Winner of both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, God Grew Tired of Us explores the indomitable spirit of three “Lost Boys” from the Sudan who leave their homeland, triumph over seemingly insurmountable adversities, and move to America. Orphaned by a tumultuous civil war, John Bul Dau, Daniel Abol Pach, and Panther Blor were among the 25,000 “Lost Boys” who traveled together for five years across the sub-Saharan desert to reach UN’s refugee camps in Kakuma, Kenya. A journey’s end for some, it was only the beginning for John, Daniel, and Panther, who, along with 3,800 other young survivors, were selected to resettle in the United States. From the trans-Atlantic flights that take them to America, to a supermarket visit where they encounter an endless bounty of food, the cameras observe three resilient young men in a complex and confusing western world. In time, John, Daniel, and Panther were able to build active and fulfilling new lives while remaining deeply committed to helping their friends and family left behind in Africa.
Please join us for a provocative panel discussion and Q&A session immediately following the film.
Featured Panelists:
Suliman Baldo, Deputy Director, Middle East and North Africa Program, The International Center for Transitional Justice
John Bul Dau, Founder, Duk Lost Boys Clinic and the American Care for Sudan Foundation; Director, Sudan Project for Direct Change
John Prendergast, Senior Adviser, International Crisis Group
Christopher Quinn, Producer and Director, God Grew Tired of Us
Gayle Smith, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress
Moderated By:
Anna Soellner, Director of Outreach and Special Events, Center for American Progress