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Next Couple Hours: A Story of Fear, Loss, Courage, and Determination During and After the Genocide Against Tutsis in Rwanda
“You’re not a victim for sharing your story. You are a survivor setting the world on fire with your truth. And you never know who needs your light, your warmth, and raging courage.” —Alex Elle
Providence Umugwaneza was eleven the night Hutu radicals began massacring members of her ethnic group, the Tutsis, in Rwanda. While Provie escaped with her aunt, most of the rest of her family was slaughtered in a horrific event the world now recognizes as the 1994 genocide against Tutsis. A woman of faith and thankful to have survived, now Provie considers it both a privilege and her duty to testify—about social justice, community healing, and those mass killings still going on in the world today—until her last breath. She wants everyone to know that regardless of the hate they may have witnessed or endured, as children of God, each member of the human race is deserving of life and love.
Providence Umugwaneza was eleven the night Hutu radicals began massacring members of her ethnic group, the Tutsis, in Rwanda. While Provie escaped with her aunt, most of the rest of her family was slaughtered in a horrific event the world now recognizes as the 1994 genocide against Tutsis. A woman of faith and thankful to have survived, now Provie considers it both a privilege and her duty to testify—about social justice, community healing, and those mass killings still going on in the world today—until her last breath. She wants everyone to know that regardless of the hate they may have witnessed or endured, as children of God, each member of the human race is deserving of life and love.
132 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 18, 2022
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May 9, 2023
Rwanda is made up of three ethnic groups: Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa. The population is mostly made up of Hutus, with Tutsis making up another but much smaller portion. Historically, these two groups have clashed, and the Tutsis have endured bullying and racial abuse at the hands of the Hutus.
In 1994, eleven-year-old Providence "Provie" Umugwaneza, a Rwandan of Tutsi ethnicity, left her home to spend some time with her Aunt, who had just had a baby. Provie was asked to help her Aunt out in those first days of motherhood. Provie enjoyed helping out but missed her family, who she was very close to.
Within a few days of arriving at her Aunt's, Hutu radicals carried out a massive raid of genocide, massacring most of the people of Provie's village, including her parents and most of her seven siblings. Besides Provie, a grandmother, a brother, and a sister survived. At the time of the genocide Provie, her Aunt, and her baby cousin fled to the home of an extended family member who was a Hutu. They had to hide in the swamp behind the house, in order to keep everyone safe. They were eventually rescued by a refugee organization.
This book is Provie's story. She talks about those fearful days of hiding and her rescue, and her life after the genocide. Today Provie lives in San Antonio, Texas, with her husband and children. She has been appointed by Governor Greg Abbot to the Texas Holocaust, Genocide, and Antisemitism Advisory Commission and advocates for women and girls infected with HIV/AIDS during the genocide. This is a haunting story that reminds us that racism and hate can be found in every corner of the world, and it takes people like Provie to tell their stories to educate us on the atrocities of the past and plant seeds for a better future. Despite what she has endured, Provie has a positive and respectful message for her readers.
In 1994, eleven-year-old Providence "Provie" Umugwaneza, a Rwandan of Tutsi ethnicity, left her home to spend some time with her Aunt, who had just had a baby. Provie was asked to help her Aunt out in those first days of motherhood. Provie enjoyed helping out but missed her family, who she was very close to.
Within a few days of arriving at her Aunt's, Hutu radicals carried out a massive raid of genocide, massacring most of the people of Provie's village, including her parents and most of her seven siblings. Besides Provie, a grandmother, a brother, and a sister survived. At the time of the genocide Provie, her Aunt, and her baby cousin fled to the home of an extended family member who was a Hutu. They had to hide in the swamp behind the house, in order to keep everyone safe. They were eventually rescued by a refugee organization.
This book is Provie's story. She talks about those fearful days of hiding and her rescue, and her life after the genocide. Today Provie lives in San Antonio, Texas, with her husband and children. She has been appointed by Governor Greg Abbot to the Texas Holocaust, Genocide, and Antisemitism Advisory Commission and advocates for women and girls infected with HIV/AIDS during the genocide. This is a haunting story that reminds us that racism and hate can be found in every corner of the world, and it takes people like Provie to tell their stories to educate us on the atrocities of the past and plant seeds for a better future. Despite what she has endured, Provie has a positive and respectful message for her readers.
Displaying 1 of 1 review