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After fleeing my home life in Nimba County""where just being born a girl had been a curse""to seek refuge in Monrovia with one of my older sisters, I was once again confronted with yet another dilemma. A civil war had erupted in Liberia, and I found myself being a member of one of the opposing tribes, and must endeavor to keep my tribal identity hidden.On Christmas Eve of 1989, the West African Nation of Liberia was attacked by a gang of rebel forces led by Charles Taylor through Nimba County. To counter the insurgency, the president sent a special tactical force to Nimba County to restrain the brewing fight. However, the group went on the offensive, attacking and killing civilians indiscriminately. By the time it was over, in just a short time frame, almost thousands of people had been executed, but that was just the beginning of the birth pain""tribes had been pitted against other tribes.
The Mano and Gio tribe members of Nimba County were being hunted and killed in Monrovia, just as the president's Krahn ethnic group was being sought after in other parts of the country by rebels. And just like that, being Mano and living in Monrovia, my sister, her family, and I became part of the enemy of the state.
To survive, we concealed our tribal identity, endured a series of narrow escapes, and walked several thousand miles to escape Liberia. This is my story and my account of what I saw happened as a child.
