Hassen Awel Interview, History 150 Spring 2016, Conducted by Tewfik Hassan, Immigration, March, 12, 2016
a. I was on spring break when I conducted the interview so I was able to do it in person. The hard part was finding a quiet place in my house where we wouldn’t be interrupted. I eventually came up with the idea to interview him in his car because it was one of the few places where there were wouldn’t be any interfering noises. It turned out to be a great idea and the sound quality was just how I wanted it. In terms of technology, I used GarageBand on my Mac and had no issues at all with it. I gave my dad a general sense of the questions I was going to ask him so he was not unprepared for anything but also reminded him that the goal is for the interview to flow as a conversation. Luckily, I did not have to edit anything. The overall interview was almost exactly at twenty minutes and both my dad and I listened to the recording and were pleased with the outcome.
b. My father was born and raised in Ethiopia and immigrated to the United States in his twenties. Unlike my mother, my father was not born in the city. He was born in an area surrounded by farms and lived a simple lifestyle that is very different to the one he is currently living. I believe he He immigrated to the U.S. in his 20s with my mother. She was lucky enough to win a green card lottery which he briefly mentions in the interview. When he first came to the U.S., he wanted to be a businessman and in a couple years he would open up a few convenience stores in the DC area. However, he had to work his way up to that and started working at a parking garage. He did that during the week and on weekends he would drive a taxi in DC to make extra money which he still does today.
c. In the late 70’s and early 80’s, border issues became a very prevalent problem in Ethiopia. It started with the Ethiopian-Somalian War which lasted until 1982. About a decade later Ethiopia and Eritrea began having border disputes as well which began to intensify during my father’s young adult years. I did some research and asked my father about the Ethiopian government and found that they were very aggressive and used unorthodox tactics to get what they wanted. My father mentions in the interview below how there would be soldiers in the streets basically kidnapping any young male they saw and forcing them to train and fight in battles against Eritrea. Aside from the corruption of government in the 90’s, the quality of life was horrendous in Ethiopia, especially in the countryside where my father grew up. This eventually led to many Ethiopians immigrating to more developed countries in the 90’s and early 2000’s in search for a better life.
d. Transcription:
TH: Hello, this is Tewfik Hassan and I am interviewing my father Hassen Awel. My first question for you Mr. Awel is: What was life like living in Ethiopia?
Mr. Awel: It was very hard over there. You know we [younger kids] were farming, taking care of animals and cattle, stuff like that. We had to travel about an hour and a half from our house to get to school. When we came back from school we had to feed the cattle. So life was really really tough.
TH: Okay. How was your family structure like at home? Is it like the one I have here, or closer?
Mr. Awel: We were really close over there. Forget about the families, even the neighborhoods all felt like one family. So that is a part I really miss the most. Even when people made coffee [common Ethiopian tradition/pastime], you would invite your family and neighbors and eat together and talk.
TH: Okay. My next question for you is what were some of the reasons you decided to leave Ethiopia? Were there any problems in Ethiopia?
Mr. Awel: Oh that is a very interesting question. As you know, I was born in the countryside and traveled over an hour-approximately an hour and a half to go to school but I loved it because I thought that was how life was supposed to be. However, I got a chance to go to a bigger city to go live with my brother. When I went there life became a lot easier, especially because the distance from my [brother’s] house to school was ten minutes. The food was a lot different and in the city you eat better food, more meat, stuff like that. Also, I didn’t have to work like I used to in the countryside–no cattle, nothing like that.
TH: Yeah.
Mr. Awel: So it was a big improvement. Then, from that small city, my brother got another job to a bigger city. It wasn’t the capital city but was a little bigger than the other one. So when I moved to this bigger city, life was even better. I met a lot of friends who I helped with reading and assignments. Those people were businessmen and they started inviting me to hotels and restaurants and it made me really enjoy life over there. My brother did not stay in this city very long because he got another job in the capital city, Addis Ababa.
TH: Oh okay, the main city.
Mr. Awel: Yes, the main city. Life in the main city was amazing almost like how it is here [referring to the U.S.]. There was warm water, electricity seven days a week, and all kinds of better things. This was the time where I started thinking about going to Europe or America. Because I thought if life was this good here I figured life in Europe or America would be even better. I was determined to get out of Ethiopia by any means. In Addis, I had a lot of friends who had been to Europe and America and there were telling me how great it was over there and they also told me that if I was smart, studied a lot, I would have a better chance of immigrating. So I became very ambitious and focused on my education. I said to myself, ok if I try really hard I could get a chance to go to America. In fact, before I met your mom, I tried to escape through the [Ethiopian-Kenyan] border.
TH: Oh tell me about that.
Mr. Awel: The closest bordering country for me was Kenya.
TH: What age were you around this time? Because this is before you met my mom.
Mr. Awel: Right. Right. Twenty-three.
TH: Oh okay so early twenties?
Mr. Awel: Early twenties.
TH: And you already tried to escape? So you already knew you wanted to get out.
Mr. Awel: Exactly.
TH: And how did that work? You said Kenya?
Mr. Awel: Yeah I wanted to go to Kenya. First I went to a nearby city near Kenya. Not too close but somewhere in the area. I started searching for people to guide me—you know how like some people come here from Mexico or something like that?
TH: Oh yeah like at the border?
Mr. Awel: At the border yes. They [people he met who were taking Ethiopians to Kenya] told me that it was not a good time to travel now. So then I went to a different [bordering] city and met a guy who did this kind of business—you know, taking people from Ethiopia to Kenya.
TH: Okay.
Mr. Awel: This guy asked me what I preferred: to travel on feet or by car. I asked him which one was riskier. He said if I traveled by feet it would be very long but a guaranteed way to make it to Kenya. [Begins to explain the type of business the guy did] These people had guns and travel all night and are involved with contraband business. They would migrate people and do some type of illegal business between Ethiopia and Kenya.
TH: So it is guaranteed if you did it by foot?
Mr. Awel. Exactly. But the bad part was that it would be too tiring.
TH: Yeah, of course.
Mr. Awel: It wasn’t only me by the way I had a friend too.
TH: Who also wanted to go?
Mr. Awel: Yes. So I was worried about him more than myself because he was not that strong. We decided to go using a truck. So we traveled and passed about two check points. However, we got stopped at the last check point. The guy who was driving us was very famous in this area by the way and he started talking to the guard in a different language. It was also very warm here. So anyways they asked us where we were going [in an aggressive tone]. And we told them we were just business people and-
TH: Oh you guys were pretending?
Mr. Awel: [Laughing] Yeah we were pretending. We said we wanted to buy some sugar from Kenya and bring it to Ethiopia. Sugar was sort of expansive then. Then they said, who do you know? Our guide told us [beforehand] to tell these people who to name when they asked us who we knew so we did. These were people he knew but he told us to act like we knew them. Then, they denied us from coming and arrested us in the countryside.
TH: Are you still in Ethiopia?
Mr. Awel: Yes, at the border.
TH: Oh so you were almost there?
Mr. Awel: Yeah. Almost there but we got caught. One of the border guards took my friend and I to another city. So I stayed there and their jail was horrible. There were too many people and there weren’t a lot of places to sleep.
TH: Of course, yeah. Bad conditions.
Mr. Awel: Yeah bad conditions. But I was lucky because I found a guy who followed the same Muslim religion as me…so he shared his food we prayed together and stuff like that. After three days—it was a Friday when they brought us and the office was closed on the weekend so on that Tuesday, one of the military leaders came and called me for an interview. The man who helped me try to escape Ethiopia told me I never have to admit I was trying to escape. So when the military leaders asked me why I was there I told him it was for business reasons. I kept saying, please let me go.
TH: So these interviews were to see if they’d let you go back home?
Mr. Awel: Yes. The military guy was friendly and said he would assign someone to take my friend and I back home. I told him he didn’t have to do that and that I can go back by myself. But he refused and said he had to make sure I actually went home [My father’s tone suggested that he would have attempted to escape again if he had the chance]. The next day, they put us on a bus to go back to Ethiopia. That day I had so much confidence that I can escape next time because I could just travel on feet. While I was back in Addis Ababa I met your mom. Your mom and I have known each other. We went to different schools but knew each other. Someone had told me she got an American green card.
TH: Oh so she had an opportunity to leave?
Mr. Awel: Yes, she had an opportunity. So I talked to her and she said okay. So we got married-
TH: Okay to you guys both coming to the U.S.?
Mr. Awel: Yes.
TH: Oh so the only way for you to come was if you guys were married?
Mr. Awel: Right because she got a green card and through her I got myself a green card. We both got green cards and came here [America].
TH: Oh so that’s how you came here.
Mr. Awel: Yes. We also needed a sponsor [that lived in the U.S.]. My relatives knew someone in the DC area. The next thing we had to figure out was where to live.
TH: Oh wait you said a sponsor from Washington D.C.? So that is why you live in the Northern Virginia area because that was just the closest place.
Mr. Awel: Yes.
TH: Okay so that leads into my next question. When you first came to the U.S., what were the first things you did? You said you tried looking for a place to live?
Mr. Awel: Well I figured that out before I came.
TH: Oh smart.
Mr. Awel: Yeah I had cousins in Maryland and they got us a place to live. So the first thing I wanted to do here was get a job.
TH: Right away?
Mr. Awel: Yes, right away because like I have told you, I was a very determined kid. So the second day [in the U.S.] they [referring to his relatives in the U.S.] took us to the social security services to get a social security card. And right after I got the card I was looking for work. And I didn’t mind doing anything. Would you like me to tell you about the job?
TH: Yeah. What was your first job?
Mr. Awel: My first job was working at a parking lot. Colonial Parking.
TH: Oh like a parking garage?
Mr. Awel: Yes, a parking garage.
TH: What state was this in?
Mr. Awel: Washington, D.C.
TH: Okay.
Mr. Awel: So it [his shift] was from eleven at night to seven in the morning.
TH: Now did you know any English at the time? How did you get the job?
Mr. Awel: [Laughing] I only knew a few words like yes and no. And you didn’t need to know that much English in a parking garage, especially at night.
TH: Oh that’s perfect for you.
Mr. Awel: Yeah it was perfect
…
TH: So now that you are working in D.C. you know, one of the biggest cities in the country. How was it transitioning from the countryside to D.C.? Can you compare the lifestyle? I know you mentioned how living in Addis provided you with warm water, electricity which I am assuming are things you did not have in the countryside right?
Mr. Awel: Not at all.
TH: So how about here? Is it even better than living in Addis?
Mr. Awel: Extremely better. What I have gotten in America is freedom. I forgot to tell you how life was in Ethiopia. In my time, it was hell for young people. You would finish school and have no job. The only option was to fight in the war.
TH: Was it the war with Eritrea?
Mr. Awel: Yes, the war with Eritrea. There were all different kinds of wars. Young people like me couldn’t even walk on the street. If you were walking on the street, the soldiers would grab you from the back and put you in the car and train you—whether you like it or not. Most people wouldn’t go out, we would all stay in the house. They would come at two or three in the morning, while you are sleeping, and take you.
TH: Is this the government?
Mr. Awel: Yes, the government.
TH: Wow.
Mr. Awel: By the way, they still do similar things now.
TH: Was it mostly men?
Mr. Awel: Yes, mostly men. It was really bad. Also you can’t talk or write about politics.
TH: Nothing negative right?
Mr. Awel: Nothing negative yes. If you do talk you have to support the government. But nobody liked the government and people still don’t. So one big transition for me was being able to exercise my rights. Talk when I want to talk and feeling free. I can now read all these newspapers and watch shows about politics.
TH: And here they show both sides.
Mr. Awel: Right. You may feel like it’s nothing when you hear the ridiculous things Donald Trump says but personally I enjoy it. It’s a free country. I really really enjoy America and I got used to the hectic parts. In fact, I expected even more than what I see because what we watched over there were American movies.
TH: Oh you mean in Ethiopia?
Mr. Awel: Yeah. Most of the movies showed New York. And you see how fast paced everything is. Over there [referring to Ethiopia] life is very far behind. Things don’t get done quickly. Even just getting your driver’s license takes months. Where over here, you do everything in one day. So the only [negative] thing here is the cost of living. With someone like me who doesn’t have a lot of income, it stresses you out a lot. But still, it is a lot better than living back there.
TH: Okay so that leads into my last question actually. So overall, I understand the transition you had coming from an East African country to the United States. So my question is, and you sort of already answered it, would you prefer to live that quiet rural lifestyle in the countryside or are you happy here in the United States even though it is a lot more stressful?
Mr. Awel: I am a lot happier living here. The first reason is the freedom. The second one is the luxury I have here. However, I still miss the country life how everyone helps everyone. Over here, if I don’t have something…you know, I don’t have it. So I like both places. I want to go there and do stuff for those people [referring to his family] and come back here and live my life. But overall, I love America.
TH: Got it. Well, that is the end of the interview. Thank you for your time.
Mr. Awel: You’re welcome.
d. Overall I was very happy with how the interview went. At first it was a little awkward and choppy but once we both got comfortable, it started to flow into a natural conversation. If I were to do it over again I would tell my dad before hand to assume I do not know any of the stories he planned on telling me because at some parts he skipped over details because he knew there were stories I have heard multiple times. The divergences we did have were actually positive. I asked a few questions I did not plan on asking and learned more about my father through this interview. My dad also did a good job on sticking to the questions I asked and was very easy to interview which made the process easy for me.