Culture Shock

Getting used to and assimilating into a different culture is something Peter and Santino had to do. Peter was four years old when his village was attacked by the .He was separated from his mother and siblings but his father was still there, who he remained with. His father died on him a few days into their treachoruos adventure to asylum. Peter was strong though, and by pushing on and reaching a refugee camp in Ethiopia he had tremendous strength. After living at the refugee camp for 11 years Peter was carefully chosen to go to make a new life for himself in America. While in Africa Peter thought going to America would be like living in heaven however when Peter arrived in America he found himself feeling depressed because the first place he lived in Houston, Texas was not supporting him enough. He wanted to make a difference by getting an education and sending money back to Sudan. So he traveled to Kansas in the hopes of more help and maybe an education. When Peter arrived in Kansas he did find a more generous community and find a school he could attend. The community was very different than the one in Texas and he soon found himself being involved in the community. But there was still many forms of racism that made assimilation into the American society difficult. Some reasons include social gestures, culture, religion, and racism. In Sudan the lost boys probably spoke their dinka languages but in America, if you don't speak English only a small group of people will understand. They had trouble with this because if you cannot communicate you can not find work, make friends, understand the laws.In America a common stereotype of African Americans is that they are dumb and use their fists instead of words; Peter may play basketball well, but he also very works hard to survive in America and is getting educated in the hopes that one day he will be able to have a better life. When Peter first enrolled in his school his counselor thought that he would be stupid and fail all his classes however Peter surprised him by receiving a letter from the National Honor Society. There are also many differences between cultures, the best example of racial discrimination is when they are talking amongst themselves, they say, "the white people think just because we are black we want to hurt them" it is true many crimes have been committed by African Americans but the Lost Boys of Sudan work hard for their living and do not resort to crime; also at Peter's part time job at Wal Mart his boss said they were from Africa so they could take the heat. Peter also realized the difference in social class between him and his friends Peter feels he is poor because all the children he hangs out with have parents who provide for them however he only has himself therefore he feels different and in this case different means poor. Peter is enrolled as a student at Green Mountain College in Vermont with a scholarship.