WEBVTT

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 had the South African consulate to get my study using? OK Johnsburg. Uh

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August 2011 Fly out of Cairo heading
to july spent about three weeks. I've

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got my study absolute Johannesburg.
Was that also through the U. N.

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Program? No no this was a private
institution. Okay that was helping

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refugees. How did you come to
recruiting based across the continent? So

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the academy is called African Issues.
Okay. Open some stores. She hasn't

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the mission and vision of academies to
develop the next generation.

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Yourself. Okay. Okay. Okay. Well
that's fascinating. So then you made it,

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did you make it to your health? Okay
you guys. and 11 was there? It's a

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two year program. So I went there was
just that. Yeah African studies. I

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was also studying for Cambridge
international examinations which is an

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equivalent high school certification.
Those of us who wanted to apply to

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universities that uh so from traveling
11 shots in 13 grand

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had already applied to Arizona State
University

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sponsored by the Mastercard Foundation
scholarship. Okay. She was

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responsible subset of students. Okay.
Come and attend 40 years to study

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what it was up to. The. Okay but where
did you decide to stay? I did

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economics and business. The
concentration of public policy, public service.

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So have you completed your degree? I
did. So that's 2000 13. That's when

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I started and then I right away at
this man. Yeah.

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Thunderbird School this one. Oh do my
masters in. Oh that's good very good

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school. So what is your immigration
status right now I'm an international

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student international story. Mr. Okay
And so I alluded to this earlier.

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But now someone with your status um
with with your life experience um what

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is your sort of sense of how things
are now here in the United States? Are

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are you concerned at all do you like?
But I've heard recently attorneys

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giving refugees the advice that if you
don't have to leave the country,

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don't leave the country because we
don't know what trump will do tomorrow.

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So are those things going through your
mind and they are it's a scary

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time

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at the same time. I feel bad for
refugees who aren't able to come to the

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US or those who are already here but
they're afraid of their status

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changing at any moment given what the
administration is doing.

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But you're an international students,
international students but you don't

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have a permanent residents, don't have
a permanent residents. So

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I feel like I'm I'm saved a little bit
compared to those seeking asylum.

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Permanent residents have an effort.
I'm an international student.

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I have the advantage of

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of the fact that at least the US
benefits for my being here as an

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international student. And it's not
it's not free. Somebody's paying for

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me to come here and it goes into the
U. S.

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U. S. Budget or economy. But when does
your visa expire?

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But these are is only for entrance and
exit. So it has nothing with me

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saying for me to stay here. I have to
full time steve Mhm have to maintain

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My F one status okay or 20 for me to
stay here for the visas for when I

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leave me too, so when you complete
your degree well you have to make a

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decision about returning returning
here actually not make a decision but I

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will have to return you have to read
because there was nothing that would

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let me stay here. You couldn't, you
couldn't because I'm an international

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student so

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I decided to apply for status. Uh huh
and get Mhm As if I'd done then yep

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but I've seem to recall I know there's
been a lot of variations on the

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various bands travel bans but it seems
like Saddam is on that list right,

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no Sudan was but it's been lifted.

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Oh right and but where would you go?
Have you thought that far? Because it

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sounds like you're from a lot of
places but family is still in any other

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dual citizenship, so that's your
citizenship, you still have family there

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and are they safe now they are
relatively safe with waste. Mhm. He's got

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to know where it goes to correct,
could you imagine yourself returning

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there if you were to complete your
degree tomorrow to return to South

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Sudan now in the midst of what's going
on there, I could you know I could

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if that's the only option

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if I had to return it

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seek work opportunities

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because one thing I've realized here
in the US is we have a significant

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number of South Sudanese who are now
becoming citizens of the United

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States. And so this is literally their
second home, the first one

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I've been thinking, what does that for
South Sudan? And there's something

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we can do that now

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country that is safe, we have the
opportunity to go to school and work.

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You make a living. Is there something
we can do as a community right? You

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know, to be an example whether it be
community existence resources that we

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could directly take the South Sudan or
that South Sudanese there can look

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at us and say if our people manage to
live in harmony where wherever they

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are and be successful? Where to? Mhm.
So that's been my thinking whether I

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have to get involved here or not, you
know, sort of like the the bridge

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between the south and I asked for,

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it's one of the things that me lead to
my being here or at least seeing

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some permanent rescue, some type of
resident that would allow me to stay

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here and be able to travel back home
as well and just do some community

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organization work at this stage. You
you have probably another two years

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before you have to kind of make that
decision, right? We have to kind of

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cross that bridge. Um is are there are
there resources available either

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private or public or through some
refugee services in which you can start

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to address this question at this point
or is it something that you're just

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gonna have to do sort of on your own?
Unilaterally not that there are

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resources. I mean where we are at the
moment. This is it's a community

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church. Yeah. Where South and east
community trade. We have the Lost boys

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center. Uh huh. Have other subject
positions aware that I want to do about

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it helps the diaspora. Okay sort of
like find their place here social

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equality

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but my role would be mortified

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because my George is different. My
status is different. I'm not, I'm not a

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refugee and had a problem. You are
resettled here. Resettled here based on

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my academic qualifications

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expected to go back when I finished
And so I think I'm bringing a

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different perspective to the community
here in terms of life we're not

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just sending him but also looking back
to what from try to make a

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difference,

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possible anxiety think of myself as
just with the bridge, reaching the

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diaspora with South Sudan and uh huh
Have you ever thought specifically

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about a career?

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Uh huh What would you like to take
this Thunderbird degree and do what it

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be? So the degree I'm taking right
now. Global affairs and management is

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more based on the public sector. Lot
of us going to work nations, herbs

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where but n gos or work in the
government for me the government option is

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not Arabic South Sudan is a conflict.

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Only two options is the NGO with the
nonprofit world versus the private

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sector.

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I'm qualified to work with those given
my don't experience what the issue

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is.

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Where do I get to work with these
organizations? Because where determines

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what papers I need us here. My
employee will have to sponsor. Right? It's

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pitch B one Visa or something. Huh?
And then it's somewhere else. They'd

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say on the continent it's the same
story, needs some work authorization

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authorization. But look at my
nationality and see if they have my legs

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will. It's with sausages. So uh the
opportunities are there. I'm not

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limited. I've never been in terms of
residents

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and teaching. Mhm. You see employment
opportunities outside of South Sudan.

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 Right?

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Um Maybe it's my last question. I'm
gonna keep it too late. But

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you child childhood South Sudan
eventually make your way to cartoon. Get

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to Cairo, spent several years there
eventually get here.

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Yeah. Having been here now. Is the
United States anything like you

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imagined or is it nothing like you
imagined or you what between what you

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may have pictured in your mind when
you were getting on the plane and

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coming here and then now having spent
time here and now I need an adult.

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What's going back in your home
country. What what if anything has changed

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about your perspective about the
United States? In life in the United

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States. That's a great question. I
always struggle. Um Because the common

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question comes in terms of did I
experience any culture shocks coming into

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the U. S. I always struggled to answer
that. And I think as I reflect on

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that thing,

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my stay in Cairo pretty much preferred
me. You know, for life here in the

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US in Cairo in terms of development,
development levels on the african

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continent, it's pretty much country,

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the house I was staying in had
electricity, hot tap water. We have

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television. Eventually I was able to
get a desktop computer connected even

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to internet in the later years. Right
before and after Cairo and so I was

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watching how I was watching american
shows. I was on the internet, reading

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about America these facebook Youtube
always think

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not to say that representswhat