“To get into the United States,
I swam across the river in south Texas, in the middle of the night in my
underwear, carrying a plastic bag filled with dry clothes.” This was the
beginning of Olga Cantarero’s harrowing journey from Nicaragua to the United
States — fearing for her life at the hands of her smugglers. Olga’s story is
filled with tragedies and triumphs.
When Olga was 19, her work as a volunteer for the Red Cross was seen as subversive and, with her life at risk, she was forced to flee her native Nicaragua. She endured a dangerous journey through Mexico across the border to Texas – she walked throughout the night with no food or water, passing the bodies of women and children who had died on their journeys to freedom. She now works with immigrant and asylum-seeking girls in Texas, girls ages 13-17 who faced persecution in their home countries or suffered similar traumas during their own difficult journeys to the United States.
8,000 miles away, Rim Tekie Solomon, the daughter or Eritrean parents, was 15 years old when she fled Sudan and crossed the Sinai Desert on foot with her mother and five younger siblings. When she first arrived in Israel, she lived in a detention center, taught herself Hebrew and translated for other detainees. She is now 20 years old and works as a translator with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the African Refugee Development Center. Rim also volunteers with the Hagar & Miriam project, helping young asylum-seeking women who are pregnant or new mothers through an initiative called “African and Israeli Women in Friendship and Motherhood.”
I met Olga and Rim at the Women’s Refugee Commission 2012 Voices of Courage Awards Luncheon where they were being honored for their work to improve the lives and protect the rights of displaced women and girls. Olga and Rim found the strength and courage to became leaders in their communities, leveraging their unique experiences to bring healing to refugees and asylum seekers around the world. They are survivors helping others survive. They are leaders.
The theme of this year’s awards luncheon was protecting and empowering displaced adolescent girls. The Women’s Refugee Commission fights for the rights of refugee women and children around the world. The nonprofit organization identifies problems, researches solutions and advocates for real change that will improve the lives of women, children and young people displaced by conflict and natural disasters.
“I was born in a refugee camp in Sudan. When I was still a baby, my parents left the camp and we moved to Khartoum. We had a good life there: I attended school, and had lots of friends.Industrialisierung des werkzeugbaus. Then one day, when I was 16, my father said that we were in danger and that we had to leave the country immediately.
That same afternoon, my mother, my five younger brothers and sisters and I fled to Egypt. We had to leave all of our belongings behind.
After we arrived in Cairo, we walked across the Sinai Desert to Israel. The journey took about 3 weeks and was very dangerous.Wireless real realtimelocationsystem utlilizing wifi access points to pinpoint position of the tag. During the day, we were passed from one smuggler to another. Smugglers do terrible things. Most of the refugees had no food or water. I have heard hundreds of stories of torture and rape. The world needs to know what smugglers are doing. I heard gunshots as we crossed the border.
Since we moved to Tel Aviv four years ago, my mom was able to get a job cleaning houses, and I graduated from high school.We offer you the top quality plasticmoulds design Now I work translating for asylum seekers.
But the most rewarding thing I do is my volunteer work with the Israeli organization, Hagar and Miriam, part of Topaz and Brit-Olam. I help young Sudanese and Eritrean girls who are pregnant or new mothers, who have just arrived in Israel. They often come alone, with only the clothes on their backs and the baby in their arms. They are overwhelmed by a culture and a language that are so foreign to them. And they have nobody to turn to for help. On top of that, they don’t know much about pregnancy, or childbirth or how to be a mother. We teach them how to stay safe and prepare for life in Israel, which is totally different than their home country.
When my mom was a girl in Sudan, she was married at the age of 13. I don’t want this to happen in my generation. Teenage girls in Israel have more choices and more freedom. Girls who have just arrived from Africa need to learn how to protect themselves. At that age, they don’t know what’s right and wrong. They need to be true to their traditions, yet live in a different society.
When I left Sudan,Trade organization for suppliers and distributors in the promotional products industry. I had nobody to help me or give me advice. Everything I learned,An airpurifier is a device which removes contaminants from the air. I learned by myself. Now, I am able to help other girls recover from their painful journeys and restart their lives in Tel Aviv. They have gone through so much – sometimes it’s hard for me to talk about it – but they’re also amazingly strong and determined.
When Olga was 19, her work as a volunteer for the Red Cross was seen as subversive and, with her life at risk, she was forced to flee her native Nicaragua. She endured a dangerous journey through Mexico across the border to Texas – she walked throughout the night with no food or water, passing the bodies of women and children who had died on their journeys to freedom. She now works with immigrant and asylum-seeking girls in Texas, girls ages 13-17 who faced persecution in their home countries or suffered similar traumas during their own difficult journeys to the United States.
8,000 miles away, Rim Tekie Solomon, the daughter or Eritrean parents, was 15 years old when she fled Sudan and crossed the Sinai Desert on foot with her mother and five younger siblings. When she first arrived in Israel, she lived in a detention center, taught herself Hebrew and translated for other detainees. She is now 20 years old and works as a translator with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the African Refugee Development Center. Rim also volunteers with the Hagar & Miriam project, helping young asylum-seeking women who are pregnant or new mothers through an initiative called “African and Israeli Women in Friendship and Motherhood.”
I met Olga and Rim at the Women’s Refugee Commission 2012 Voices of Courage Awards Luncheon where they were being honored for their work to improve the lives and protect the rights of displaced women and girls. Olga and Rim found the strength and courage to became leaders in their communities, leveraging their unique experiences to bring healing to refugees and asylum seekers around the world. They are survivors helping others survive. They are leaders.
The theme of this year’s awards luncheon was protecting and empowering displaced adolescent girls. The Women’s Refugee Commission fights for the rights of refugee women and children around the world. The nonprofit organization identifies problems, researches solutions and advocates for real change that will improve the lives of women, children and young people displaced by conflict and natural disasters.
“I was born in a refugee camp in Sudan. When I was still a baby, my parents left the camp and we moved to Khartoum. We had a good life there: I attended school, and had lots of friends.Industrialisierung des werkzeugbaus. Then one day, when I was 16, my father said that we were in danger and that we had to leave the country immediately.
That same afternoon, my mother, my five younger brothers and sisters and I fled to Egypt. We had to leave all of our belongings behind.
After we arrived in Cairo, we walked across the Sinai Desert to Israel. The journey took about 3 weeks and was very dangerous.Wireless real realtimelocationsystem utlilizing wifi access points to pinpoint position of the tag. During the day, we were passed from one smuggler to another. Smugglers do terrible things. Most of the refugees had no food or water. I have heard hundreds of stories of torture and rape. The world needs to know what smugglers are doing. I heard gunshots as we crossed the border.
Since we moved to Tel Aviv four years ago, my mom was able to get a job cleaning houses, and I graduated from high school.We offer you the top quality plasticmoulds design Now I work translating for asylum seekers.
But the most rewarding thing I do is my volunteer work with the Israeli organization, Hagar and Miriam, part of Topaz and Brit-Olam. I help young Sudanese and Eritrean girls who are pregnant or new mothers, who have just arrived in Israel. They often come alone, with only the clothes on their backs and the baby in their arms. They are overwhelmed by a culture and a language that are so foreign to them. And they have nobody to turn to for help. On top of that, they don’t know much about pregnancy, or childbirth or how to be a mother. We teach them how to stay safe and prepare for life in Israel, which is totally different than their home country.
When my mom was a girl in Sudan, she was married at the age of 13. I don’t want this to happen in my generation. Teenage girls in Israel have more choices and more freedom. Girls who have just arrived from Africa need to learn how to protect themselves. At that age, they don’t know what’s right and wrong. They need to be true to their traditions, yet live in a different society.
When I left Sudan,Trade organization for suppliers and distributors in the promotional products industry. I had nobody to help me or give me advice. Everything I learned,An airpurifier is a device which removes contaminants from the air. I learned by myself. Now, I am able to help other girls recover from their painful journeys and restart their lives in Tel Aviv. They have gone through so much – sometimes it’s hard for me to talk about it – but they’re also amazingly strong and determined.
没有评论:
发表评论