From Child Soldier to Human Rights Activist - Mohamed Sidibay

"We all sometimes find ourselves asking God to bring world peace. But if I were to encounter God or any of his messengers and ask them to bring world peace, they will not be able to help us because war is a by product of man. And only man can bring peace. And Peace must first begin in the mind, body and soul." Those were the words of a man who has given so much love and care to the world, his holiness the Dalai Lama.

Mohamed Sidibay reports:

Kailash Satyarthi is the embodiment of The MY HERO Project purpose. He is a timeless hero, a true champion for children, and a gift to those he touches. Since 1980, he has been fighting to end child labor and human trafficking around the world. He and his foundation have rescued over 85,000 children worldwide I had the honor of first meeting this wonderful man in 2015, at the United Nations General Assembly, "A World at School Town Hall, where I spoke about my experience of being a child soldier in Sierra Leone, and where he was being honored for his tireless effort to end human trafficking and child labor.

A few months after our first encounter I was in Colombia teaching English to underprivileged youths, and I was nominated and selected to serve as a Youth Commissioner on a high level panel called, "The Education Commission on Financing Global Education." To my surprise and excitement, I learned that Kailash was also a member of this panel. When I found myself sitting next to him a few months later, and we were delivering our report to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Kailash and I picked up, right where we had left off...

Kailish told me about his new campaign, the 100millionfor100million Project. I immediately wanted to become involved. "Our goal is to get 100 million children and people with access to resources to pledge to help another 100 million without access to quality education." How could I not be part of this project? Yes was the word that soon followed when he asked if I would like to be involved.

On a long flight to Dubai and then New Delhi 3 months later, I couldn't hold my excitement. I was going to attend the launch of Kailish's program, 100millionfor100million.org

My first excitement was that I was going meet my hero, his holiness, the Dalai Lama. Three hours after my arrival, I found myself at the Presidential Palace in New Delhi for the opening ceremony of this wonderful event.

This was the largest ever gathering of Nobel laureates and world leaders. And there I was, sitting and speaking to some familiar faces of activists and world leaders that I have worked with over the years. Being in a room with so much of India's history, I began to wonder if something would actually happen by the end of that event; if the anger felt by everyone in that room regarding child labor and human trafficking would not just be a viral moment of anger but something that would transform into a movement for change.

When the people that have been rescued by Kailash and his foundation began to speak about the horrors they have experienced, I again pleaded to the leaders not just to listen to their stories and respond, but to listen - to understand - to walk in their shoes, feel their pain and desperation. Then, they must ask themselves - how much urgency is needed to bring an end to the injustice and inequality face by the marginalized children of the world?

I left that summit as a youth leader pledging to do whatever is needed of me to help Nobel laureate Kailash continue this huge movement of getting 100 million people to help another 100 million gain access to quality education.

"To understand why, amid a global health crisis, Black People in America are taking to the streets to protest racism, another disease that cavalierly kills Young Black Boys and Young Black Girls, you must first understand the history of Black People in this country. A history that is as long as the Mississippi River—the artery of America’s slave trade. In 1776, America was founded on the idea that “All Men are Created Equal.” But Blacks were not included—for they were slaves, not men. It was not until 1865 that America outlawed slavery with the 13th Amendment. That was almost 155 years ago.

"If America is serious about race relations, she must first understand that there is no difference between the treatment of Blacks 150 years ago and the treatments of Blacks today. Today, thanks to cellphones and social media creating citizen journalists, we see the horrors that Blacks face every day. People are outraged at the sheer disregard for Black lives, but this isn’t new. America's disregard for Black lives has existed for as long as she has existed. It’s time for America to have an honest conversation with her past. Only then can we truly take another step towards equality."

Mohamed Sidibay
J.D. Candidate 2021 
UNESCO Advisor
Global Partnership for Education -Advisor
MY HERO - Global Outreach

Mohamed Sidibay: Teaching Peace- video