I found this video on my Tumblr roll a month ago or so and I was intrigued by this lady. I don’t remember what Tumblr, but you can check it out at This is Africa). Her name is Vickie Remoe. She was born Sierra Leone, Remoe fled her homeland to the US with her family in 1994 during the civil war. With a political science major under her belt, returned to Sierra Leone in 2007 to help rebuild her country. She started a blog prior to her return as a platform to share photos from a 2005 Centre for Peace and Global Citizenship sponsored trop to Sierra Leone. The blog turned into a hub for conversation for Sierra Leoneans abroad, and from that streamed the Vickie Remoe Show. A lifestyle program covering everything from fashion, the arts, entertainment and politics in Sierra Leone and other parts of Africa.
“The show for me was a way to kind of break into Sierra Leonean society because after a year of being here I still felt like I was [not] inside, like I was on holiday somewhere and not really integrating into the society,” Remoe said. “So I wanted to do something that would bring me closer to every day Sierra Leoneans who were not my family members.”
I have seen a few snippets of the show and I think the show is a fresh conversation for the country. As of August 2011, Vickie moved back to the US and details her experience in the video below.
“This is a personal video reflection on some issues from the time I spent in Sierra Leone. My thoughts range from daily frustrations, relationships with men and women, lack of opportunities for the youth, the expatriate and Lebanese communities, dating, NGOs, entrepreneurship and more. For all those of you thinking of moving back to Sierra Leone here are some things you need to know before you go”.
I admire Vickie in so many ways. The experience of going back home to do something different is something I aspire to. Although, I am not from Sierra Leone, I feel what Vickie is saying. Even though she praises Ghana, some of the issues she discusses in the video are the same as Ghana.
I made a promise to myself this year that I wouldn’t go to Ghana for another four years or so. I was so disappointed with the country when I went back this year, that I couldn’t bare going anytime soon, because I was scared it would just be worse. The Ghana I went to this year, didn’t feel like the progressive Ghana I left two years ago. It felt as if the country had taken a step back. I even left Ghana early than planned because I was that frustrated with the whole situation.
However, after watching this video about 10 billion times, my mind has shifted – only slightly. I am considering moving to Ghana for a year or two in the next four years. You can count on me doing a web series if I go through with it, because I will have plenty to say and plenty of things to show, whether good or bad!!!
SOURCES: SWEET SIERRA LEONE, SWIT SALONE, HOW WE MADE IN AFRICA, FACEBOOK & YOUTUBE
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