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In his own words: "A place of my own." Finally, to have a place of his own gave Mogama intense joy, and he recorded the day in his journal.
As a young man with his first teaching job about to begin and an apartment furnished, he had evidence of having moved out of poverty; the road had been the rare educational opportunities his poor parents sought for him and found, with the help of American missionaries.
Yet, so quickly that it could hardly be taken in by Mogama, he lost his job when the school closed, his safety when gunfire rang out near the capital city, and his life was threatened at the nose of a gun. He then lost his homeland, because attackers crossed borders under the leadership of a Liberian rebel who did not like Liberia's president.
As a young man with his first teaching job about to begin and an apartment furnished, he had evidence of having moved out of poverty; the road had been the rare educational opportunities his poor parents sought for him and found, with the help of American missionaries.
Yet, so quickly that it could hardly be taken in by Mogama, he lost his job when the school closed, his safety when gunfire rang out near the capital city, and his life was threatened at the nose of a gun. He then lost his homeland, because attackers crossed borders under the leadership of a Liberian rebel who did not like Liberia's president.
Danger, disruption, and disappointment are key parts of the too-frequent story of displaced people and refugees. War, more than natural disasters or disease, pushes out those who have no part in political or military action. Citizens seeking a better life are shoved aside by the whims and lusts for power of others. Rebels feel sure that their way is best, so they try to impose their way on everyone by disposing of governments.
Theirs is not a “popular uprising,” but a zealous, armed insistence.
Theirs is not a “popular uprising,” but a zealous, armed insistence.
Military action through guerrilla warfare is only one of many ways this insistence manifests itself. Pressures of economic, religious, political, and social nature can become as intimidating and fearful as anything.
In the name of “freedom,” innocents are put at risk, with no voice. In the name of “tolerance,” intolerance is shown. Pitting people against each other, insistence causes many to lose their places...or their lives.
No place to call home. That is the predicament of the refugee.
In the name of “freedom,” innocents are put at risk, with no voice. In the name of “tolerance,” intolerance is shown. Pitting people against each other, insistence causes many to lose their places...or their lives.
No place to call home. That is the predicament of the refugee.
