Stories As We Move: A HOME Interview Series 2022/2023

Mekdes Woldemariam (Ethiopia/Milwaukee) in conversation with Hlawn Hlawn (Myanmar/California) on February 18, 2023

Stories As We Move: A HOME Interview Series is an ongoing project that launched in 2020 as part of Lynden's HOME virtual platform. Previously named HOME Conversations with Ourselves, the series pairs individuals that have faced forced displacement and its changing forms in a conversational setting that is both purposeful and informational to interviewer, interviewee and their audience. Refugees, asylum seekers and migrants interview those that have resettled to the United States, including friends and family that are based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as well as those that remain overseas, covering various backgrounds and narrative identities, and professions, expertise and interests, including but not limited to artists, community members, advocates and leaders, healthcare workers, caseworkers, interpreters, and students and educators. These interviews are reflections of relationships and conversations that we continue to have long after resettlement; they explore issues that our refugee friends and family members continue to face as they remain in their country of origin or interim country.

About Mekdes Woldemariam
Mekdes Woldemariam was born and raised in Ethiopia in a city called Bahir Dar, which literally translates to “by the lake.” She is a proud Ethiopian, a nation that has over 80 ethnic groups and over 90 different languages.

About Biak Tha Hlawn
Biak Tha Hlawn, or Hlawn Hlawn, is an undergraduate student attending Stanford University with an intended major in international relations. Hlawn Hlawn was born and raised in Thantlang, Chin State, and briefly relocated to Malaysia from 2008 to 2010 before immigrating to the United States. She has served in many leadership roles throughout her years in high school at Ronald Reagan and graduated with distinction. Hlawn Hlawn continues her passion for advocacy and activism to this day. In response to the February 1st military coup in 2021, she co-founded Chin Leaders, a Chin youth-led organization, and serves as the Executive Director. At the United States Advocacy Coalition for Myanmar (USACM), she serves as the social media manager and lobbyist. At Stanford, she serves as a fellow for the Asian Women’s Alliance’s Service and Advocacy Committee. Hlawn Hlawn is a Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America (LEDA) Scholar, Elks Scholar, and Horatio Alger National Scholar. In addition, she has been named the 2019 Youth of the Year by Carson Chin Baptist Church and Senior of the Year by the Milwaukee Public Schools district. Hlawn Hlawn aspires to be the change she seeks in the world.

Check out the entire collection of Stories As We Move: A HOME Interview Series here.