Working to End Hunger in East Africa:
An Interview with Yousef Abraham
@State speaks with Yousef Abraham to learn about how he, and fellow student Mohamed Ahmed, are working to make a difference.
@State: Describe your early life.
Yousef Abraham: Because of the 30-year war between Eritrea and Ethiopia, my parents fled with my young sisters to come to America. They went from Eritrea, in East Africa, to Sudan and then directly to San Diego. I was born here, with my 2 other sisters. My parents didn’t have much — they began working right away. As a kid, I went to 3 different elementary schools — my family was always moving around. Our family lived on Market Street for a while, and then we moved to Emerald Hills. I attended Steele Canyon High School — then I came to SDSU.
@State: What’s it like for you, being a first-generation college student?
Yousef Abraham: I’m a first-generation college student and a first-generation American. My oldest sister graduated from SDSU and is now a captain in the army, so I knew I wanted to come here as soon as I got accepted. I didn’t even tour the campus! Plus, I wanted to stay close to home to be here for my mom. It’s hard as a first-generation American. I help my mom out a lot, translate, help her with paperwork. I also work in the library doing stack maintenance, putting books back. I’m a 4th year senior majoring in criminal justice with a minor in sociology. After I graduate, I’m planning on going to law school or maybe going to graduate school here at SDSU in homeland security.
@State: How did you get involved in Greek life?
Yousef Abraham: I had no clue about Greek life when I first came here. One of my friends, now a fraternity brother, was interested in an organization, and he told me to check it out, so I went to a community service event. I figured this is the kind of people I want to be around — people who help the community and hold each other true to their values. They treated me as a brother before I actually was one. They told me to check out other fraternities and see what’s the best for me, and I chose Phi Beta Sigma because it was the best fit for me, and they really “walk the walk.” It’s built me into the person I am today, built my character and my leadership. I’ve been in now for 3 years, since spring 2009.
@State: What is “Communities United for Reviving East Africa”?
Yousef Abraham: I co-founded Communities United for Reviving East Africa, or C.U.R.E. Africa, with Mohamed Ahmed. He was born in Somalia, and now he’s a 4th year ISCOR major at SDSU. He’s the one who brought the idea to me. He told me about a famine in East Africa, where his family’s from. How 30 thousand children under the age of five died within 90 days. For me not to know this was shocking. He learned about the famine on BBC news — it just wasn’t being covered in American news. We realized that lots of people didn’t know, and we knew we needed to do something. So we started offering awareness programs, with all kinds of students getting involved. We got so much support from everyone, and we formed a student organization and we expanded. Then we were contacted by CSU Long Beach and CSU Fresno. “Will you come give a presentation?” I was out of town, so Mohamed went and presented. From that day on, CSU Long Beach formed its own C.U.R.E. Africa group. Two months later, the campus held a Somali culture night, which Mohamed and I both attended.
@State: What is the purpose of C.U.R.E. Africa?
Yousef Abraham: We established C.U.R.E. Africa to strengthen the educational and political enhancement of East African communities and African descendants in America. We seek to bring awareness and educate the American population about the conditions that plague East Africa while facilitating discussions to develop sustainable solutions.
@State: How have you raised money for C.U.R.E. Africa?
Yousef Abraham: Every spring, during Greek Week, fraternities and sororities hold events and fundraisers to raise money. And every year, they select a beneficiary to give the money to. People in the Greek system invited us to present our cause to the Greek Life Activities Board. So we gave a presentation, and they selected C.U.R.E. Africa to sponsor. Greek Week had events such as a barbecue and "change wars," where they collected change and raised $2 thousand in under 4 hours. We also sent out sponsorship letters to local companies and parents and family members of Greek members. From the Greek Week activities, we raised roughly $20 thousand. We’ll be awarded with a check at the Greek Awards ceremony on May 1. Greek Awards recognize groups that have exemplified academic achievement, philanthropy and community service.
@State: How will you spend the funds you’ve raised?
Yousef Abraham: We want to build sustainable solutions to help in East Africa. We don’t want to give just short-term help. We hope to build a school in Somalia, to help people pursue education and give them self-empowerment. We plan to travel there before we build the school to assess the facilities. The schools they have are mainly for the rich, so we’re going to talk to officials there and see what they need and how we can help. We also want to build wells to provide clean water and bring in better agricultural practices. We’re looking at going there in the fall and our advisor, Dr. Tanis Stark, may also go.
@State: Do you have future plans for C.U.R.E. Africa?
Yousef Abraham: Yes, we do plan to continue our work after graduation. Right now, it’s a student organization, but we are currently working on making it a registered nonprofit organization. We’re going to take it beyond graduation.
Follow these links to learn more:
Greek Life Comes Together for Good Cause