A big difference in this article, as compared to the others, it that the Lost Boys of Sudan took great importance in literacy and storytelling so they can be active participants in our culture, and yet maintain their own culture and Dinka identity. They wanted to better themselves as individuals so that they could have their voice heard, inform others of the war in Sudan, and fit into our culture. I loved the excerpt from Ezra’s interview where he said, “The think there is not any culture in the world that is superior to any other culture, so it is very important for each group of people to keep their culture but then learn not only to be self-centered in their culture, but also learn other cultures and learn to appreciate other cultures and learn to interact and intermingle with other cultures” (pg 47 line 16-21). What an amazing statement to come out of an orphaned young man that was force from his family and culture because of different cultural beliefs. In my eyes, Ezra’s excerpt confirmed that I need to be open to other cultures and make my students aware of other cultures around the world. In all honesty, I had truly forgotten much about Sudan because of such a huge focus on Darfur. Storytelling is important for these boys not only keep their identity and write about their culture, but to make sure that people understand what they have experienced because of the war and help people understand what life is like to be over in this turmoil.
We are very privileged to be living in a country that is free of civil war and people have free speech. These boys have gone through a great deal of heartache and pain, but they do not seem “angry with the world”, instead they use their storytelling and literacy experiences to share their knowledge in a literate, sensible way.
I was also impressed by everything they had accomplished over a short period of time. From coming to a new country, polishing up/ learning a new language (on top of knowing many others), graduating from school and college, and using their storytelling to write, talk, publish, and preach to us (on top of many more accomplishments) about their culture, journey, and struggles to maintain their identity. I will never be able to say I know how they feel, but this piece by Perry reminded me of so many things to be grateful for. I am already looking into one of the many refugees books out there on their journey. There was such a tremendous amount of great information in here it leaves it very hard to discuss it all. I will just say that this is by far my favorite reading.
Barbara Terauds
Comments (5)
Barbara:
Great introduction, you start out making a compelling point. The three Sudanese boys seem as if they had a thirst for learning; after all storytelling is what they have always known. I do appreciate how they learn, teach, built and keep others informed, by being true to who they are. I think it is interesting that they are able to keep in touch with their culture and way of life through storytelling, and just think of how many other cultures of people have migrated here and they don’t have a clue about their cultural background and their people before them…unfortunately I think the U.S. and our educational system has a way of encouraging people and different ethnic groups to be all you want to be, but do it the Western way ( I could be wrong but that’s what I think). I think it’s awesome that these boys have grown up to be young men and are successful, despite what they’ve gone through.
Posted by Toni Wheeler | June 19, 2009 12:53 PM
Posted on June 19, 2009 12:53
Barbara,
I too was very impressed that these boys were so passionate about getting their education. They knew somehow that this would be the key to success for them. It is truly amazing that an orphan coming from such diversity would have this realization. Here in America our children are for the most part privileged compared to the rest of the world, and we can't convince them sometimes how important getting an education really is. I think if I were in that situation, I would be so angry at my homeland and my culture, because of what it had caused to happen to me, but the boys were loyal to their heritage and pursued their literacy to try to preserve that heritage. I wonder if these 3 boys she focused on were representative of the entire group, or if some were angry and resentful of their circumstances.
They did overcome so much to find their place in the world and I think their story is very inspiring.
Lorie Hedrick
Posted by Lorie Hedrick | June 19, 2009 5:40 PM
Posted on June 19, 2009 17:40
Do you think those boys realized they had to learn to read and write to transform their literate practices into something useful? I really do believe they saw the need, and went ahead and appropriated what they needed. Talk about code switching! From oral to written, a complete change in format. The success of these refugee children is proof that all can learn when motivated and engaged by quality instruction.
Posted by Annie Croon | June 19, 2009 7:20 PM
Posted on June 19, 2009 19:20
You're right it is amazing that these boys continue to tell the stories from their culture and they do not seem to be angry about it. I would probably would be resentful if I had to move countries all by myself during a civil war. That would not be something that would be easy to do. The way these boys kept learning so that they could tell their stories is inspiring!
Dana Eudy
Posted by Dana Eudy | June 20, 2009 11:02 AM
Posted on June 20, 2009 11:02
Barbara, I think that this was an excellent article as well. One of the most important parts was the lack of the “poor me” attitude that we find so much in our culture. These young men pulled themselves up by their bootstraps when presented with opportunities to succeed. They worked incredibly hard to obtain an understanding of reading, writing, and transforming their story into another society and language. As the American Indian teens in Noll’s article, these Sudanese young men revealed that literacy is more than just reading and writing print. Oral literacy is evident in storytelling, singing, and poetry recitation as well.
Posted by Janet Gross | June 22, 2009 3:42 PM
Posted on June 22, 2009 15:42