By Jessica Minshall
Brother and sister Omot and Akolla Cham fled political and racial persecution in Ethiopia for a life in Australia not without challenges.
Akolla, 19, just completed year 12 at Pendle Hill High school where she was Vice-Captain. She is one of the first African students to have been there since grade seven.
“Vice-captain, but it’s still good. You get to do speeches, go to conferences. We went to Parliament House to the Women’s Leadership Conference with different schools from all around Sydney.”
She is hoping to study either nursing or do hospitality management at TAFE next year.
Akolla wants to become a manager of a hotel, having enjoyed her work placements while at school. This hotel just might serve African food, quite a change from the menu at Hungry Jacks where she works (and runs children’s birthday parties).
Her older brother Omot, 22, is a nursing student at the University of Western Sydney (UWS). Being African at an Australian university means that you stand out:
“Last year I did! Last year I was the only African guy there. Actually that’s the same thing everywhere that I go. I’m the one that cops it all first.”
At TAFE, where he completed an Assistant in Nursing qualification, and at St Joseph’s hospital in Auburn where he works Omot has been the only African there. He and Akolla were also two of the first few African students to attend the Intensive English Centre at Evans High, and again when they changed schools.
“We didn’t even start together. He started a day later, I started first. There were no black people there, it was just me. Just sitting there in front of the canteen like a retard. It was pretty harsh,” says Akolla.
Good teachers and nice students made it easier, but English was an extra difficulty even coming from the English centre and having language tutoring.
“You can communicate. They talk to you and you can talk back, but then there’s always some assignment or exam and they’re using the big words and you look at that and you’re like ‘what’s this’? Tough luck then,” says Omot.
Omot’s seemingly American accent made it easier for people to ask where he’s from.
“Through that accent I made so many friends. Everyone just thought it’s so cool to talk like that.”
Omot thinks that perhaps the fear of sounding racist stops a lot of young people from asking Africans about their backgrounds.
“They should ask. I rather people ask actually, rather than just making assumptions. I’ve got friends that just call me ‘Black’. I go to uni and they’re like ‘Oh, Black is here.’ I don’t mind!
“You want people to understand what it’s like growing up like us. But I guess people don’t really see it and a lot of people don’t really give us chance to let them know.”
Omot explains that Ethiopia is so divided because there are so many different tribes. His family are part of the Anuak tribe, who have much darker skin than the Abash.
“The original Ethiopians they call us half Ethiopians- half Sudanese because we live on that border, because apparently back centuries ago we might have migrated into Ethiopia. Now the Abash, they moved into this region of Gambella and that’s what the war is all about.”
Omot and Akolla’s father got involved in politics in Ethiopia through his work in providing food aid. When he and others started getting arrested and he needed to leave, five children were left without money for food or rent.
“My mum literally built a house by herself. A hut, not a house. Literally went out, cut down some trees and built it. If it rains at night then you wake up, the whole place is just leaking and you sit in whichever spot that it’s not leaking at, and that’s how you’re going to spend the rest of your night,” says Omot.
Support from the Anglican Church in Randwick allowed them to migrate to Australia in 2000, following their father’s path through Kenya.
“We probably had it easier than the rest of the other people,” says Omot.
Akolla explains the current situation in Ethiopia as race based conflict:
“It started in 2004 and it was just like genocide, massacre, killing all the men and boys and so everybody fled out of the country. And the ones who stayed they’re still in terror you know. Because the war didn’t start with the military people coming in. It was the neighbours that came out and started butchering people. Because the Abash they’re not black they’re lighter.”
She does not understand why Africans trying to escape poverty and violence would not be allowed to come to Australia. Omot also wants to see more Africans in Australia:
“I want to see Africans running shops. I want to some Africans in big industry, some company boss, some kind of CEO.”
Omot dreams of finishing university, and doing an extra course to become a scrub nurse. He wants to get a job and buy a house in Kellyville.
“It’s really nice, all the houses are really new and if you live there you’ve got class. That’s my goal and to get married and settle down. And live a happy life.
“If I were to have enough money I’d like to go back to Ethiopia and open up a hospital. A little private hospital. The hospital system there is really not great. Somewhere where people can just go in and be given the right medication. Because right now, at public ones the doctors are the Abash, we don’t have any Anuak doctors.”
That is if his mother, as well as the ongoing conflict, will let him.
Akolla, 19, just completed year 12 at Pendle Hill High school where she was Vice-Captain. She is one of the first African students to have been there since grade seven.
“Vice-captain, but it’s still good. You get to do speeches, go to conferences. We went to Parliament House to the Women’s Leadership Conference with different schools from all around Sydney.”
She is hoping to study either nursing or do hospitality management at TAFE next year.
Akolla wants to become a manager of a hotel, having enjoyed her work placements while at school. This hotel just might serve African food, quite a change from the menu at Hungry Jacks where she works (and runs children’s birthday parties).
Her older brother Omot, 22, is a nursing student at the University of Western Sydney (UWS). Being African at an Australian university means that you stand out:
“Last year I did! Last year I was the only African guy there. Actually that’s the same thing everywhere that I go. I’m the one that cops it all first.”
At TAFE, where he completed an Assistant in Nursing qualification, and at St Joseph’s hospital in Auburn where he works Omot has been the only African there. He and Akolla were also two of the first few African students to attend the Intensive English Centre at Evans High, and again when they changed schools.
“We didn’t even start together. He started a day later, I started first. There were no black people there, it was just me. Just sitting there in front of the canteen like a retard. It was pretty harsh,” says Akolla.
Good teachers and nice students made it easier, but English was an extra difficulty even coming from the English centre and having language tutoring.
“You can communicate. They talk to you and you can talk back, but then there’s always some assignment or exam and they’re using the big words and you look at that and you’re like ‘what’s this’? Tough luck then,” says Omot.
Omot’s seemingly American accent made it easier for people to ask where he’s from.
“Through that accent I made so many friends. Everyone just thought it’s so cool to talk like that.”
Omot thinks that perhaps the fear of sounding racist stops a lot of young people from asking Africans about their backgrounds.
“They should ask. I rather people ask actually, rather than just making assumptions. I’ve got friends that just call me ‘Black’. I go to uni and they’re like ‘Oh, Black is here.’ I don’t mind!
“You want people to understand what it’s like growing up like us. But I guess people don’t really see it and a lot of people don’t really give us chance to let them know.”
Omot explains that Ethiopia is so divided because there are so many different tribes. His family are part of the Anuak tribe, who have much darker skin than the Abash.
“The original Ethiopians they call us half Ethiopians- half Sudanese because we live on that border, because apparently back centuries ago we might have migrated into Ethiopia. Now the Abash, they moved into this region of Gambella and that’s what the war is all about.”
Omot and Akolla’s father got involved in politics in Ethiopia through his work in providing food aid. When he and others started getting arrested and he needed to leave, five children were left without money for food or rent.
“My mum literally built a house by herself. A hut, not a house. Literally went out, cut down some trees and built it. If it rains at night then you wake up, the whole place is just leaking and you sit in whichever spot that it’s not leaking at, and that’s how you’re going to spend the rest of your night,” says Omot.
Support from the Anglican Church in Randwick allowed them to migrate to Australia in 2000, following their father’s path through Kenya.
“We probably had it easier than the rest of the other people,” says Omot.
Akolla explains the current situation in Ethiopia as race based conflict:
“It started in 2004 and it was just like genocide, massacre, killing all the men and boys and so everybody fled out of the country. And the ones who stayed they’re still in terror you know. Because the war didn’t start with the military people coming in. It was the neighbours that came out and started butchering people. Because the Abash they’re not black they’re lighter.”
She does not understand why Africans trying to escape poverty and violence would not be allowed to come to Australia. Omot also wants to see more Africans in Australia:
“I want to see Africans running shops. I want to some Africans in big industry, some company boss, some kind of CEO.”
Omot dreams of finishing university, and doing an extra course to become a scrub nurse. He wants to get a job and buy a house in Kellyville.
“It’s really nice, all the houses are really new and if you live there you’ve got class. That’s my goal and to get married and settle down. And live a happy life.
“If I were to have enough money I’d like to go back to Ethiopia and open up a hospital. A little private hospital. The hospital system there is really not great. Somewhere where people can just go in and be given the right medication. Because right now, at public ones the doctors are the Abash, we don’t have any Anuak doctors.”
That is if his mother, as well as the ongoing conflict, will let him.
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