The Lost Boys of Sudan
The Lost Boys of Sudan refers to a group of young male refugees who became orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War, beginning in 1983. During the conflict, northern forces attacked southern villages, leading to the deaths and abductions of many people, while the boys, who were tending cattle, managed to escape. Approximately 26,000 boys embarked on a perilous 1,000-mile journey to safety in Ethiopia, facing extreme hardships, including starvation and the threat of predators. Only about half of them survived this treacherous trek. After some time in Ethiopian refugee camps, the boys were forced to flee again due to a change in government, leading many to endure a long journey back through Sudan to Kenya, where they spent years living in overcrowded conditions. In 2001, around 4,000 boys were resettled in the United States, where they sought education and a better life. The experiences of the Lost Boys have been documented in various forms, including books and films, highlighting their resilience and the struggle to reconnect with their cultural roots while adapting to a new environment.
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The Lost Boys of Sudan
The Lost Boys of Sudan are young refugees who became orphaned during a civil war in Sudan. When northern Arab soldiers attacked southern villages, those within the villages were either murdered or forced into slavery—except for the young boys who were tending cattle day and night in nearby fields. These boys hid in the bush to escape persecution. When discovered by their own military, the boys were told to travel east to safety in Ethiopia. About twenty-six thousand boys embarked on the journey, not realizing they had to travel 1,000 miles (1,609 kilometers) through perilous terrain. Only about half of them survived and made it to Ethiopia, where they lived in peace for a while before having to flee again. After living for many years in intolerable conditions in Kenyan refugee camps, about four thousand of the boys were relocated to the United States. The media dubbed them "the Lost Boys" after the orphans in Peter Pan, who managed to survive similar dangers.
Background
Most of the Lost Boys are members of a group of tribes known as the Dinka. The Dinka have lived in South Sudan since 3000 BCE and are the area's largest ethnic group. They are dark-skinned African people who are known for their tall stature.
The Dinka have mostly maintained their traditional lifestyle over the years. They do not have a central government and live in related clans. Some clans have chiefs known as "masters of the fishing spear."
Cattle are an essential part of the Dinka's way of life. While they do not kill cattle for meat, they drink their milk and use it to make butter and other foods. They use cattle hides to make drums and clothing. The Dinka measure a family's wealth by the number of cattle it possesses. Dowries are often paid in cattle. For this reason, daughters are considered a blessing to a family.
When a boy reaches puberty, V-shaped scars are carved into his head, indicating his native region. These scars may be carved deeply enough to reach the boy's skull. Once a boy receives his scars, he is ready to marry.
Overview
In 1987, during a civil war, government forces from northern Sudan attacked civilian villages in southern Sudan. The civil war was being fought mainly over ethnicity, religion, and resources. The Arabs in the north attacked those living in the south, some of whom were Christians. The north also wanted to control Sudan's underdeveloped resources, mainly oil fields and fertile soil.
The war claimed more than five hundred thousand and displaced thousands, among them about twenty-six thousand children, nearly all boys ranging in age from four to twelve. The villagers did not foresee the attacks. When the northern forces arrived, most boys were herding cattle in nearby fields, where they heard gunshots and saw smoke. Some climbed trees and witnessed their families being murdered and their villages being burned to the ground. Some attacks took place at night while the boys slept in the fields close to the cattle. To escape execution, the boys fled in the bush and hid.
Most of those who were in the villages at the time of the attacks did not survive. Most young girls were in their homes helping their mothers with chores. They, along with their mothers, older sisters, and grandmothers, were either murdered or kidnapped and forced into slavery. The majority of the men in the villages were killed to prevent them from rebelling against the northern forces to protect their families.
The Lost Boys, as they came to be called, survived the attacks but were left on their own. Most hid in the bush for several days until they were discovered by soldiers of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), the military of southern Sudan. Many of the older boys were forced to join the SPLA, and the younger ones were told to head east to safety in Ethiopia. As more and more young boys were instructed to travel east, the group's numbers swelled into the tens of thousands. However, the boys were not aware of the length of the trip.
The young orphans traveled the six- to ten-week journey together, sometimes holding hands, to various refugee camps in Ethiopia. Only about half of them survived the 1,000-mile (1,609-kilometer) trek, however. Many Lost Boys died from starvation, dehydration, and exhaustion. Those who lagged behind became prey for lions.
The boys who survived to settle in Ethiopian refugee camps continued to struggle, however. They had only limited shelter and an inadequate supply of food. Medical care was usually nonexistent, as was adult supervision. Older boys supervised and cared for younger boys. They often had to travel from camp to camp in search of food.
In 1991, Communists overthrew the Ethiopian government and armed soldiers, some in tanks, forced the Lost Boys to leave the camps. The boys tried to cross the River Gilo, where thousands drowned or were eaten by crocodiles.
Those who were able to cross the river walked for more than a year back through Sudan and into Kenya, where they stayed for many years. They subsisted on mashed corn and lentils provided to them by the United Nations. Milk and meat were not part of their diet. Because of overcrowding, only a lucky few were able to obtain a slot in high school. Those who were not in school spent their days playing board games and worrying about the future. Because they had lived away from their tribal villages for so long, the boys had lost touch with their traditional culture. Stuck between two worlds, they also worried that upholding traditions such as tribal markings would make them outcasts in mainstream society.
In 2001, about four thousand Lost Boys were relocated to the United States, where they could become educated and enjoy a better quality of life. Some were on flights to America on September 11, 2001, the day terrorists attacked the United States; many of the Lost Boys worried they had brought the fighting with them. By 2018, many of them remained in the United States after having earned college degrees and attained US citizenship. Some hoped to return to Sudan one day to determine the fate of their family and friends.
The stories of the Lost Boys of Sudan have been captured in a number of films, documentaries, books, and memoirs. Among these is the children's book Brothers in Hope (2005), written by Mary Luana Williams, which was named a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Honor book and an America Library Association Notable Children's Book, as well as the 2003 documentary film Lost Boys of Sudan; the 2005 nonfiction book They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky: The True Story of Three Lost Boys of Sudan, by Benson Deng, Alephonsion Deng, Benjamin Ajak, and Judy A. Bernstien; and the 2018 memoir Days of Refugee: One of the World's Known Lost Boys of Sudan, by Nathaniel Nyok.
Bibliography
Ajak, Benjamin, and Benson Deng. They Poured Fire on Us from the Sky: The True Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan. Public Affairs, 2015.
Beah, Ishmael. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Solider. Sarah Crichton Books, 2008.
Bixler, Mark. The Lost Boys of Sudan. U of Georgia P, 2006.
Corbett, Sara. "The Lost Boys of Sudan; the Long, Long, Long Road to Fargo." New York Times, 1 Apr. 2001, www.nytimes.com/2001/04/01/magazine/the-lost-boys-of-sudan-the-long-long-long-road-to-fargo.html. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.
"Dinka." Countries and Their Cultures, www.everyculture.com/wc/Rwanda-to-Syria/Dinka.html. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.
"The Lost Boys of Sudan." International Rescue Committee, 3 Oct. 2014, www.rescue.org/article/lost-boys-sudan. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.
"The Lost Boys of the Sudan." UNICEF, www.unicef.org/sowc96/closboys.htm. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.
Simmons, Ann M. "Lost Boys of Sudan Look West." Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 1999, www.latimes.com/la-fg-lost-boys-of-sudan-look-west-20160112-story.html. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.
Simon, Bob. "The Lost Boys of Sudan: 12 Years Later." CBS News, 2 Apr. 2003, www.cbsnews.com/news/the-lost-boys-of-sudan-12-years-later-02-04-2013/. Accessed 31 Jan. 2018.