FBU-2020-06-28
Interviewer
Adna Karamehic-Oates
Date of Interview
Winter 6-28-2020
Interview Location
London, UK; St. Louis, MO
Length of Interview
58:49
Date of Birth
1997
Gender
Female
Religion and/or Ethnicity
None Given
Description
Born in Sarajevo and lived there until 1999 when the family moved to Grand Forks, ND. Her younger sister Elma was soon born and the family moved to Saint Louis in 2000. Her mother suffered from severe mental health issues as a result of her experience during the war. Her mother was the victim of rape and had an abortion before Selma was born. Selma and her sister were in and out of foster care, sometimes living with biological parents, until they were adopted in 2008 by an American couple. She believes that her mother could not take care of children because of her mental illness and her father was very traditional. Her father was a truck driver and gone for ling periods. She remembers domestice abuse in the house when she was young.. She describes a lot of anxiety growing up and not knowing what would trigger her mothers manic outbursts. She recalls once her mother shaving her own head in a fit of mania and screaming at the neighbors in Bosnian. Selma describes the imapact of her early childhood trauma as having to learn to take care of herself and sister at a young age and these habits persist today. She has reconnected with her extended Bosnian family and is discovering her culture that she feels she lost. Her father passed in 2018 and her mother passed in June 2020. She has complex feelings towards her parents. She describes hating her mom for most of her life, but recently has felt closer to her after learning about what she went through and her mental health issues. Selma plans to make films about her story.
Keywords
Sarajevo, foster care, adoption, mental health, rape, family reunification, discovering Bosnian culture
First Country of Residence
United States
First US Residence
Grand Forks, ND
Document Type
Oral History
Collection
Fontbonne University
Digital Format
MP4
Digital Publisher
Center for Bosnian Studies
City
St. Louis, MO
Copyright Note
These oral histories are made available by the Center for Bosnian Studies for research, educational, scholarly, and/or creative purposes only. All uses should adhere to the principle of fair use established under Section 107 of Title 17 the 1976 Copyright Act. More on fair use is available here: https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/.
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