Occupation: Student

Country of Birth: Afghanistan

Current: Minneapolis, MN

“We got tired of waiting in a camp that long. Even though the administrators tried their best to help us be comfortable, it was difficult. Especially at the end, when fewer Afghans were left.”

Marwa was born in Kabul, where she shared a life with her parents and six siblings. She had a good life there and felt safer compared to other regions. Though happy with her new life here, Marwa misses the intimacy she felt when they gathered to celebrate Eid and celebrations like Ramadan. 

Five or six months before the Taliban took control of Kabul, Marwa’s family knew they would have to move to the US. She was happy when she heard that they would move to the US and felt confident that school and security would be better.

After a difficult journey to make it to the airport and successfully fly out of Afghanistan, Marwa and her family passed through two camps, Qatar and New Jersey, before finally moving to Minnesota.

For Marwa, life in the US is much better than in Afghanistan. She shares that being safe and secure for the recently arrived Afghans is like a gift. Living in Afghanistan was like living in a cage. Now Marwa feels like a bird that broke out of her cage and is free. 

Marwa thinks all Afghan women should have the right to live as they like, as she does here. She thinks it’s embarrassing and shameful that women and girls are banned from having access to education in Afghanistan. In the future, she aims to become a police officer, a dream Marwa has had since she was a little girl. She’s hopeful she can make it.