HOW DARE THE SUN RISE

Activist Sandra Uwiringiyimana's memoir War Child, written with journalist Abigail Pesta, about Sandra's childhood escape from a massacre at a refugee camp in Africa, her journey to a new life in America as a teenager, and her quest to make peace with her past through art.

Sandra Uwiringiy'imana grew up in the South Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. One of seven siblings, she lived in a modest home and studied hard at school, but faced discrimination against her ethnic group, the Banyamulenge, which had deep roots in nearby Rwanda. Some people didn’t view them as truly Congolese. After fighting escalated in 2014, her family fled to a refugee camp, which was then attacked. As part of a UN program, her family was relocated to the US. Now, every year on Aug. 13, the anniversary of the attack, the survivors in the U.S. meet. They sing, talk, and remember. In recent years, Sandra and her brother Alex have begun taking portraits of the survivors at these gatherings. It’s another way to tell their story. Sandra Uwiringiy'imana has met the Obamas and Oprah, and has appeared before the UN at a Security Council meeting. She was part of Tina Brown's Women in the World Summit and has contacts with the Women's Refugee Commission.