ONE Story: Divine Muragijimana

November 12th, 2008 at 2:10 pm

I come from a small village in Burundi, Africa. I came to the US to study, but even more than that I wanted to escape the screams of children suffering or the memories of friends that I lost due to an illness or a bullet. Where I come from, we do not see the suffering on TV and it is not news either because the sick and the poor live among us. I have been one of the lucky ones who get to eat, have some clothes, and attain education. Some of my friends were not so lucky. Working for One, might look good on a resume, but for me, this is personal.

My mother always told me that the strength of Africa lay in the African people. If you are like me, you would probably have to think a little bit deeper to get the meaning from such a statement and you might even be skeptical of such a bold statement. However, I have come to realize that it is true. Let me turn that statement around, the strength of America lies in the hearts and voices of the American people. I became involved with ONE because while I was a student here in the US, I wanted my voice to count for something.

I got connected to ONE because of my interest with working on the HIV/AIDS epidemic, specializing in Africa. Like many of you, I suspect, I heard the RED product advertised on your campuses. I am a music junkie, and I heard about Bono and his work with DATA. I went to the website, and after browsing the site, I was enamored. No, not by Bono, but by the work that the organization did. I have a tendency to scream when I am excited, and I remember scream with excitement because here was an organization that was doing exactly what I was so passionate about. When the two organizations merged together, I was even more excited. I got a chance to come to Washington, DC for a semester to intern. ONE was my first and last choice. I wanted to work with ONE because it impresses on taking a multi-faceted look at fighting AIDS and extreme poverty. I love working for ONE mainly because the organization works to advocate for real change. I highly appreciate that this organization recognizes that, the world’s poor’s greatest ally is the international community; a community that goes beyond national, political and religious boundaries.

It is Bono who said that fighting for the least among us has gone beyond charity, and now it is a matter of Justice. What is more just than working with an organization that raises the voices of many on behalf of those who are unable to do so? It almost sounds like a cliché, but then you only have to seat down with some of the interns here at one, and hear their stories that compel them to be in this office. Or even just seating through a meeting, generating ideas, on effective ways of advocacy and policy change. As an African, it does not get any more humbling than this- seating in a room listening and watching people fighting to help those you love. I am compelled to act, as a Christian, an African, a student- as a human being.

-Divine Muragijimana