Kids Meet A Refugee | Kids Meet | HiHo Kids

- What was the most
shocking thing in America?

What was different?

- Schools are different.

Here, you guys don't get beaten.

Back in country, you do
something, you get whooped.

- Wait, really?

(short jingle)

- Hi, I'm Jessie.
- Hi.

- Hi, I'm Amina.

- I'm Nire, nice to meet you.

- I'm Jules.

- Hello, Ian.

- Oh my god, you look taller than me.

(laughter)

- You're taller yourself.

- Do you guys have any question about me?

- Where do you come from?

- I come from DRC.

- Democratic Republic of the Congo?

- Oh wow, how do you know that?

- That's in Africa, right?

- Yeah it's in Africa.

- Are you a refugee?

- Yes, I'm a refugee.

- Okay and what is that?

- It's a person who was forced to leave

their country because of war.

- Ah, that's, that's not cool.

- Yeah, it's not cool.

Yeah.

- I can't relate to that but...

Wow that's really hard.

- So why was there a war in the DRC?

- There's a war because
one of the cultures trying

to take over the whole
country for themselves.

- Oh.

- It wasn't like a
military war or something?

- No it's not a military war.

It's a war between people that
speak different languages.

- What was it like, how old were you?

- I was 11 years old.

- What were some of the
things that you saw in Congo

during the war?

- Houses that were burned.

- It's a loud noise.

Heat.

Fire.

A lot of people getting killed.

- Wow, that must have been really scary.

- Was it hard to leave Congo?

- It was hard for me 'cause
I was there by myself.

My mom left me with my dad, she ran away

with my other two young siblings.

When there's a war, you know,
your parents go their own way

and you go your own way.

They're just running for their safety.

I didn't know where she
was, I didn't know anything

about where she was going
so me and my dad stayed

in Congo trying to figure out where to go,

where it's safe.

So when my dad got
killed, when he got shot,

I had to figure out where to go by myself.

- Oh.
- Yeah.

- Eesh.

I don't have a dad either.

He had cancer right here.

He died before they could
do the transplant so...

- How long ago?

- It was like when I
was about 16 months old,

I think so.

- So you didn't get to see him?

- No, not really.

- How did you leave the country?

Did you go to a different country or like?

- I had to walk, I didn't
know where I was going,

I just went straight.

- Did you ask people for directions?

- There were nobody to ask for directions.

If I would see somebody,
I would go to hide

'cause I think they're
the bad people, you know.

- How long did it take you to walk?

- At least three months.

- Wow.

- In the middle of
night, I would just sleep

in a dead bodies and
then if I heard any bomb,

I would just lay down in the dead bodies.

- And where'd you get food and water from?

- There was no food
and there was no water.

If you wanted water, you just had to go

to the river or the lake.

- You have to...

- Yes.

You drink dirty water, yes.

- Ooh.

That seems kind of like disgusting.

- You get used to it and it tasted great.

(laughing)
But now, I don't think

I would drink the water.

(laughter)

- Were you alone the whole time?

- Yes I was alone by myself.

- And so you did all this when
you were no older than me?

- By the time when I
get to Uganda, I was 13.

- So not much older than me.

I can't imagine having to go through that.

- What'd you do once you were in Uganda?

- So when I got there,
I didn't know anybody,

I was kind of lost.

I was taken to the police station

and the police station
asked people to come see

if I was their child.

Then my mom showed up.

When I saw her, I was just overwhelmed.

I didn't think she was in Uganda.

I didn't even know she was there.

- That's so sad.

Just looking at you, I would never think

that you would walk days...

That's crazy, that really is.

And that's an amazing story to tell.

- What's it like to be at a refugee camp?

- It's safer than my country.

But there's shootings
there, too, sometimes.

- How long were you there?

- I was there for two and a half years.

- Does everyone at the
refugee camp come to America?

- Some people don't get a chance.

Some people, you know, you go
through a lot of interviews

and if you mix something,
they decline your process,

yeah a lot of people didn't
get that chance to come here.

- Do you like it here?

- I mean, during summer, yes.

But during winter and fall,

I don't like it 'cause it's cold.

- Yeah, Australia's really warm too

so I see where you come from.

- What do you think of the food?

- Actually when we were in the airplanes,

they gave us orange juice
and it tasted horrible.

I didn't like it.

- Well just to tell you, I
also don't like orange juice.

(laughter)

- What was the most
shocking thing in America?

What was different?

- Schools are different.

Here, you guys don't get beaten.

Back in country, you do
something, you get whopped.

- Wait, really?

- Yes, you get, when
you're late to school,

you get whooped but here, it's different.

I love schools here.

It's a whole different world.

- What do you see in the
future, in your future here?

- Some of my dreams are
to become a businessperson

or an aide person or an actress.

- I want to be an actress too.

That'd be so fun.

- Do you ever wish that
you went back to Congo?

- I wouldn't go back there.

I don't have any family
that is lived there

so I don't miss it.

- Do you miss your dad?

- Oh yes, I miss my dad so much.

- If you could tell him something,

what would you say?

- I love you.

I love you.

He was a great dad.

- Thank you for telling your story to me.

- It was nice to meet you.

- It was nice to meet you too.

- This is so awkward.
- It's fine.

- [Female] All right, good job, guys.

- Bye.
- Yeah.- [Female] Great job.