This brutal conflict has ravaged the country claiming hundreds of lives and exiling a vast number of the southern Sudanese people. CORLEY: John, tell me a little bit about what you're doing now, and what you wish for yourself and hope for your people and hope people will learn from your story. He cried himself to sleep. Its programs expanded over time to include all of the camps health services: treating refugees who arrived malnourished or sick, offering rehabilitation programs for those who were disabled, and working to prevent outbreaks of disease. He and several cousins, who now live in North Dallas, were among about 20,000 "Lost Boys of Sudan" forced to flee as the . For these young men, IRC staff members stressed the importance of finding a job soon after arrival, and continuing their educational pursuits part-time. They became known as "The Lost Boys . As of 2006, the largest population of Sudanese refugees in the United States is in Omaha, Nebraska, which hosts about 7,000 people. Hector's humor can be angry and dark, as when he looks in the mirror and observes, "I see the corpse . Taking a head count before they left, and another when they arrived. International Rescue Committee is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Also, a brother who went to Australia as a Lost Boy. Jacob Atem, who fled Sudan as a boy, was one of the storytellers at "Stoop Stories," a Baltimore event. I had lived with him. Megan Mylan and Jon Shenk's film tells the story of two young Sudanese refugees relocated to Texas by the U.S. State Department. "The area most affected was our hometown," said Thiong, a financial analyst. But, you know, we are willing to learn and just be able to put yourself in the society you can just learn. Diseases spread among the displaced youngsters measles, malaria, tuberculosis. If you found one kernel of corn you lived off that for a day or two. Make sure each group has one set of outline maps of Sudan, Africa, the world, and the United States. He shows strength, courage and bravery when he makes his journey to escape war. Accuracy and availability may vary. When you reach out to them, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource. They served as an essential link to the greater community, helping to generate additional employment opportunities, as well as increase donations and awareness. While we were in Nairus, the enemy captured Kapoeta again so the UN decided to bring us to Lokichiogio across the border into Kenya. IRC case workers worked closely with the boys in orienting them to their new communities, making sure that they were as comfortable as possible, and offering guidance on such issues as personal safety, social customs, public transportation, shopping, cooking, nutrition and hygiene. Also, I have a half-brother who is a chief in my clan and I have two half-sisters who I have been in contact with. Introduce the film God Grew Tired of Us and the excerpt students will watch.Explain to students that the film documents the story of the Lost Boys of Sudan as they fled civil war, spent a decade growing up in a Kenyan refugee camp, and were eventually resettled in the United States. We didn't stop there. But the latest medical tests showed that his kidney issues had worsened: They were operating at only 5 percent capacity. In September of 2001, he moved to Houston, Texas, as part of the U.S. "The wild animals were also very vicious, especially the lions, and a lot of people got attacked," Atem told a hushed audience at Baltimore's historic Senator Theater. They'd try to send letters home via the Red Cross workers they occasionally encountered, never knowing whether they arrived. "Thank God," she said in Dinka, her dialect. In 1991, war in Ethiopia sent the young refugees fleeing again and approximately a year later they began trickling into northern Kenya. Many girls were physically and/or sexually abused by their host families, raped by other refugees during activities such as fetching water or food rations, and occasionally, even sold as brides for profit. When I got out of the water, the kids I was playing with were gone. Sustainability Policy| Every day people were dying. The Lost Boys of Sudan uses personal accounts from many lost boys to provide an immersive narrative of the inconceivable lives of the Lost boys. The people crossing the river had to throw all their bags away but it didn't do any good because the shooting continued. It's been difficult given the unstable environment. I hope we eventually will unite again. Tell us a little bit about that, what you remember from that time. David Weddle last wrote for the magazine about the lasting emotional damage to veterans of World War II . They immediately required housing and schooling, which changed the allocation of resources in the camps. As a result, relatively few of the Lost Girls were able to benefit from the resettlement program to the US. Go to National Geographic's Sudan Facts page and invite volunteers to take turns reading aloud the information. [36] Subsequently, women hold little weight within a marriage. [27][28], Not unlike other parts of Africa, Sudanese women were viewed as subordinate to men in families and villages. Over 30 years ago, Sudans civil war uprooted 20,000 Sudanese children. CORLEY: Well, you were only - were you 6 or 7 years old when the war erupted and your story began? It was dark. Would she recognize him? Do you feel Americans remember much about the Lost Boys and their plight? [37] Further, women and children were often forced or coerced into a trafficking situation. I don't know how, but the river was moving so fast it brought me to the other side. They know the lost boys arrived here, but they don't really know what happened to us. [14][23], Because many boys were over the age of 18, they were unable to be placed into the foster care system. He also co-founded the Southern Sudan Healthcare Organization, a nonprofit working within his war-torn homeland. And today, we are joined by John Majok, a man whose story is both heartbreaking and inspirational. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. He grew up in what's now South Sudan and is a member of the Dinka tribe. John Majok, one of the children from that journey, talks about survival and the power of love. I went to study biology to become a doctor, so I can help people in general. In 1995, I went to Ifo in Kenya. Over the next decade the Lost Boys built new lives for themselves in their adopted country. NyakMarol Kur looked disoriented as the officer tentatively pointed to the group of men waiting with But. When we first got here, a lot of us were diagnosed with PTSD. The student would be punished or actually suspended for the foul language they used.". [19][33] This marginalization heavily influenced their post-conflict recovery and integration in refugee camps and resettlement programs. . They never found his body. Although the north had more of the urban centers of the nation, they depended heavily on natural resources such as oil and minerals that were found in the southern region. Atem is a former Lost Boy, one of some 40,000 children orphaned by the Sudanese civil war in the 1990s. transportation of people to a new residential area, usually following a natural or man-made disaster. He and several cousins, who now live in North Dallas, were among about 20,000 "Lost Boys of Sudan" forced to flee as the Second Sudanese Civil War raged between 1983 and 2005, claiming But's father and 40 members of his extended family. There was a movie about us. And those words kept me going. I have never lost hope in God that I believe, and I think that what is strengthened me and kept me going. Family law consistently gave preference to men. [13] The Boys often depended on the charity of villages they passed for food, necessities, and treatment of the sick. This is one of my favorite questions. But then, during his sophomore year of high school, this: "One morning, my foster mom just dropped me off at the school bus. Your fiancee, who you had promised that you were going to marry, was still in the refugee camp? The Lost Boys of Sudan are a group of Dinka youth who fled civil war in their native country, spent a decade growing up in a Kenyan refugee camp, and were eventually resettled in the United States. A corner was turned. Mr. JOHN MAJOK (Lost Boys of Sudan): Thank you very much for having me. And then eventually, each one of us start finding job and so you find yourself working, you know, totally different environment. "That came later.". I ran with thousands of other young children in a very hard journey we made it across the desert all the way to Ethiopia. But in terms of making friend, generally, the society has been, I would say, on my side, has been receptive and very hospitable - especially in Tucson, Arizona, where I settled. They finally came to the United States in 2001. In June 1992, the boys reached Kenya's Kakuma refugee camp, where they would spend the next nine years. It is estimated that over half of the young migrants died along their journey due to starvation, dehydration, disease, attacks by wild animals and enemy soldiers. Subscribe. And he joined us here in our studio. [1] The term was used by healthcare workers in the refugee camps and may have been derived from the children's story of Peter Pan by J. M. One of them, Abraham Awolich, told The New York Times: I dont want to see another generation of children go through what Ive gone through and what other children of my generation went through.. Water was scarce, and they would sometimes go half a day without a drink. Not all made it. "I was sad," he said. 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. Or, Mr. MAJOK: Not at all. 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. National Geographic Society is a 501 (c)(3) organization. Students watch excerpts from the film God Grew Tired of Us to learn about the Lost Boys of Sudan and the refugee experience, map the Lost Boys migration journey, and discuss the challenges the Lost Boys faced while adapting to life in the United States and trying to maintain their cultural identities as Dinka. [22] Numerous resettlement agencies, such as Catholic Charities, Lutheran Social Services, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), World Relief and other privatized organizations assisted in this resettlement process. I laughed out loud when I read these scenes. Did some Lost Boys have less exemplary outcomes? Somebody came with a gun and he shot at us in the tree. Mr. MAJOK: you know, getting married, then I - all of a sudden I had to leave, and so I am now separated again. In the last decade, about 4,000 young Sudanese who fled from their country's civil war resettled in the United States. I'm so glad I'm still alive and this is my story. I think we can bridge the gap and reverse course. Sometime before morning hours, I escaped under the fence. Atem talked about his life as a "Lost Boy" and what happened when he settled in Michigan like the time his foster mom grounded him just for wanting to punch a kid who'd insulted him. Known as the "Lost Boys of Sudan," these children walked more than a thousand miles to various refugee camps during the years that followed. Ask groups to mark the routes the Lost Boys took. Ayuen remembers traveling with But and a younger brother and cousin, trying to keep warm as they slept. This is where I pray to have leadership that can embrace dialogue. I was crying as people near me were being shot. Mr. MAJOK: What I hope for my people, first, is that the situation that my people are in now has to change. It seemed like forever. In December 2013, political tensions between factions loyal to President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar erupted into fighting in South Sudan's capital, Juba. As he just mentioned, he got married while he was there and saw his mother and his sister - a joyous occasion as he say. I tried to go to my house. he inquired from the Stoop Story stage on October 25. 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. This is a summary of my experiences but there is more to explain for each example I've given. Then discuss the historical, cultural, and geographic factors that contributed to Sudans civil war and some of the consequences the civil warwhich lasted over twenty yearshad on Sudan and its peoples, including orphaned children, violence, famine, and disease. Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. Volunteers at the IRC's Boston office (now closed) took part in a mentoring program for newly arrived Kakuma youth, providing support and guidance, and organizing recreational activities to bring the young men together. We fell into the river. 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. His mother handed him a Sudanese mix of pulverized peanuts and corn. Since most were over 18 and living on their own they needed to support themselves. You should have seen my eyes. I mean, everyone has a friend or a boyfriend or a girlfriend, whatever. Burbach, C. "Rally features Sudanese vice president. Let's talk a little bit about what's been happening since you came to the United States six years ago. There was no UN, no nothing. I survived through the worst sort of life that I'd ever seen. In this way, girls were prevented from earning a formal education, further entrenching them in their inability to sustain themselves. Jeanne Wallace-Weaver, Educational Consultant, adapted from the National Geographic Xpeditions lessons God Grew Tired of Us: Migration and Cultural Interaction and God Grew Tired of Us: Culture Clash and Community-Building. I lived in a refugee camp there trying to find a way to get to America. They were nomadic people called Turkana. That was the heartbreaking part of. In Sudan, the Islamist movement has been led by Hasan al-Turabi, and he shared power with Islamist military leaders following a coup d'tat of 1989, until a fall- ing out in 2000. After several years while war continued in the Sudan, programs were organized to resettle many of the youths in the United States. You did make it, but was it difficult to make friends, or how was that for you? Majok is one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, the young boys who walk thousands of miles, fighting starvation and wild animals as they fled the violence of their country during civil war. The outbreak of civil war in Sudan in 1983 brought with it circumstances that would permanently alter the lives of thousands of Sudanese boys and young men. The Lost Boys of Sudan refers to a group of over 20,000 boys of the Nuer and Dinka ethnic groups who were displaced or orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War (19872005). Build background.Ask students if theyre familiar with Peter Pans Lost Boyscharacters in the J.M. (Laura Klivans/KQED) As a child, David Ayual Mayom had a lot of responsibility and autonomy. "Me and another guy used to put them between us and cover them with our clothes when it was cold," he said. Following Sudan's independence from Britain in 1956, these divisions became contentious. what new things the Lost Boys experienced on the journey from Kenya to the U.S. explain who the Lost Boys of Sudan are and how they got that name, locate northern Sudan, southern Sudan, and the Dinka homeland on a world map, describe the experiences of the Lost Boys in Sudan and after they fled Sudan, Tech Setup: 1 computer per classroom, Projector, Speakers. [14] Prior to the inception of this program, approximately 10,000 boys left the refugee camps for other opportunities, making them ineligible for the US's resettlement program. [34], When conflict reached the rural parts of Southern Sudan, women were affected just as much as the men, only in different ways. He suffered two strokes in 2011, and his cousins brought him back to Dallas. [11] Additionally, attacks by lions, snakes, and other wild animals were not uncommon. Lost Boys of Sudan is a very different kind of documentary than Super Size Me -- in tone, ambition, and ultimately reach -- but it is in many ways a model for social issue filmmakers. She held her hands up to her face and stepped back. Many of the Lost Boys resettled by the IRC also took part in IRC programs aimed at helping them cope with their traumatic past and easing their transition into such a different culture. There have been a number of books, films, and plays about the Lost Boys, including: Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. [14][15] Conditions were made even more dangerous by the SPLA soldiers, who would attack the boys or forcibly recruit them as child soldiers. That's where my heart melts. Phone 202-328-8842 Fax 202-328-8757 Email sojourners@sojo.net As in Ethiopia, they continued their schooling in makeshift outdoor classrooms under trees, harassed by blowing dust. Write a minimum of four diary entries from the perspective of a Lost Boy, describing his journey and major events in his life. I was happy. Refugee Program. I threw myself in. 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. Half of them died. The dialogue during the two dinner parties from hell is wonderfully bitchy and witty. My year of 100 boys produced 40 Oxbridge entrants, 24 with State Scholarships. Mr. MAJOK: Well, I remember how I walked a thousand miles with other children of my age to unknown destination. CORLEY: All right. She has also contributed to the paper's immigration beat. Winner, Independent Spirit Award Truer Than Fiction. David Ayual Mayom, originally from South Sudan, holds a photo of his family in a Kenyan refugee camp. 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.. CORLEY: John Majok is one of the thousands of boys who was displaced by the Sudanese civil war. The new Sudanese government was dominated by Islamic Northerners who sought to Arabize and make the South an Islamic state, which had previously associated more with their African ethnicity rather than Arab. Still, "for him to see his mom will be a sign that his family is still there," he said. Why did you choose a career in humanitarian health? John Dau, a former "Lost Boy," works to help others in his immigrant community as well as at home in South Sudan. It was the last day I saw them. [11] Ultimately, being raised in a refugee camp significantly altered their development and ability to assimilate into regular life.[19]. I'm not denying that. Parents need to know that The Lost Boys of Sudan follows the true stories of two young men whose families were murdered or dispersed in Sudan's civil war. Twenty years ago, America was a role model for the free world. The girls were expected to fulfill numerous domestic responsibilities that were often very taxing or even dangerous. Those are the stories that Americans can be proud of it because it's America that made us who we are. Point out the homeland of the Dinkain southern Sudan along the White Nile. Men were allowed to have multiple wives, and polygamy was expected if the father had no sons by his other wives. Majok is one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, the young boys who walk thousands of miles, fighting starvation and wild animals as they fled the violence of their country during civil war. [21] They are now scattered over at least 38 cities, including major metropolises such as Chicago, Dallas, Boston, Seattle and Atlanta. Boy's diary is an artifact found in the chapter "Bill's Town". Lesson Plan: Lost Childhoods: Exploring the Consequences of Collective Violence (Part 3), Interviews: In Search of a Durable Solution, Download POV's step-by-step guide to organizing an event (PDF) . With some of the boys arriving in the camps at ages as young as 6 or 7, many of the Boys spent the majority of their childhood and adolescence being raised in the camps. However, most of their travel was in isolated regions with very little infrastructure. Has our charged political climate motivated you to tell your story more? Help the IRC continue to bring critical support to Sudan and other crisis zones around the world. "Because of the war. [30] Because these girls had been living within a family unit for anywhere from 914 years, they were no longer considered orphans, and therefore were ineligible for the resettlement program. But and his cousins had grown up in Jalle, a village 40 miles from the town of Bor, in what is now independent SouthSudan. Barrie novel Peter Pan who formed a family and took care of each other in Never-Never Land. Atem is a former Lost Boy, one of some 40,000 children orphaned by the Sudanese civil war in the 1990s. It was a little bit scary.". "We place the older boys together in apartments to try to maintain the kind of support network that they developed throughout their difficult journey and while living in the Kakuma camp," said Jon Merrill, who was then director of the IRC's resettlement program in Tucson. Tell students that they will see an excerpt, called "From Sudan to the United States." When the prayer at the airport was over, But moved closer and offered his hand. They also got blissfully acquainted with something called pizza. Copyright 19952023 American Documentary, Inc. | amdoc.org/pov. Then they watch an excerpt from the film, God Grew Tired of Us, and write about it. CORLEY: Okay. Some children were able to avoid capture or death because they were away from their villages tending cattle at the cattle camps (grazing land located near bodies of water where cattle were taken and tended largely by the village children during the dry season) and were able to flee and hide in the dense African bush. She was still alive. April | 136 views, 5 likes, 7 loves, 7 comments, 3 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Radio Maria - Ireland: Chatechesis with Fr. EIN number 13-5660870. [6] In all, these competing identities and interests created an organized civil war lasting over two decades. The Lost Boys are fighting in Iraq with the American military. [32], Although there is much attention directed toward the Lost Boys, common historical narratives often ignore their counterparts, the Lost Girls. Mr. MAJOK: Yeah, my mother and my sister, they are the only surviving members. I knew there was no one to help me. There was no food for a while. Speaking of the rape was unacceptable and left the girls vulnerable to being blamed for the rape that occurred against them. Lost Boys of Sudan PBS Premiere: Sept. 28, 2004 Check the broadcast schedule One Day I Had to Run My first memories of my childhood start when I was about five years old in my homeland of Sudan, the day when my parents' house was burned. Code of Ethics| People dead.". Mr. MAJOK: Exactly. The Lost Boys of Sudan Over 30 years ago, Sudan's civil war uprooted 20,000 Sudanese children. And these four Ds, plus my belief in God, telling me achieve what I want to achieve. A Lost Boy friend of mine works for NASA. -- John Deng Langbany, September 2, 2004. On the way, there was a lot of shelling on the road. By David Weddle. The survivors of this tragic exodus became known as the Lost Boys of Sudan. It took three days walking by foot. Mr. MAJOK: The telephone. You bet. Volunteers, many of whom became aware of the immense needs of this group through media coverage, also played a significant role in this area. They processed bright pupils, irrespective of financial background into our best universities. The media has focused on a group of refugee children internationally referred to as the "Lost Boys" of Sudan. In the other part of the country, they need protection in place like Darfur. He didn't know how to swim either. Travel ranged from a span of weeks to two or more years. What the Lost Boys of Sudan Found in America. [35] Moreover, the use of a brideprice was common practice in Sudan, making women more of a commodity to her husband rather than a partner. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees and involved non-governmental organizations were often constrained to meet the needs of the population. 4. In the next few years, an estimated 20,000 Sudanese children fled their homeland in search of safety in what turned out to be a treacherous 1,000-mile journey to Ethiopia. People actually remember pretty well. The river was full of people. Abraham But and his cousins were the first Lost Boys to arrive in Dallas-Fort Worth, they say, when they came to the U.S. in 2001. When we see this sign that said 'Dead End' with our little English, we say, 'Wow, you go there, you will never die again.' I walked for three days to get to a place called Okila. CORLEY: Mm-hmm. Then ask students to write a brief summary describing who the Lost Boys are and what they experienced. Young Abraham, only 3 or 4, prepared to flee with a group of boys, including a number of older cousins - among them Peter Thiong, Philip Machok and Philip Ayuen. I needed to get across the river. UNHCR recommended approximately 3,600 of them for resettlement in the United States and the U.S. State Department concurred. To John Bul Dau, the story is all too familiar. Those are the days that I'm dreaming about. [12] The journey from South Sudan to the nearest refugee camp could be up to thousands of miles. [26] Moreover, a 2005 study found that 20% of Lost Boys under the age of 18 suffered from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. The movie's story is probably one of the best parts. Once a person was involved in trafficking, it was extremely difficult for family members to relocate them.[38]. Lost Boys of Sudan was a movie following the lives of two men, by the names of Peter and Santino Chuor. Mr. MAJOK: It was a joyous moment for me to reunite with my family after six years of separation. They didn't know Sudanese. Sudanese children playing football in Zam Zam camp in 2016 - five years after South Sudan gained independence. The International Rescue Committee helped hundreds of them to start new lives in cities across the country. October 4 It's official, school is closed indefinitely. In 2001, as part of a program established by the United States Government and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), approximately 3,800 Lost Boys were offered resettlement in the United States. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. The premise is simple: Everyone has a story. The IRC helped the Lost Boys find jobs with local employers and connected them with volunteer mentors for help studying for exams to enable them to receive a General Equivalency Diploma (GED), and in turn, apply for college. Some were attacked and killed by wild animals; others drowned crossing rivers and many were caught in the crossfire of fighting forces. His lost years were initially filled with turmoil and uncertainty as the boys traveled, mostly on foot, from refugee camp to refugee camp, fleeing bombs, bullets, thirst and disease. My dream is to have a dialogue on immigration. Three years later, I flew out of Nairobi to America and started high school in Rochester, Minnesota. And so - but when I was in the college years, this was just difficult to go around with - especially the young people around here. So the principle by which I live - determination, devotion, diligence and discipline. But the focal point here is that we sit down and see the big picture. An aerial view of Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, home to thousands of South Sudanese refugees, including the "Lost Boys.". It's not too late. In the United States, they relied onchurch volunteersand others who rallied to find themhomes and opportunities to continue their education. How many members of your family survived? Students watch excerpts from the film God Grew Tired of Us. In 1991, when the government of Ethiopia fell apart, the new government chased us out of Panyido.

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