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My Dangerous Journey

Selihom was just 4 years old when she escaped from her country to reach the United States.

March 4, 2019
By Jennifer Li Shotz

This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared in the March 4, 2019, issue of Scholastic News Edition 4. 

Noah Willman (Selihom); Courtesy of the Kidane Family (Yafiet & Selihom)

Yafiet (left) and Selihom before they escaped from Eritrea

The frightened girl stayed close to her brother. The 4-year-old knew she couldn’t make a sound. Armed soldiers were nearby and had orders to shoot on sight.

It was 2011. The girl, Selihom Kidane (SEL-ee-hohm kid-AH-nuh), was crossing a dusty desert on foot. She was with her 10-year-old brother, Yafiet (yah-FET). They were trying to escape their home country of Eritrea (ehr-ih-TREE-uh), in Africa. Paid smugglers were helping them sneak across the border into the country of Sudan.

During the day, the kids hid and tried to sleep. At night, they trekked through the darkness. All they had was food and water and the clothes on their backs.

“I was scared,” says Selihom, who is now 12. “If I cried, I would put my brother and the other people with us in danger.”

Leaving Home

Jim McMahon/Mapman®

The perilous journey was the kids’ only hope of seeing their mother again. She had fled to the United States nearly three years earlier.

The family is among more than 400,000 refugees who have fled Eritrea in recent years. Life there is a struggle. It’s one of the poorest countries in the world. Eritreans don’t have many of the rights that Americans have. They aren’t allowed to vote for their leaders. Many people are persecuted for their religious beliefs. Until recently, most Eritreans weren’t allowed to leave the country.

A Painful Decision

In 2008, police came to arrest Selihom’s mother, Selam, because of her religion. Selam made the most painful decision of her life. She would leave Selihom and Yafiet behind.

As the officers burst through the front door of their home, Selam ran out the back. She hid with friends until she could flee to Sudan. From there, she made her way to the U.S.

After Selam’s escape, her kids lived with their grandparents. They were in constant danger. The Eritrean government often punishes the families of people who have fled the country. 

On the Move

Eventually, Selam saved up enough money to get her kids out of Eritrea. She put a plan in place. It was dangerous, but there was no other way. Selihom and Yafiet would have to cross the desert.

The exhausted siblings walked about 80 miles in a week. Finally, they crossed the border into Sudan. But their journey was far from over.

Over the next few months, they traveled across Sudan and into another country, Ethiopia. There, they would wait for the U.S. government to give them permission to come to America.

Noah Willman (Selihom & mom)

Selihom and her mom sit together in their Maryland home.

Together and Free

In December 2012, Selihom and Yafiet boarded a plane to Washington, D.C. A year and a half after leaving their home in Eritrea, they finally arrived in the U.S. At the airport, they saw their mother for the first time in more than four years.

“I kneeled down and hugged Selihom,” Selam recalls. “And we all cried.”

Today, Selihom lives with Selam in Maryland. She often texts with Yafiet, who goes to college in North Carolina. If Selihom were sitting next to you, you might not realize just how brave she is. But her long journey will always be a part of her.

“These obstacles that my family had to overcome made me who I am,” Selihom says. “I’m very lucky.”

What You Need to Know About Refugees

Refugees are people who have fled their home countries to escape from danger. Many leave because of war or violence. Others are at risk because of their race or religious beliefs.

  • There were 25.4 million refugees worldwide last year.
  • More than half of them were under the age of 18.

Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

1. Why did Selihom and Yafiet Kidane leave Eritrea?

2. What details support the idea that Selihom and Yafiet’s journey was perilous?

3. Based on the article, how does Selihom feel about the obstacles her family has faced?

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