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By Timothy Okurut

What happens when young people spend years preparing for a future that seems unable to find a place for them? In They Don’t See Us!, Timothy Okurut reflects on education, unemployment and the frustration of a generation struggling to survive after leaving school. The speaker remembers thirteen years of learning and the promise that education would provide the “keys” to a better future. Yet reality looks different. Some young people turn to motorcycle riding and other forms of informal work simply to meet their basic needs. Others struggle emotionally with rejection and uncertainty. Through one recurring question, the poem asks society to recognise the people behind these struggles: When will they see us?

For thirteen years,
we wore full gear.

We crammed the alphabet:

A-B-C-D-E.

Please,

where are the keys
you promised to give?

The future we see

is waking up
to ride motorcycles,

just to raise the house fee,
to feed,

and repeat
the same cycle—

at least to afford
the things that are vital.

Yet still,

they don’t see us!

If only
they could see us,

we would not be smoking

just to silence
the voices talking

in our heads
every day.

Our names
have all been besmirched,

so none is willing
to offer us pay.

When will they see us?

— Timothy Okurut

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