FBU-2021-01-31
Interviewer
Behidin Piric
Date of Interview
Winter 1-31-2021
Interview Location
Richmond,VA; St. Louis, MO
Length of Interview
21:32
Date of Birth
1995
Gender
Male
Religion and/or Ethnicity
None Given
Description
He was born in Tinja Donja, outside Srebrenica, in 1995. His biological father was killed during the war and his remains have been located. He does not remember life in Bosnia before coming to the United States in 2002 with his mother, step-dad, and brother. He remembers they had nothing when they arrived and lived with an uncle in Richmond until his parents were able to save enough money for an apartment. He has a sister who was born in the U.S. He remembers being uncomfortable early on in school, but that he learned the language fairly quickly and made friends. He is a supervisor at a manufacturing plant where many Bosnians work. Older generations haven’t needed or wanted to learn English, and can survive without it. He is worried the younger generation will lose all connection to Bosnian culture. He goes back to Bosnia to visit his grandmother and some other family who moved back to the family home in Srebrenica.
Keywords
Srebrenica, School, Growing up in America, Language, Cultural Retention
Wartime Residence
Tinja Donja
First Country of Residence
United States
First US Residence
Richmond, VA
Document Type
Oral History
Collection
Fontbonne University
Digital Format
MP3
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/.
Rights Statement
