Sudan is a divided country, separated primarily by the Arab Muslims of the North and the black Christian/Animists (those who practice tribal traditions) of the South. Following its independence in 1956, the Northerners gained control of the country seeking to form a united Islamic Sudan. This created considerable conflict with the Southerners who chose to worship God in their own way. As a result, the North declared a holy jihad against the South, beginning a civil war that would last over two decades.
The Northerners frequently raided and destroyed villages located in the South, killing the men, women, and children at random. Many of the surviving women and children were captured and taken as slaves in the North. Over two million people have died in this genocide, while millions of others have become displaced with no place to call home and no means of survival.
The Lost Boys of Sudan, so named by aid workers after the fictional characters in Peter Pan, became separated from their families at early ages following attacks on their villages. They walked in large groups for approximately three months before reaching the safety of Ethiopia, with many dying along the way due to starvation and disease or attacks by wild animals. After residing in Ethiopia for approximately four years, civil war broke out in that country as well, causing them to flee once again to their war-torn country of Sudan.
Many died on that journey as well when crossing the deadly Gilo River. Those unable to swim were swept away in the turbulent currents. Others were eaten by crocodiles, attacked by hippos, or killed by enemy gunfire. The survivors remained in the bush of Sudan, hiding for approximately one-and-a-half years before making their way to the safety of the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya. In all, these young men had walked some 1,000 miles by foot before reaching their destination.
In 2001, the United States government awarded refugee status to approximately 3,800 Lost Boys, of which approximately 135 have resettled in the Jacksonville, Florida area.
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