Genocide Survivor-"They killed my parents but they didn't kill my soul!"
By Hadiatou Wann | 03/23/18
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“Lord, if you protect my life and I survive, I will help orphans,” is what then teenager Marie Claudine Mukamabano vowed to God when she witnessed her fellow Rwandans being murdered.
God kept her alive, and today she is here to share her story. In movies like "Hotel Rwanda" and "Sometimes in April," we’ve gotten a glimpse of the genocide that wiped away Rwanda’s mass Tutsi population in the 90s, but to hear a Tutsi survivor’s version of the story makes it even more meaningful.
On 7 April 1994, the Hutu government ordered Hutu civilians to pick up their machetes and kill any Tutsi they came across. The killings spanned 100 days. Mukamabano, her sister and brother survived. But sadly, her father, step father, mother, grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins were fatally killed.
She remembers vividly the first person who got killed in front of her house (the president's bodyguard). When the killings began, Mukamabano’s mother refused to leave the town because she knew that even if she tried to conceal her daughter, the killers could easily identify that she was Tutsi because of her slim figure and height. The Hutu killers gave them the option of staying in their home and being burned, or running away and still being at risk of being murdered. Her mother chose to leave their home.
As they fearfully ran outside, they came across mountains of dead bodies.She cannot recall whether they were running for days or weeks. The image of people being killed lingered in her mind as she desperately ran for her life. When a person was killed in front of them, they hoped over the lifeless body and kept running. Children were being killed left and right. And each time they thought they escaped a shooting, they spotted more Hutu killers ahead with firearms and machetes.
Seeing other people killed in front of her gave her the impression that she wasn't going to survive either. “Lord help me. If they kill me, I want to go to Heaven,”Mukamabano thought to herself as she tried to escape death.
Today, she resides in New York. She took what many would consider as a setback and turned it into a set up to build a new life filled with purpose. Mukamabano is not deterred even after having witnessed a genocide wipe away her population. “They killed my parents but they didn’t kill my soul,” the orphan survivor said with conviction.
“It was my dream to come to America, and my Creator performed his miracle.” she explained. "I won a scholarship to come to America as an artist." Among 600 applicants worldwide, she was chosen as the scholarship recipient. When Mukamabano relocated to America, she studied business, as well as International Trauma Studies. Instead of blaming everyone for what happened to her, smoking, or drinking, she used church as therapy to help build her soul. Her reason for choosing to behave correctly: “I wouldn’t want my mom to see me live a ridiculous life.”
Mukamabano believed that everything else would fall into place if she built her soul. So every single day she attended church. When other survivors asked her “why do you go to church, and you know Tutsi were killed inside of a church?” Her response was always: “I never saw angels kill my people, I saw my people kill each other.”
She decided to face the harsh reality that she was an orphan, but still move like a champion. To keep herself occupied, she played basketball and danced.
“I admire that she was able to thrive despite what she experienced. I love her energy and passion. She brightens the room and you will miss it when she’s not there,” expressed business consultant Simone Sloan about Mukamabano.
Today, she spends her time helping orphans and empowering them to believe that they are powerful beyond measure. She does it through her 13-year-old initiative “Why Do I Exist/KUKI NDIHO,” where she also raises awareness about the genocide that took place in her native land, and services survivors.
For this brave Rwandan champion, the sky is not the limit. As she puts it, “As long as you are alive, you can still achieve anything.”
Welcome to Mukamabano’s World
“God is looking for people to manifest his power…The challenge is figuring out who you are, understand your power and unleash your power.”-Mukamabano
“When I was young, my mom told me to select friends because you understand each other and have the same mindset. Not because the person is Hutu or Tutsi.”-Mukamabano
“Forgiveness is the expression of the beauty of God. When you forgive, you are far away from evil.”-Mukamabano
“Friends can kill your vision before your vision comes to life….Ask God.”-Mukamabano
"I must do my duties as a human being so God will perform miracles. Sometimes people forget to do their diligence, saying that they are waiting for God to perform miracles while God is waiting on them to make a decision and step in their own power and ability."-Mukabamano
Connect with Mukamabano
Website: www.whydoiexsist.org
Facebook: Marie Claudine Mukamabano
Instagram: @rwandanorphanssupport
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