In 2001 before the attacks of 9/11, approximately 4,000 Sudanese Lost Boy and Girl refugees arrived in the United States. As victims of genocidal (un)civil war which has raged in Southern Sudan for over twenty years, they have spent the majority of their lives in refugee camps of Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda. Since the ages of 3 to 7, the tides of war have forced them to flee as groups of children through the deserts on thousand mile treks. Most have lost their parents and siblings, having seen them perish or killed before their eyes. They have survived war, thirst, starvation, and personal loss that has scarred their souls but never beat them. Now in their early twenties, the Lost Boys and Girls living in the United States embody the hope for their country’s future. Most are attending college while working several jobs to support their family members left in the camps. It is their hope that through their education, they will gain the knowledge and means to rebuild their country and save the lives of their loved ones left behind.
