Arega Eniyew Interview, History 150 Spring 2017, Conducted by Peyton Dudley, March 31, 2017.

Intro

The person I interviewed is Arega Eniyew. Arega is in my History 150 class. The interview was conducted in person at Carrier Library in a group study den I reserved. No editing was done on the recording. The interview was simple. I recorded the interview on a voice recorder app on my Dell laptop. The interview lasted about 18 minutes.

Brief Biography

Arega Eniyew grew up in Ethiopia. He lived most of his life there alone in the city of Gondar. His life in Ethiopia was very harsh as he was homeless for some of his time there. He moved to the United States after receiving a diversity visa from the government. Arega was about 33 when he moved to the United States. He used to attend Montgomery College in Silver Springs Maryland. He is now enrolled at James Madison University.

Background Information

Ethiopia went into a civil war in the year 1974 when a communist group staged a coup d’etat against the emperor. The civil war lasted many years and took many lives until it ended in 1991. Many people fled the country in the 1980’s due to economic hardships and political repression. A violent political campaign also took place in Ethiopia during the 1980’s called the Red Terror to compete against Marxist groups. Over 500,000 people were killed during this period.

The Interview

Peyton Dudley:      Do you consent of me interviewing you?

Arega Eniyew:      Yes

PD:      What country are you from?

AE:      Ethiopia

PD:      How long did you live in Ethiopia for?

AE:      I lived a whole life. I’m 45 now. I have lived here for about 12 years and the rest I lived in Ethiopia

PD:      What city in Ethiopia did you live in?

AE:      The city is called Gondar. It’s the northern part of Ethiopia. It was one of the older cities in Ethiopia.

PD:      Can you tell me about your life there? What you did, friends family.

AE:      I am the son of a farmer. I was far away from the city. My mom died when I was 7 years old. So, after that I moved to the city of Gondar.

PD:      What is your first language?

AE:      My first language is Amharic. Ethiopia has about 85 languages and Amharic is one of the main ones.

PD:      How old were you when you came to the U.S?

AE:      I was about 33 or 32 something like that.

PD:      How did you migrate to the U.S?

AE:      The government gives people diversity visa, we call it DV. So I applied for that and I got the invitation from the government.

PD:      Why did you leave Ethiopia?

AE:      There are many things but one of them is I just wanted to advance in my education. In Ethiopia, it’s hard to get a good education. It’s much better to advance in life here.

PD:      Did you have family in Ethiopia?

AE:      Yes, I had my brothers and sisters and my relatives.

PD:      Did you come to the U.S alone or did you come with some family or friends?

AE:      I came by myself.

PD:      How do you think moving to the U.S affected your family?

 

AE:      In some sense, I can help them in another they miss me I miss them because most of the time I can’t go there. The political situation there is not good to visit and come back.

PD:      What was your opinion of the U.S before you came here?

AE:      I thought it was a different country. When I came here the first time I just went to school because I was planning to go to school. In 2004 I went to Montgomery College in Silver Spring Maryland. When I started, I was doing good with my grades and became a member of the International Dean’s List and got some scholarships. In the middle of all that I got sick. I got H Pylori and had some issues with my body from when I lived in Ethiopia. I was high school principal when I lived in the country. There was no clean water. So, when I came here I just started school with no insurance. I used to work at Union Station for service and something like that. In the middle I had to drop out and from there things really messed up. I didn’t have insurance and I had three surgeries. When I got the bill, it was overwhelming because I didn’t have anything.

PD:      What was the hardest part of migrating to the U.S?

AE:      It wasn’t that hard for me. The only surprise was when I got sick. The medicine I had was very expensive. I learned how expensive things here are. Things like insurance and health care.

PD:      What was the most difficult part for you in adjusting to the United States?

AE:      Well, I didn’t have that much problem. As I said before I was a teacher there. I taught English and history and other subjects there. It wasn’t too difficult, everything was okay.

PD:      Would you say that you are still adjusting to the U.S?

AE:      Well, of course. I’m learning and I’m adjusting a little to school.

PD:      How would you say the United States is different from Ethiopia?

AE:      Well, in the United States, you have freedom. You have peace. I remember when Ethiopia was under a communist government. There was a lot of killing. We were called to watch executions. I didn’t have a mother or father at that time, I was by myself. When the government called you to watch executions, you must go and watch it so that you would learn and be scared of and not rise against the government. A person should be randomly killed or punished or executed. Everyone should have human rights. The police in this country is not that much. They are not like other countries. So, to have rights, to have personal freedom is very good.

PD:      How would you compare your education in the United States to your education in Ethiopia?

AE:      It’s vast. You have so much opportunity here. In Ethiopia, we don’t have as many resources. Students could not study the field they wanted, the government had to give them. If you wanted to study medicine, but the government wants you to study agriculture or something else. You study what the government tells you. It’s not like you decide and go, sometimes it’s difficult to select a field of interest and then to study.

PD:      When you came to the United States, did you adopt any new traditions like holidays or meals?

AE:      No.

PD:      Did you bring any traditions with you?

AE:      I don’t really have traditions. When I was growing up, I was by myself. Nobody influences me. You know, do this, do that. There was no guideline, there was me. If I thought it was right, I did it. I don’t have too much culture.

PD:      What do you miss the most about Ethiopia?

AE:      I miss a lot of things. I miss my friends, I miss the mountains, the trees, the whole country. You know it’s where I grew up. I miss a lot of things, I miss my country, my people.

PD:      Are you happy with your decision to come to the United States?

AE:      Ohh yeah, I am happy. The doors are open to a person to study, to change your life. In Ethiopia, I can’t find this opportunity. When I was high school director, I was dreaming how am I going to change my field or what if I am going to study. And there was no opportunity. And the government which is ruling right now, is not the government which I like.

PD:      Why did you choose the United States?

AE:      My first choice would have been to go to Great Britain because I have a lot of friends there who come and visit when I worked as a tour guide in Ethiopia. Before I was a teacher, I used to work as a tour guide. I used to meet a lot of people from Britain.

PD: Final question, what is your opinion of the United States now that you are here?

AE:      Well, it’s a good place, it’s a nice place which everyone dreams about. But there are two things I don’t like, right wing and left wing