At 14, Ajoke Alonge (MSW '08) could no longer walk. Struck down by a genetic malformation of her spine, the young Nigerian saw her future reflected in the faces of the young disabled beggars lining the streets of her village. Now Alonge (pictured with Colorado's Gov. Bill Ritter) is helping to change their lives.
"Children with disabilities in Nigeria are pitied; they are exploited and socially abused," says Ajoke. "There are no policies, no services to help the disabled."
With a positive spirit and help from a home for the disabled, young Ajoke broke free from the future that befalls most Nigerians with disabilities. The Cheshire Home in Ibadan made it possible for her to renew her studies after a four-year lapse and continue on to the University of Ibadan, where she earned a bachelor's degree in special education and a master's degree in social work. And the Ford Foundation made it possible for her to continue her studies at GSSW.
"Ajoke is a strong advocate for the underprivileged, and she makes things happen," says Dean James Herbert Williams. "GSSW is very honored to have her as a graduate."
Finding opportunities amid challenges
Though she was grateful for the opportunity to attend college, she remembers the challenges as well. In Ibadan, there were no transportation services to take her to classes and no elevators or ramps on campus. Classmates had to carry her to a second-floor classroom each day.
From challenges come opportunities, however, as Ajoke became a spokeswoman for the individuals with disabilities in Nigeria. She founded CODING (Creating Opportunities from Disability in Nigeria) to raise money to pay school fees and give medical support to clients with disabilities. And she lobbied the Nigerian government to improve the living conditions of citizens with disabilities with legislation similar to the Americans with Disabilities Act. This legislation, which she is still working to pass, would ban discrimination of those with disabilities and ensure access to transportation, public buildings, employment and education.
"I believe I can improve the lives of people with disabilities in my nation," says Ajoke.
Ford Foundation Scholar
The Ford Foundation recognized her efforts with a scholarship to study abroad. At GSSW, Ajoke completed a comparative study on the treatment of the disabled in the United State and Nigeria and says she has learned the skills necessary to continue her fight for the rights of the disabled in her home country.
The Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition supported her work in the U.S. and helped her gain U.S. nonprofit status for CODING, which allowed her to raise funds to send to Nigeria. She has also produced videos aimed at changing the image of her fellow Nigerians with disabilities and promoting education for youth with disabilities.
Climbing over mountains
"I want to encourage them not to give up," says Ajoke. "If the mountains don?t move, you climb over the mountains."
Her next mountain to climb is to return to Nigeria, open a residential facility for people with disabilities and continue to push for changes in disability legislation and the attitudes of her fellow Nigerians toward people like her.
"Education is our common weapon," says Ajoke. "Together, we can raise the common voice."
