Boys of Baraka (2005)

Boys of Baraka is a film; a documentary about boys trying to find their way out of social poverty that they grew up in and trying to earn an education they rightfully deserve. The film highlights a couple of boys considered “at-risk” from Baltimore, Maryland who get a special opportunity to go to a two year school in Kenya. 

Baltimore is not a city known for its education. 76% of African American students in Baltimore do not graduate from high school. Most of these kids live in rural areas, where as scene in the movie, are not part of what you and I would consider an ideal society. 50% of these ungraduated students would eventually go to jail.

The school in the film, The Baraka School is a private school in Kenya, where twenty students, four of which are focused on in the film (Devon, Montrey, Richard and Romesh). By the end of the film, we get to see the affects the applied learning and discipline that the Baraka School has instilled in these children.

With most of the cast of the movie, the school has had an impact, mostly positive. The Baraka School gave a different atmosphere than that of a Baltimore school. At those school, teachers are not listened to and children horse around. Watching the footage of these city schools, you get the impression that no one cares, which is very disheartening for the future of these children. Baraka School proved a quiet environment, where the teachers could work one-on-one with a small amount of students, than to handle hundreds at a time.

What the film also illustrates well is the culture shock that these children faced. They would refer to things as they would if they were home; city slang from across the Atlantic Ocean. They miss their parents, their other family members, their friends.

What the film accomplishes is showing the differences in the children from when they were chosen for the program. They have really grown in our eyes. They not only become well-educated but matured due to the environment and friendliness given by the staff of the school.

There are a few moments that stick out in my mind. One would be when the trouble-making Montrey has his moment of maturity. As a punishment, the kids had to go off school grounds to a place called the base camp, where they are told they have to do various team working activities. In this scene, Montrey is telling a kid who refused to do the activity (building a tent) to do it anyway and gives a very well articulated explanation to why he should. Montrey also has the biggest surprise at the end of the film, where it is revealed that he is basically a math genius and earns a scholarship.

The ending of the film was a real shock. At the end of their first year, they go back to their homes for the summer. Back in America, they find out that because of the security threats in Kenya and the shut down on their American embassy, the Baraka School had to shut down. This was very unfortunate because at this point, as the viewer, you want to see these children move onto their second year and work hard to achieve something, to not end up on the street or knocking around in a prison. This brings up the question of what would have happened to the children if they did go back to Baraka. Would they be where they are today?

The film accomplished quite a few things a good documentary should do. It presents an interesting and true premise and then gives me characters that will grow in the eyes of the viewer. The film tells of the importance of education in young children and the affects that those children my have on their social circles and on society. Boys of Baraka is a well-made and underrated documentary. 

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