Mr. MAJOK: Number one, my faith in God. Explore our discussion guides, reading lists, and lesson plans here. "Language was difficult. Baltimore's Stoop Stories is a 12-year-old live show and podcast wherein people from all walks of life tell their tales. Young refugees in Kakuma camp, which opened in 1992 to shelter Sudanese refugees. The Amazing Story of a Lost Boy from South Sudan! Salva Dut He was an Ethiopian who hated us. Each POV film comes with free resource materials to support those who want to bring the transformative power of documentary into community, classrooms, and libraries. And so we want to do whatever is necessary to avoid the situation that expelled people from their countries, because to be a refugee is to suffer, but to live in a refugee camp is far more worse, and I've been through those things. Earlier this year, he started making plans to visit his mother in South Sudan. But, you know, we are willing to learn and just be able to put yourself in the society you can just learn. He didn't know how to swim either. With the area still facing instability and minimal medical care, "for someone who is not well, it's not a good idea to go," said Machok, a pharmacy technician. I dont want to see another generation of children go through what Ive gone through and what other children of my generation went through. It sounded like Mom wants to . She was born and raised in El Salvador and studied journalism at Texas Christian University. A 'Lost Boy of Sudan' Looks Back at How Civil War Tore Him From - KQED Santino is still living in Houston, along with many of his Sudanese friends. Revisiting Sudan's Haunted 'Lost Boys' - NPR Before I could leave, one of the ladies told me to wait while everyone left so they could see if I could be carried out in a Red Cross car for the injured and the smallest children, so I stayed behind.A month after the rest of the kids had left, I was playing in the little river with the other children and the enemy came. Phone 202-328-8842 Fax 202-328-8757 Email sojourners@sojo.net That's doesn't justify whatever crimes they did but it's part of the baggage we came with depression, anxiety. Two million were killed and others were severely affected by the conflict. Sudan. She was still alive. Would she recognize him? "In 2001, I was resettled to a place called Michigan," he recalled. In Kakuma, the native people treated us badly because they didn't know us. The theme for the evening's stories was, "Getting it wrong: stories about mix-ups, misunderstandings, and mistakes." . But the focal point here is that we sit down and see the big picture. The tenuous peace held, and in 2011 southern Sudan held a referendum in which its people almost unanimously decided to secede from Sudan and form a new nation. What cultural aspects of Sudan contribute to civil unrest? Lifestories: The Lost Boys of Sudan Trailer - YouTube As a result, many are now returning to South Sudan to pay it forward and help in the rebuilding of their war-torn country, and to provide humanitarian aid and support. Students watch excerpts from the film God Grew Tired of Us. It's not too late. Despite the program's intention to facilitate assimilation, many of the Lost Boys still face difficulties in adapting to life in The United States, Canada, or any of the European countries that offered refugee resettlement. [1] We stayed there. Barrie novel Peter Pan who formed a family and took care of each other in Never-Never Land. [25] Posttraumatic stress, separation from loved ones, cultural isolation, racism and discrimination against the refugees made assimilation extremely difficult. Ask students if they're familiar with Peter Pan's Lost Boyscharacters in the J.M. She was still young, but I trusted her that she would keep my promise and trusted me that I will keep her promise, too. The IRC began working in Kakuma in 1992 to assist the Lost Boys and other refugees fleeing the fighting in Sudan. Copyright International Rescue Committee, 2023. They were known as the Lost Boys. Relief workers called them the Lost Boys after the characters in the J.M. But again, the words were very effective on each of us, and eventually they materialized into a reunion. A night of soul-searching led him to a new strategy: technology over knuckles. I had to be scared all the time. When the prayer at the airport was over, But moved closer and offered his hand. Eventually the bombing would start again, and they continued south, first to Kapeota, then to Narus. Of these, about 20,000 were young boys orphaned by the war who trekked barefoot across the country to refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia.. They finally came to the United States in 2001. I lived in a refugee camp there trying to find a way to get to America. Still, "for him to see his mom will be a sign that his family is still there," he said. Salva is stuck in his war struck village, and he needs to show these qualities if he ever wants to make it to a safe place. Brennen Jensen for NPR The Sudanese conflict, which incited the journey of the Lost Boys, stemmed from divisions among the Arabic-speaking Islamic Northerners and the Christian, Roman Catholic, and indigenous religions in the South. "I was sad," he said. The story of Salva Dut is one that is full of sorrow, inspiration and hope.