Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, The Gambia) – Every evening, as the sun begins to fade, 26-year-old Sainey Jallow walks away from his family compound and settles under a tree at a nearby ghetto. It is not because he has nowhere else to go. It is because, for him, home has become a place of judgment rather than comfort.
Sainey works during the day. His earnings are modest, but they are honest. Yet, he says his efforts go largely unnoticed at home. Instead of being defined by his work, he feels he is judged solely by one thing: the fact that he smokes.
“Once they see you smoke, they stop seeing anything else,” he said quietly. “They don’t advise you. They don’t help you change. They just label you.”
At home, Sainey says he is called names and treated with suspicion. Sitting in the compound feels heavier than standing under the scorching sun all day at work. So when the day ends, he leaves.
“At the ghetto, nobody pretends to be better than you,” he said. “Nobody calls you a thief just because you are struggling.”
Across the road from the ghetto, Lamin Touray—a shop owner and commercial driver—has observed Sainey and other young men for years. He believes many families misunderstand why their children gravitate toward such spaces.
“These youths are not escaping responsibility,” Touray said. “They are escaping pressure. When a young man is constantly reminded that he is failing, he will look for a place where he can breathe.”
Sainey does not deny that the ghetto has its flaws. There is smoking. There is idleness. But he insists it is also a place where people listen—something he says is missing at home.
“When I sit there, people talk to me like a human being,” he said. “Not like a problem.”
Social researchers note that ghettos often become informal shelters for young people who feel rejected by their families and society.
In the absence of strong support systems, many drift toward spaces where they feel accepted, even if those spaces are heavily stigmatized. Over time, such isolation can contribute to loneliness, depression, and substance dependence.
Sainey says he does not dream of staying in the ghetto forever. What he wants, he insists, is simple.
“I just want understanding,” he said. “If someone believes in you, you can change. But when everyone has already judged you, you stop trying to explain yourself.”
As night deepens, Sainey remains seated, silently watching the road. When the compound finally falls asleep, he will quietly return home—not because things have improved, but because the day has ended. For now, the ghetto remains his refuge: a place he never wanted, but one he feels he needs.
