A Refuge in the Streets of Phnom Penh

Text by Laura Fornell
Photos by Oscar Espinosa/Amalgama Project
Abridged by Syharn Shen (沈思含)

A Refuge in the Streets of Phnom Penh

Text by Laura Fornell
Photos by Oscar Espinosa/Amalgama Project
Abridged by Syharn Shen (沈思含)

The young hip-hop dance teacher Sathya, or Sa as everyone calls him, teaches his 7- and 8-year-old students how to do pirouettes.

In Phnom Penh's Chbar Ampov district, a creative space known as Tiny Toones allows children of all ages to learn hip-hop dancing in a safe and familiar environment. Marked by graffiti and bearing emblems like Bugs Bunny, this unique school welcomes more than 80 students every day for free and uses hip-hop culture, very popular among Cambodian youth, to engage, inspire and educate young people from Phnom Penh's poorest neighborhoods.

Within the school, a three-meter large corridor with a multitude of graffiti and motivational phrases written in Khmer and English lead to doors on both sides, where classes are being held. This corridor ends in a courtyard of about 60 square meters with a basketball hoop and more graffiti, all under an aluminum roof that offers shade to the enclosure. Young children practice dancing to Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk," 5 and 6-year-olds learn to draw, 11- and 12-year-olds learn chords on keyboards, while others study English and Khmer. The 21-year-old dance teacher Sathya started dancing at Tiny Toones at the age of 11, and for the past year has been a teacher at the center. Slick, 30, teaches art here and is also a former student at the school. "I came to Tiny Toones when I was 17, after living on the streets for a while and having problems with drugs and gangs," he explains while the little ones draw. "I am very grateful for what this place did for me. I don't know if I would've had a future if they hadn't helped me."

Founded by Tuy Sobil, known to everyone as KK, Tiny Toones began as breakdancing lessons in his living room in 2005. KK, then 28 years old, had only been in Cambodia for a year after being deported from the U.S. for convicted armed robbery. Born in a refugee camp in Thailand, KK moved with his family to Los Angeles, where he grew up in an artistic and creative environment, performing in breakdancing groups, but also surrounded by gangs that led him astray. Arriving to his country of origin was not easy, as he had no family, knew no one, and did not speak the language, but KK took his second chance in life by getting fully involved with street children who wanted to dance and look like him, offering them more than just dance lessons to try to prevent them from making the same mistakes as him. With the help of several NGOs and private donations, the Tiny Toones school was founded in 2007. Apart from dance, the school offers English, Khmer, art, math, and computer classes, though the latter has halted due to financial constraints during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Chariya, 8, skates in the street near her home in the Chbar Ampov district of Phnom Penh.

Since its founding, thousands of children have passed through the school, with some becoming professionals while others remaining involved as teachers. "Unfortunately, we can't pay good salaries to the teachers, so we are very grateful to everyone who is involved," says KK. Tiny Toones has become a family and a second home for many.

Suddenly, the bell rings, signaling a break. Kids run all over the place, practicing their new dance moves or buying colored drinks. Among them are Tou, an 8-year-old dance enthusiast, and his 5-year-old brother Panha, who spend all day at the school. "They can't go to public school because they don't have their papers in order," KK explains. "We don't ask anyone for papers here. The important thing is to prevent the children from being alone on the streets while their parents work."

As the morning classes end, children rush to the green school van and the tuk tuk that will take them home for lunch. Except for 14-year-old Teng, who walks calmly to his house three blocks away. Teng and his 11-year-old little sister, Srey Hovy, will be able to go to public school for the first time after managing to process their missing birth certificates. "We help families who still don't have their documents in order, most of them from Vietnam, so that they can formalize their children's schooling, and it is always a joy the day we finally achieve it," says KK.

KK's mission has always been to create a safe environment for at-risk youth, empowering them through arts and education. Reflecting on the journey, he states, "The first kids I taught are now in their 30s, and even though some of them have failed, most of them have succeeded…I am very proud of them." His work will continue, as more children are arriving. "There are more children coming, the journey never stops and I still want to help the next ones."

At noon, Teng, 14, goes home just a few blocks from Tiny Toones for lunch. After a long process, he will finally be able to go to public school after his papers are ready.