Refugee Stories — Refugee Stories

Bayan Tawakalna- Syrian refugee and future Emergency Physician

Refugee Stories

Bayan Tawakalna- Syrian refugee and future Emergency Physician

My name is Bayan Tawakalna. I am a Syrian refugee and this is my story I left my country 6 years ago during the Syrian revolution. I am originally from Damascus and lived my whole life in the countryside. We moved to many different places in Syria for about a year until we had to flee in 2012 and go to Egypt. I stayed in Egypt with my mom and two younger siblings while my dad went to the United States to get asylum in hopes to find a safe place for us to start a new life. Life in...

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Bale Kader - Finding My Place: Social Justice Student at Hamline University and Ethiopian Refugee

Refugee Stories

Bale Kader - Finding My Place: Social Justice Student at Hamline University and Ethiopian Refugee

My name is Bale Kader. I am a student at Hamline University studying Social Justice and I was a refugee from Ethiopia and this is my story.  My name is Bale Kader. I am a student at Hamline University studying Social Justice and I came to the United States when I was three. We came because there was conflict in my country and Oromo people were being persecuted. My parents didn’t want our family to go through that, so we fled Ethiopia for Kenya and stayed in a refugee camp for a couple months. Most people had to stay for...

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Ka Vang - Director of Impact & Community Engagement at American Public Media and Hmong Refugee

Refugee Stories

Ka Vang - Director of Impact & Community Engagement at American Public Media and Hmong Refugee

My name is Ka Vang. I am a writer, poet, playwright, storyteller, and social justice activist. I am also a Hmong refugee and this is my story. My story starts in Long Cheng, Laos. I was born on a CIA military base located in Laos in April of 1975, near the time when the Vietnam War officially ended. The US government was engaged in Laos due to the Vietnam War, thus for the reason for a CIA military base being present in Laos. Initially, Laos was supposed to be neutral but ended up supporting the United States in the Vietnam...

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Abdirahman Mohamed - US Army: E-4. Specialist and Somali Refugee

Refugee Stories

Abdirahman Mohamed - US Army: E-4. Specialist and Somali Refugee

My name is Abdirahman Mohamed. I am twenty-one years old and I am a sophomore at Concordia University, Saint Paul studying Pre-Law and Marketing. Born in Mogadishu, Somalia, my family and I fled in 2006 when I was ten years old due to the ongoing civil war. This was a narrative that's been seen time and time again but truly is a dangerous situation and makes raising a family impossible. My family and I originally landed in Nevada but came to Minneapolis, Minnesota (also known as Little Mogadishu, Minnesota by Somalis) a short time after. Coming to America, the main...

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Sabrina Bana Seyf – Owner of Sabrina Henna and Clothing

Refugee Stories

Sabrina Bana Seyf – Owner of Sabrina Henna and Clothing

A life of struggle was inevitable for a woman born in the heart of Somalia, Mogadishu to be exact. My family fled to Kenya when I was only a few months old seeking refuge in a camp from the instability of Somalia. I don’t have any clear memories since I was so young but I heard enough from my family to know that it was a tough time.  Civil war tore Somalia apart and everyone who could leave, left.  I arrived in America with my family in 1996 at the age of four. I remember my difficult time with English...

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