Leave Your Shoes At The Door

 Jules Mayele, Uganda

Jules Mayele is a coach and program coordinator with Soccer Without Borders (SWB), a global organisation using soccer as a vehicle for positive change globally, combining soccer with education and community-building activities. SWB Uganda serves over 500 refugee youth aged 5-20 through football-based youth development activities, English language instruction, and life-skills workshops in Nsambya, Kampala.

Can you introduce yourself and tell us about your football life?

My name is Jules Mayele, I am a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and I have lived in Uganda for the past 9 years. I was raised in Bukavu, South Kivu in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Due to the ongoing and increase of tribal violence and security instability in my region culminating in the killing of my family members, my family were forced to leave and flee to Uganda in 2011. Upon arrival in my new country, I was faced with the great challenge of not understanding any of the languages. 

I have been part of Soccer Without Borders Uganda since my arrival in March 2011, from being a participant to serving the organization as Youth English Instructor, Youth Football Coach, and currently Program Coordinator.

SWB is where I had my first football experience and had the chance to join a team in 2011. I did not play before I arrived in Uganda. I came back to SWB in 2012 as a volunteer teacher in its adult classes. I then became an official staff member in 2013. Due to my hard work and dedication to the Program for more than 5 years, I got promoted to Program Coordinator in August 2018. 

SWB’s unique football methodology paved the way for me to learn how to play football. This is because it does not discriminate by skill level, but it aims to build and create opportunities for youth to learn essential life skills rather than just football techniques. Being part of a soccer team at SWB helped me associate with fellow refugee youth as well as improving my English proficiency. I began attending English Classes at Soccer Without Borders where I learnt quickly. 

Who is in these photos? What is their story?

At the beginning of every year SWB Uganda hosts a week-long Youth Festival. This annual Youth Festival brings together participants, coaches, and alumni for football, educational and cultural exchanges, dancing, fun, and lots of rice and beans for 5 days. These youth are refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, and South Sudan residing in the Katwe and Kirombe slum areas and Nsambya on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda’s capital. 

These photos were taken at Soccer Without Borders Refugee Youth Center and the Community Playground which SWB uses for its daily football for development programming with out of school refugee youths. 

In one match, at the end of the 30-minute semi-final game, the teams are even. So, they head to penalty kicks to determine who progresses to the final. During an intense penalty shoot-out, Noella steps up calmly and with composure. She manages to put the ball in the back of the net which sends her team into the finals of the YF Football Tournament. 

What did you try to show with the photos? Was there any wider meaning with the photos?

This specific festival was unique, especially having our alumni come back home and support as coaches. Four Program Alumni - Daniel, Aksanti, Christelle, and Abedy, who were participants in 2013-2015 - supported as coaches during the 9th Annual Youth Festival. Having them in the program helped current participants to learn about the experiences they had and their best memories.

The year’s festival was themed around SWB’s favourite mantra: “Leave Your Shoes at the Door”. This mantra teaches us to embrace a culture of humility and acceptance. It is evident that we have different views, perspectives, opinions, experiences as well as qualifications that impact the way we react and treat others but embracing acceptance as a practice helps us create a safe and welcoming environment. 

On top of the great music, food, and football competitions, the youth had opportunities to discuss Acceptance, where they looked at self-acceptance and social acceptance, how not accepting self can impact us, but also how not accepting those around us affects people. It was very exciting to see Christelle, Daniel, Aksanti, and Abedy who were participants a few years back taking the lead in facilitating these discussions. 

Why did you leave your country? 

I am from South Kivu, in the Eastern region of DR Congo. My home is only an hour away from the Rwandan border. In my area, there is an epidemic of tribal and ethnic conflict. My grandfather was believed to have migrated from Rwanda, a very unpleasant thing to be called in my area. This belief from the local people causes a lot of harm because they say they are the people that are causing troubles and instabilities. And this conflict has existed for over 19 years now. In December 2010, tolerance and acceptance fell short on my grandfather because they said he was among the Rwandan armed group that was killing people. This led to his torture and death. 

After his death, the local people announced my family would be next. In January and February 2011, we received 3 death threats. This brought a lot of insecurity to us, my siblings and I failed to continue our education. In early March things got severe to the extent we started getting hunted. My mom learned of a plot they had set in place for us. Luckily, she found out ahead of time. We moved 200 km north to Goma, North Kivu.

Still in Goma we did not feel safe, so we continued our journey, with lots of starvation and sleepless nights until we reached the Uganda-DRC Border, a town named Bunagana. With the help of a lorry driver that was transporting food we managed to cross and that’s how I ended up in Uganda, as a refugee. 

Can you tell us the personal story of anyone else in the photographs?

Christelle, a refugee in Uganda from the Democratic Republic of Congo joined Soccer Without Borders in 2013 at the age of 12 in its Youth English Classes and football teams. Christelle had a sharpness that helped her learn English so quickly, in addition to that she had excellent attendance, was collaborative with fellow participants, and brought a positive attitude and good behaviour to SWB every day. This helped her become selected among 10 students that SWB helped transition into formal school.

SWB aims to find such opportunities and channel them towards these youths who are not getting the chances they deserve. This sponsorship through the Xavier Project has helped Christelle go from Primary 7 to Secondary 6 right now. She was supposed to sit her national exams in November but due to Covid that is on hold right now. 

Why is football important to you and your community?

Football is a unique game that is played in every single corner of the world. It has the power to unite and bridge racial, language, ethnic, and cultural divides. Football gave me the chance that I could find nowhere else. As a young man arriving in Uganda, I stayed home for many weeks, hopeless and very lonely. I barely had people to talk to except my own small family. 

By the time I joined the SWB Youth Football teams, I saw a miraculous turnaround. I was able to make friends, connect with other people I had not met before, share our experiences and most importantly, football gave me room where I could practice my English. 

In addition to this, football impacts beyond coming to the pitch, kicking the ball, and sweat. It teaches so many essential life skills like respect for yourself as a team member and towards your teammates, quick thinking (where you have got to decide within a matter of seconds to keep the game flowing), working as a team (by following the team’s plan), accepting winning and losing, as well as self-confidence which empowers you especially when facing a tougher opponent. These are vital skills that one needs for their entire lifetime. 

In my community, there is a scarcity of football pitches due to the slums. And that makes the only pitch in Nsambya neighborhood hard to access because of the high demand. There is also a logistical barrier to so many youths and refugees being included. Despite all these challenges, football remains a very loved game. And most people will play it whether on a small piece of land, or on a normal pitch with or without shoes. 

Do you play football now with any Ugandan people? How do you find the Ugandan people?

I do play with Ugandan peers as well, most of whom I meet at the community playground and those at my school. There are a few of my classmates who do play, so we sometimes make time especially during school breaks to go play this beautiful game. 

What ambitions do you have for the future?

Community Development: I am very passionate about community development related activities and I am very interested in contributing as much as I can - working with communities and other stakeholders in order to address key issues affecting youth and refugees specifically. I would also like to be a role model for fellow refugee youth by a setting good example. This comes from the belief that I always hold in me, being a refugee is not the end of life, but in fact, it can be a brand-new beginning. 

And to be able to do all this, I have got to acquire new knowledge and skillsets that will enable me to deliver well. Therefore, I am eying the completion of my education. Currently, I am a final year student at Kampala University where I am doing a Bachelor of Arts in Human Resources Management with a minor in Public Administration. 

Once I complete my education, I will be a better position to continue my non-profit work, which enables me to empower other marginalized youths as I have been before. I owe a lot to the people that helped me, especially the coaches, staff, and Soccer Without Borders organization as a whole. And one way to be able to pay back is to continue to help the refugee community by bringing hope in the face of uncertainty, with a belief that there are better days ahead. And assisting disadvantaged and ostracized youths, helping them discover their potential and discover a greater understanding of their minds and voices.