are hard to come by and discrimination is commonplace. As a result PWDs in Northern Uganda are often associated with being the poorest of the poor according to former Gulu M.P. Margaret Baba Diri. Through a scholarship proposal designed to give PWDs equitable educational opportunities that are usually nonexistent we are looking to break the cycle of destitution and discrimination associated with PWDs in Northern Uganda.

Other projects that I will be working on include the construction of a wheelchair accessible basketball court in the former Internally Displaced Camp (IDP) Pabbo, capacity building with elected village officials with disabilities, expression of PWDs through the artistic construction of a massive scale quilt, telling peoples stories through photography, the written word and video as well as updating ICT support.

Wheelchair basketball in Gulu has been great for improving the quality of life for PWDs. Hopefully we can do the same in Pabbo!