Sudanese Civil War Refugee Speaks at Shorter College

Valentino Achak Deng, a refugee from Sudan’s civil war, will speak at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 19, in Shorter College’s Callaway Theatre. The event is sponsored by Shorter’s Department of Humanities. The public is invited to attend at no charge. Separated from his family as a child, Deng became a refugee in war-ravaged southern Sudan. His travels brought him in contact with enemy soldiers, liberation rebels, lions, starvation and deadly militias. Deng endured 13 years of difficulty in Ethiopian and Kenyan refugee camps. Dave Eggers’ latest novel, What is the What, is a novelized autobiography of Deng, from his pre-war life in Marial Bai, to his resettlement in the United States. “…I was just a boy when the war began. As a helpless human, I survived by trekking across many punishing landscapes while being bombed by Sudanese air forces, while dodging land mines, while being preyed upon by wild beasts and human killers… Many of my friends and thousands of my fellow countrymen did not make it through these struggles alive,” explained Deng in the novel’s preface.

“This book was born out of the desire on the part of myself and [Dave Eggers] to help others understand the atrocities many successive governments of Sudan committed before and during the civil war. Over the course of many years, I told my story orally to the author. He then concocted this novel, approximating my own voice and using the basic events of my life as the foundation… Even when my hours were darkest, I believed that some day I could share my experiences with readers, so as to prevent the same horrors from repeating themselves. This book is a form of struggle, and it keeps my spirit alive to struggle. To struggle is to strengthen my faith, my hope, and my belief in humanity.”

Deng’s visit to Shorter is part of his national tour to discuss the novel and share his story with the public. Shorter College will be his only appearance in Georgia this month between events in California, Michigan, Tennessee and Massachusetts.

For more information about Deng’s visit on March 19, contact Shorter assistant professor of English John Kwist at (706) 233-7254 or visit Deng’s Web site at www.valentinoachakdeng.com.

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