“Right before we were to leave our village forever, my half-sister Mulu came from another region of Sudan, surprising us… my father and mother refused to leave without her… “Look,” they told us, “world relief agreed to work with a family of five, not a family of six. They agreed to bring you now, not later, and it’s impossible for her to come with you. She has no paperwork” (Asgedom…
A wide array of interactions among plants, animals, and microorganisms occurs in nature. Some of these relationships are characterized by a close physical association among species that continues for a large period of the life cycle. In 1879 German botanist Heinrich Anton de Bary coined the term "symbiosis" to describe these relationships, meaning the living together of different species of organisms. Many people associate symbiosis with mutualism, interactions that are beneficial to the growth, survival, and/or reproduction of both interacting species. But symbiotic interactions also include commensalism (one species receives benefit from the association and the other is unaffected), amensalism (one species is harmed, with no effect on the other), and parasitism. An example of commensalism is found in the anemone fish, which gains protection from living among the poisonous tentacles of the sea anemone, but offers no known benefit to its host.…
It is by giving back to the community that raised us that we truly understand that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. I loved the Ethiopian community I lived in and I was always the first to give back to the community, given the chance. But the community I grew up in wasn’t the best in the slightest. It was filled with sick, homeless people on the streets waiting for death to do them apart. It was a havoc of garbage that resulted from accumulated littering; it is to be said that the people in the community didn’t care at all about the environment they were living in.…
Taking into consideration my Libyan heritage, one might say I was able to experience the best of both worlds as a first generation Libyan-American. They wouldn’t be wrong, growing up, I was influenced by the cultural aspect of a Libyan as an American citizen. I partook in many common Libyan traditions, for instance, I would eat couscous most nights for dinner and learned how to play the darbuka, a Libyan drum held sideways and played with the fingers. I was convinced that everyone lived this way, and I knew nothing outside of my bubble of comfort. It wasn't until my first trip to Libya, during the reign of Dictator Mummar Gadafi, that I realized not everything in the world was perfect and that my childhood was more Americanized…
“Wow! I did not know there were black Americans”. During the month I was in China, I heard this or a variant of it jokily said to me numerous times. I never took offense to it since I understood most of the media from America that came to China featured individuals who did not look like me. Furthermore, for those Americans who had come to China, they were mostly white and had come for business. While in China, I was able to share my experience as an African-American; I always found enjoyment sharing my experiences and it seemed to me those around me found enjoyment learning about a different side of America. With me sharing my experiences, they were being able to understand the diverse nature of the United States.…
“After decades of brutal civil war that left two and a half million dead, the devastated and vastly underdeveloped southern part of Sudan secured independence in 2011” (“South Sudan: The World’s Newest Country”). The United States was one of the key factors in Sudan gaining independence. The encouragement of the U.S. helped push South Sudan to be more independent. At that time, South Sudan was no longer with North Sudan, the conflict still continued and the civil war went…
I am proud to say, "I am a perfect blend of sweet and salty." My ethnic background consists of two; My dad being Salvadorian and my mom is Mexican, making me and my siblings quite the concoction of Hispanic blood. You would think because we are all in the Hispanic category our lives wouldn't be difficult since we speak Spanish, have the same characteristics, and usually, family traditions are or should be quite similar. Not completely, in this case, I recently found out that it isn't common for Salvadorians and Mexicans to get along because they both are just as proud and tough. In specifics, my mom always has given me the warm side of caring for others, being family oriented is important and giving is always better than receiving. My dad, on the other hand, was very dry in emotion he…
Personal background starts off small, it changes and grows over time into something big, it grows into an identity. Walking down the hallway at school, seeing someone standing alone, my first instinct is to make conversation, compliment, or even just smile at him or her. This instinct came from someone once telling me an act so small could turn a person's entire life around. As a kid, reading encyclopedias about random topics, consumed my time. Many days were spent coming home to find an injured wild animal in my dad's arms waiting to be saved. My dad would sit outside and draw animals, trees, and anything else he saw. Nothing excited me more than trying to draw whatever my dad drew, and as good as he did. Any assignment that was handed to…
According to a recent article, “The on-going conflict in Darfur, Sudan” (Darfur Genocide), there have been many trials to help out Darfur many of them have not worked. The Sudanese government has denied any help and has kicked out most of the help aids sent in by the UN (Connolly). There have been many lasting effects of this genocide. According to a recent document about the genocide in Darfur, “350,000 people in this part of Chad are refugees, internally displaced, or badly affected by the extending conflict” (Reeves). As the fighting increases more Darfurians are being displaced and are running for their lives. Most Darfurians relocate to Chad a neighboring country to Sudan. More than three hundred thousand civilians have relocated to eastern Chad in fear that their lives will be taken away by the Janjaweed (Reeves). In closing, the war in Darfur sees no end without help, but when it does end the after effects will be…
The United Nations Organization (UN) has described Sudan's western Darfur region as one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.[1] The conflict started in 2003 when rebels in Darfur took up arms, accusing the government of neglecting the region. Since then, Darfur civilians have come under attack from government troops, nomadic militia and rebel groups. The UN says that as many as 300,000 people may have died in the conflict.[2] The Government of Sudan denies accusations that it has used Arab militias, known as Janjaweed, to crush the revolt.[3]…
As a young child, I never really understood the concept of having a healthy racial identity. Racial identity was not a topic of conversation in school; however school and other factors have had major effects on my racial identity. I was not even familiar with what it meant to be a Black individual. When I was younger, I did not focus on being black or white, I solely focused on playing with other children. However, it was not until racist events began to occur did I begin to question my identity. Anyone would think that a child whom was raised in a family where racial pride is prominent would evidently grow into an adult that also projects this racial pride. However, distinct racist events, micro-aggressions, and other events have a major impact on how children and adults contract their racial identity.…
Although endowed with rich natural resources, Sudan remains underdeveloped as the results of wars and poor management. The economy has showed very limited growth throughout the years. Sudan is one of the many countries in Africa, with many struggles and gains for what is it now. It has a vast and interesting history of battling for its independence and others. Sudan is one of the oil producing countries, with increase in their economy. Some of the most liked products come from Sudan, like bananas, sesame seeds, sweet potatoes, cotton and livestock. There are many different aspects that shapes this country to what is it now and what is was back then. It’s still a developing country that needs improvement and help through others, just like the rest of Africa. In earlier ages, the Arabs had named Sudan “land of the black people”. Most of northern Sudan is Arab Muslims; however the south has more black Africans not Muslims. Both cultures have different…
The complex situations are the most unfair, and for me, my complex situation is my identity as a young mixed race woman. It is the “not white enough to be white and not enough black to be black” aphorism that has shadowed my life and has caused inner conflict and unrest within myself. The only people I have been able to share the conflict with were my own sisters who were engaged in similar battles of their own with race. We never spoke about race. We didn’t bring it up at family engagements or talk about with our mother. The issue was an elephant in the room that weighed heavily on my chest. I went to school with white kids, and I attended the family gatherings with white adults. My father was gone, taking away any chance of African culture I might obtain. I was left with my…
Eritrea, a country in the Horn of Africa covers 45,000 square miles with a population of 6.4 million, suffers attacks on human rights every day. Eritrea’s 30-year struggle for independence ended in 1991, with Eritrean rebels defeating government forces. According to the World Fact Book, “ISAIAS Afworki has been Eritrea 's only president since independence; his…
What is culture identity? Do you really know? Can you see you’re culture identity? You can’t see it most of the time because you are standing in the middle of it. When people see me, they probably see a girl with glasses and pretty big dimple. I believe I am more than that. When I look in the mirror. I see a strong girl that fights for what she wants. Who also, sometimes wants to just quit but knows that there will be success at the end of the road waiting for her. The outside can blind people; you can’t really see what’s in the inside. I have to dig to find my culture identity. My main segments of my cultural identity are language, family and my education. My identity reflects of a young African American female, who has grew up in Decatur,…