Tales of a ‘Lost Boy’

A Brief History

In 1983, a second Sudanese Civil War began that would endure more than 20 years. Nearly 2 million men, women and children were killed, and more than 4 million were forced into homelessness. Today, war continues to plague the largest country in Africa, Sudan, and the country’s western region of Darfur.

An estimated 20,000 boys, some as young as five years old, were able to escape an immediate death and/or enslavement by fleeing from their raided villages. Leaving their family, home and all they knew of a childhood behind, they began walking.

Barefoot and nearly naked, they crossed over a thousand miles of desert, jungle and insect-infested terrain, under a blazing African sun that produced 120-degree temperatures. They suffered from starvation, dehydration and disease.

They fought off lions, crocodiles, hyenas and other wild animals. They hid from rebel soldiers looking to enslave and train child-soldiers. Most walked in groups, but at times they walked alone. During the day they hid, and at night they continued to walk by the light of only the moon.

Less than half of the children survived the journey. They are the Lost Boys of Sudan.

In His Own Words

“They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky: The true story of three Lost Boys from Sudan,” is based on the lives of Benson Deng; his brother, Alephonsion Deng; and their cousin, Benjamin Ajak. With the help of their friend and International Rescue Committee volunteer, Judy A. Bernstein, they are able to openly share their tragic and heroic personal journey with readers.

Last month two of the book’s authors, Benson Athiin Deng and Judy A. Bernstein, spoke to a standing-room only audience in Hardy Tower’s lecture room about the missing global agenda in Sudan and Darfur as part of SDSU’s semester-long lecture series, ‘Understanding Globalization.’

Benson is one of nearly 4,000 Lost Boys of Sudan who are now residing in the United States thanks to the help of the International Rescue Committee (IRC).

“ ‘Lost boys’ is the name given to us, but I don’t call myself a lost boy. In Sudan if you say ‘lost,’ it is a sad term. I don’t call myself that,” said Benson.

Benson arrived in San Diego in August of 2001. He said he knew of California, but had never heard of San Diego.

Bernstein explained that once the Lost Boys arrive in the United States, they receive three months of paid rent, and then they are on their own. “They must also reimburse the U.S. government for the $850 airline ticket to the U.S.,” said Bernstein.

Assimilating to the American culture, finding a job and a way to support themselves is a daunting task for these young men. Electricity, running water, flushing toilets and telephones are just a few everyday amenities that Benson and the other Lost Boys had never seen before arriving in the United States.

During the lecture, Benson told of his life before the war in “peaceful Dinkaland” with his Dinka tribe and family in Sudan, how he taught himself English at a refugee camp, and even about his first visit to Burger King when he arrived in San Diego, marveling at the restaurant’s automatic soda dispenser.

Above all, Benson shared with the audience a dream that he stumbled upon in the Kenyan refugee camp so many years ago – to be educated. He is taking classes at a local community college and hopes to earn his G.E.D. this year.

“(In Kenya) We went to U.N. and said ‘Can you help us? We need some education. We lost our homes, our families. We cannot run like refugees forever. We need education. If there’s a school maybe we could land something … we could come out of this. Education is going to be our father and our mother.’ ”

Gazing out into the audience, he added, “We (Lost Boys) like to be people like the rest of you around the world. If I had that chance – an alternative – I may be a lot different.”

More of Benson’s story as well as that of his brother and cousin, can be found in their book, “They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky: The true story of three Lost Boys from Sudan.” The book has received numerous awards, honors, and is a true testament to the human spirit.

How You Can Make a Difference

If you’d like to learn more about becoming involved in San Diego’s International Rescue Committee (IRC) program and to learn about other local Lost Boys like Benson, contact the book’s co-author, Judy A. Bernstein at judyabernstein@aol.com, or Sharon Darrough with the San Diego IRC at Sharon.Darrough@theirc.org.