Komlan Soe was born in Toe Town, Liberia. At the age of three, a civil war broke out forcing Komlan

Komlan Soe was born in Toe Town, Liberia. At the age of three, a civil war broke out forcing Komlan and his family to flee to a refugee camp in Ivory Coast, where his family survived on little rice, cornmeal and flour distributed by UNHCR. At the age of seven, he started first grade at a school established by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and other non-profit organizations. The school was in unfinished buildings and on under trees, where Komlan and other youngsters would sit and learn their basic Math and ABCs. In 2002 when civil war erupted in Ivory Coast, Komlan and his family fled to another refugee camp in Ghana. While in the camp in Ghana, Komlan’s curiosity and passion for education grew stronger. Komlan took a high school entrance exam, and he came first out of 70 applicants. He later received a scholarship to a prestigious boarding school, where he was able to sit, for the first time, at comfortable desks and discovered a passion in international affairs. With his father already settled in Rhode Island, Komlan and his family migrated to Rhode Island in November 2005 as refugees sponsored by Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island. It was a bittersweet family reunion because his two sisters and a brother remained in Ghana. His welcome into Rhode Island with a sign greeting him and his family was an experience he would never forget. “It was… I’m finally in the United States. Yes that’s good. It was like a dream.” As an immigrant, the transition of life in the United States was difficult. The first time Komlan saw snow, he was in disbelief. He was also not accustomed to the American sports, or the food, and did not understand why some people in his new community did not give up their seat to elders on the bus. In 2008, Komlan began his studies at the Community College of Rhode Island after more than three years of delaying college in order to work and help his family financially. In 2010 he transferred to the University of Rhode Island (URI) where he became heavily involved in different activities while pursuing a dual degree in Political Science and Sociology. While at URI, Komlan worked as a Teaching Assistant and held down a full-time job. He graduated in May 2013; a dream he had finally achieved. “I am the first in my family to graduate from college.” Komlan now works with the African Youth Development Initiative, which he co-founded to empower and engage African and African-American youths around issues such as violence, education, and African culture and history. He not only hopes to engage the youth in Rhode Island in the discussion of what is going on in their state, but also hopes to see more challenging education systems for those young students: “One day you will be actively involved to bring about change. So the mobilization of young people and then challenging young people… challenging them to get involved is the most important thing I think I can take from that.” His hope for immigrants is that they should no longer be viewed as victims, rather as survivors. As an immigrant, he saw the ways in which the civil wars affected his family and those he loves, but he says he is very glad he is in America. “To be an American is to have a story,” says Komlan. He has spent years now getting comfortable sharing his story, and telling people about his past. Komlan believes it is important to remember where you come from, and that having pride in your roots is what makes America so great and unique. It is diverse with many different people, he says, yet everyone shares a common ideal – to make their lives better. Komlan hopes to attend grad school at Harvard University or Columbia University to continue his passion for education. His biggest goal is to one day become a diplomat to speak, and have a voice for those who don’t. He has since been back to Ghana and Liberia and feels he is needed back in his native homeland, so he plans to help. “An African proverb which I always refer to says, ‘You are… because we are.’ And that means everything that is done has to be done collectively. One person’s success is everyone’s success and people have to hold together”. No matter what challenges face him, Komlan smiles and stays determined to get through it. Written and compiled by Delia Egan and Joseph Thuillier -- source link

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