From Street to Hope : Faith Based and Secular Programs in Los Angeles, Mumbai and Nairobi for Street Living Children

Globally, street-living children are the most fluid population of vulnerable children. They are conspicuous yet subsist on the fringes of the marginalized. This book attempts to sketch a holistic picture of the street child phenomenon across the globe. The book incorporates empirical data from a cross-cultural study of this phenomenon in three mega cities-Mumbai, Nairobi and Los Angeles-and some of the best practices developed by faith-based and secular organizations to help street-living children. These data include global estimates, analysis of the causative factors, occupations of these children, as also the resulting problems. The book also gives new insights into the impact of state policies to support secular and faith-based organizations, and the way social service is practised by such organizations in India, Kenya and USA. The authors take the readers through the social construction of the street child phenomenon over the years by weaving socio-political, cultural and historical perspectives in understanding the circumstances surrounding them.