Evelyne Mukasonga

Evelyne Mukasonga escaped from Rwanda to Congo after both her parents were killed in 1994 during the mass slaughter of Tutsi in Rwanda by members of the Hutu majority government. After being imprisoned in Congo, she spent a year in a refugee camp in Benin. She came to Bridgeport in 2000 with her young son, and studied to become a dental hygienist. She and her husband, Francis Kalangala, started an organization called African Families Synergy to help other refugees from eastern Africa adapt to life here.  

I came as a refugee: 

I was a refugee because of a genocide that happened to my country, in 1994, where I lost all my family.  I was told before I leave school that my mom and my dad were already killed...It was hard to trust anybody, because you don’t know who’s doing this, and this, so I was just careful of everybody.  So I heard that my brothers were able to escape, to go to Congo. They knew where I was—I don’t know how—but they send me a message: they say, "You know what? This person who helped us to go across the border, will help you, too."  

The only things I had, I had my Bible, I had my underwear, and the pictures, my dad, you know the family pictures, and my black jacket so I can cover myself. 

After crossing the border and finding her mother's family:  

So I called my brother in Congo that I’m safe, so I slept that day like a baby, I woke up and there was no shouting, no screaming, no screaming, there was no killing. [In the Congo] I saw this woman who killed my mom... I said, “No, no revenge. I don’t want that kind of thing.” Let us give her a chance, maybe she will repent. I tell you I will forgive her, I don’t have any problem. 

Her travels to America, and becoming American: 

The American government decided to help Rwandese who were in trouble in Congo. The people that were in jail, there many, many Rwandese in the jail, so they took us out of jail...once we get to Benin, they took care of us. They gave us houses, they gave us food, and UN is sending people to take interview, to take the intake, to know everything about us. So we spent in the refugee camp almost a year. 

So I came here with my son, IIConn did everything for me, You know what they do, they give me house, helped me with Social Security, DSS...everything. And it was my dream to finish school, because my dad wanted us to finish school...I promised that I have to finish school and I did it.  

But, me and my husband, we knew, and we saw, it is hard to be here. The culture is different, everything is different, I saw how I suffered when I came here by myself, so [...] we started helping refugees who come here. To show them where to buy food, clothes, to explain to them life here, and show them that we are here. So they can come home, it’s good to find someone who can speak the same language. You come from the same place, so we accept them, we show them ropes, how you can make it. English is OK, you can go to school. Food, you are eating familiar food with us. School, show them how to go to school, take them to hospital. Here I do interpretation from Swahili, Kirirwanda, Dinga, Burundi. 

We started helping as much we could...and we created an organization, African Families Synergy.  

It’s hard. The life here, and the life back home is not the same. Everything here is too busy-busy. We don’t have the time for each other. And the people work in fear. They live here in fear...because everything is pay, pay, pay.  Back home, you have people, you have family, and you have people...here, you have to do everything yourself...husband go to work, wife go to work, there’s nobody to take care of the children. The children are raised by TV, or nobody. Because the fear.  

People they come here with another point of view of America. They think America is what they saw on the TV...So, with the experience we have, we help them, we talk to them...[and say] "So, you are here, you have to work, you have to have a life, any way life is different from back home."  

You can survive here if you want to. So we help them, and tell the husband, “Don’t ask too much from your wife, help them, because here, even the wife has to work. You have to jump in and do something. To the children: be African, don’t put your pants down here, don’t curse.  Even you can work. Respect your parents, even if they’re not giving you anything." So the mothers, anytime they have a problem they call me, and the children, I’m between the children and their father, and the mother, and I’m between husband and their wife. We help as much as we can for those people to live here.