Sitting outside of Wells Library, his bleached hair is slicked back, he’s wearing a bright orange camouflage tank top and toting an iPhone. He has big earrings and speaks English well. Looking at him, it’s impossible to know he grew up in a camp on the border of Thailand and Myanmar.
“People never know the things we had to go through,” he said. “They think we’re like everyone else but technically we’re not. We went through hell.”
When Ehr was six months old, in 1997, his parents fled Myanmar because of the violent persecution taking place against ethnic and religious minorities. As Christians, they had no choice but to flee to Thailand, becoming separated along the way.
The journey lasted two weeks on foot in the middle of monsoon ?season.
“Many people got sick because there wasn’t enough food,” Ehr said, remembering what his mother has told him about the trip. “A lot of people died from malaria and diarrhea. People were giving birth along the way. There were children. It was like a worst nightmare.”
When they arrived at the border, the Thai government refused to let them in. Eventually, out of desperation, Ehr’s parents snuck through the fences and into the camp where they would stay for the next nine years.
“I went to school and didn’t have to worry about anything,” Ehr said. “They provided us with food, rice, oil, firewood and shelter. That was normal to me. I didn’t have any knowledge of what life was like ?outside.”
As time passed and the conflict raged on, the camp grew. Ehr’s parents had two baby girls while in the camp. Eventually there were over 10,000 refugees living in an area smaller than IU’s campus.
“Life in the camp was really hard because people couldn’t find work because they didn’t have the documents they needed to work,” Ehr said. “If people were caught working outside the camp, the Thai police would arrest them.”
Ehr says memories from his time in Thailand aren’t all bad. One day in particular stands out in his mind.
“Angelina Jolie came to visit when she was an ambassador for UNICEF,” Ehr said. “She provided the whole camp with TVs. It was a shock for us. We were used to the camp being totally dark at night.”
Jolie’s visit inspired Ehr. When his family eventually came to the United States in 2006, he was determined to get good grades, graduate high school and study international relations at IU. He wants to work for either UNICEF or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
“My past motivates me to work harder,” he said. “I want to help as many people as I can. One day I want to be as famous, well not famous, but close to Angelina Jolie, to help people like me to pursue their dreams.”
For World Refugee Day, Saturday, Ehr said it’s important to think about the struggles currently facing 51.2 million forcibly displaced people in the world. After facing bullying in high school, he wants to encourage people to try harder to understand refugees and make them feel ?accepted.
“We went through a lot and then to see people making fun of you, that just made it harder for us,” he said. “Instead of judging because the person doesn’t understand your culture or your language, try to understand what they’ve been through. You can never tell what someone’s been through.”
