https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj Sandra Uwiringiyimana en-us 2021-04-28 16:55:29 UTC 2021-06-12 22:08:38 UTC hello@padlet.com hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599180608 At the age of 10, Sandra and her family fled from a comfortable home in Uvira, a small town in Congo, to a refugee camp in Burundi.]]> 2021-06-10 17:20:59 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599180608 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599255649 Sandra’s entire tribe, the Baniamulenge, was besieged by Congolese soldiers. The army was determined to expel the traveling Rwandan tribe from the country. The citizens of Baniamulenge have been under attack since the 1880s, when Belgium colonized the area and they were often forced to move.

"People fled for a nearby farm. But before I could run, a man grabbed me by the shirt. He looked at me and I looked at him. ‘Mbabriria,’ I said. ‘Forgive me.’ I don’t know why I said it. I suppose at ten years old, I thought I must have done something terribly wrong to bring on such wrath. My parents had always taught me to be polite and to apologize when I did something wrong. The man pointed a gun to my head. I felt the metal barrel on my temple. I waited for the blast. In that moment, I thought it was all over." -13]]> 2021-06-10 17:50:57 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599255649 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599288457 Life in the refugee camp is often stressful because Sandra had to fight other refugees for water.]]> 2021-06-10 18:04:44 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599288457 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599615280 Sandra’s life changed forever after her beloved little sister, Deborah, was murdered during a raid of the camp. Sandra and Deborah’s mother, Rachel, was also shot during the attack, leading Sandra to think she was dead.

"Still, I carried tremendous anger about the massacre and about how Deborah had been taken from me." - 26]]> 2021-06-10 21:03:17 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599615280 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599618648 After finding her mother and other relatives, including her father, Prudence, and older brothers, Alex and Heritage, the family left the camp and found some degree of safety in nearby countries. For Sandra, these environments were not always safe. While staying with one friend of the family, she was nearly raped.

"It was part of an unfortunate culture...in which young men would kidnap a girl, rape her, and then marry her. The rape is committed so that the girl is too ashamed to go back home, or so that her family won’t ask for her back." -34]]> 2021-06-10 21:05:50 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1599618648 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600062849 Things changed again after Prudence heard about a United Nations relocation program for refugees. After overcoming Rachel’s initial skepticism, the entire family submitted to a series of interviews as part of the application process. Officials accepted their request and soon relocated them to Rochester, New York.

“Anyone who thinks it’s easy to get to the States as a refugee has no idea.” -39]]> 2021-06-11 01:56:45 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600062849 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600069003 Moving to a new country with a national language that Sandra’s family did not speak, as well as a climate that was snowy and freezing when they arrived, was shocking.

"My mom was the original feminist. Selling cows and running businesses were considered jobs for men, but she did her own thing. She was a true trailblazer." -43]]> 2021-06-11 01:59:41 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600069003 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600071902 Sandra struggled to adjust to her new schools, where the kids made fun of her hair and questioned her racial identity. She enjoyed some relief when she won a scholarship to Our Lady of Mercy, a private Catholic high school in a Rochester suburb. Despite the class differences between her and the other students, as well as being thrust in a predominantly white environment, Sandra thrived.

“My parents deeply valued education. They had big dreams for their kids, and they knew it all started with school.” -70]]> 2021-06-11 02:01:12 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600071902 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600084439 Meanwhile, her family joined a new church where Prudence started a choir comprised of refugees. The choir traveled throughout the Northeast, singing and telling the story of the Banyamulenge.]]> 2021-06-11 02:07:42 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600084439 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600085832 Sandra’s elder sister, Princesse, who normally introduced the choir, fell ill, Sandra gave the speech. This led to the beginning of her public speaking career and her commitment to sharing what happened to her people in the Congo.]]> 2021-06-11 02:08:26 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600085832 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600555514  Sandra's efforts led to her being invited to the Women in the World Summit and other notable events, where she came in contact with Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama, Angelina Jolie, and other celebrities devoted to activism.

“I do not want to be a part of this culture of silence.”
- 183]]> 2021-06-11 07:16:00 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600555514 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600557493 Despite the ostensible glamour of Sandra’s new life, she still struggled to fit in at school; now, both her race and her new fame set her apart.]]> 2021-06-11 07:17:32 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600557493 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600558780 She also struggled with matters at home, such as being responsible for helping her non-English-speaking parents decipher bills; watching her mother labor at hard, menial jobs; and observing her father’s recovery from an accident that nearly killed him.]]> 2021-06-11 07:18:33 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600558780 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600560994 By the time Sandra reached college, where she encountered more racism and was unable to resolve her feelings of alienation, the pressure became too much.]]> 2021-06-11 07:20:29 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600560994 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600566566 She left school and went to New York City to find out who she was and what she wanted out of life. The journey led her to her first love, more work in activism, and a decision to start a new life in New York, where she transferred to Mercy College and arranged to major in International Relations.]]> 2021-06-11 07:24:01 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1600566566 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602827739 Sandra's father was still recovering and her mother took a second job, cleaning a theater. Sandra helped on the weekends. The job often took them all night and Rachel worked both jobs without complaint.]]> 2021-06-12 21:38:59 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602827739 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602828676 Sandra was invited to the White House. She was allowed to borrow a dress from a Manhattan boutique for the evening. Adele accompanied her to the fitting, having gotten past their previous tensions. At the White House, bloggers asked about her dress. She used that as an opening to talk about Refuge Point, the group that invited her to the event.]]> 2021-06-12 21:40:57 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602828676 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602829120 She had a moment to meet the Obamas, and thanked the First Lady for “standing up for women” and “being a champion for girls' education” (261). Sandra and Michelle Obama talked for several minutes longer than they were supposed to, and the President waved away a photographer anxious to move the process along. She talked to Bradley Cooper about Refuge Point and he expressed interest.

"I got invited to the White House Correspondents' Dinner. There was a chance I would for to meet President Obama and the First Lady. In person. Face to face." -258]]> 2021-06-12 21:41:57 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602829120 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602829804 At the end of the book Sandra was able to meet up with her parents because one of her sisters was getting married. She used this opportunity to  grow closer with her mom and it worked well. She then talked about the things she had done while she left her home.

"In late May, my parents, Siblings, and I all came together in Rwanda for Adele's wedding. It was the first time I had seen my father since I left for college...He looked happy to see me." -265]]> 2021-06-12 21:43:21 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602829804 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602833764 2021-06-12 21:52:27 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602833764 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602834548 2021-06-12 21:54:15 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602834548 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602834995 2021-06-12 21:55:20 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602834995 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602836086 2021-06-12 21:57:44 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602836086 hoveykyl000_1_1 https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602836783 2021-06-12 21:59:10 UTC https://padlet.com/hoveykyl000_1_1/u071izl0isj0rtjj/wish/1602836783