From gangsterism to speaking life: Shewaan Jumat's inspiring journey to empower Cape Town's youth

Former gang member turned motivational speaker Shewaan Jumat is using his life story to reach learners across Cape Town, delivering hard truths about choices, consequences and hope, while urging young people to believe in futures beyond the streets many of them see daily.

Known on social media as Rich In Mind, Jumat has spent the past few years visiting high schools across the metro, speaking directly to learners about resilience, identity and the realities that often lie beyond their current experiences.

“My name is Shewaan Jumat. I was involved in gangsterism for 19 years and have been reformed for almost five years,” he said.

Jumat grew up in Heideveld, where he said his story and many of the lessons he now shares were shaped.

“I was not one of the biggest gangsters but in the 19 years I was there, I saw, learned and experienced a lot,” he said.

Leaving gang life, however, was never part of a carefully planned exit strategy. Instead, he describes it as a gradual emotional shift driven by exhaustion and the desire to build something different for his children.

“Getting out of gangsterism was never a plan but after all these years I started to get tired. The passion was no longer there, but I pushed through,” Jumat said.

His turning point came when he began creating videos for his young son.

“I started making videos for my son who was three years old at the time. I posted it on YouTube and at the age of five I started posting it on Facebook. It was towards the end of my gangster days before I was really out,” he said.

What began as a personal digital diary soon became something deeper, a legacy he hoped his child could one day understand.

“It was a place to save my videos for when he is old enough to understand, but also in case I am killed and I am no longer there, sometimes to know people are going to watch my videos,” he said.

The birth of his daughter cemented his decision to walk away from gangsterism completely.

“My little girl was born and I then decided I was done because the feeling of it’s out or dead played in my mind the whole time,” he said.

These days, Jumat stands in front of classrooms and school halls sharing those lived experiences with learners who often face similar social pressures but have not yet fully encountered the consequences he describes.

His talks focus on speaking honestly about the dangers of peer pressure, violence and the lure of gang culture, while encouraging learners to see value in their futures.

Jumat said his first motivational talk happened while he was still involved in gangsterism to his son, after which schools and organisations began reaching out to him and he realised the power in speaking life instead of lies.

Since 2024, he has volunteered through the Western Cape Education Department’s Safe Schools programme, while also conducting independent talks through schools and community organisations.

Through these sessions, Jumat speaks openly about fear, loss and the emotional toll of gang life themes he believes resonate deeply with learners.

His approach centres on meeting young people where they are emotionally, often sharing lessons about making decisions before life forces those decisions upon them.

Jumat believes many learners are exposed to difficult environments but still hold the power to change their own paths.

He says his goal is not to lecture but to speak life into learners by showing them that their current circumstances do not have to define their future.

His talks often challenge learners to think beyond immediate influences and consider the long-term impact of their choices.

While many of the learners he addresses may not yet have experienced the full realities of crime or violence, Jumat believes early exposure to honest conversations can help them make better decisions later in life.

Education officials say his storytelling approach allows learners to connect with his message in ways that traditional safety campaigns sometimes struggle to achieve.

According to the Western Cape Education Department, Jumat has delivered talks at several schools in the Metro South Education District as part of Safe Schools awareness initiatives.

The programme aims to promote responsible decision-making, strengthen learner retention and address issues such as bullying, peer pressure and school violence.

WCED spokesperson Millicent Merton said the Safe Schools programme continuously seeks innovative ways to engage learners around safety and resilience.

“A key component of his engagements is the sharing of his personal life story, including the challenges and adversity he faced, and how he consciously chose a positive path despite those circumstances,” she said.

The department said initial feedback from participating schools has been positive, with educators noting strong learner engagement during sessions.

For Jumat, however, success is measured less by statistics and more by whether learners leave his talks believing they have options.

His message, he said, remains rooted in hope.

He wants learners to understand that while the world may present harsh realities, their stories are still being written and they have the power to choose how those stories unfold.

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Weekend Argus