Liz Ferrari’s Family Ties to Rwandan Genocide

Podcast Vibe

In this deeply reflective conversation, Liz Ferrari speaks about her family’s connection to the Rwandan genocide and how historical trauma can echo across generations. The focus of this interview is on memory, education, and understanding, rather than graphic detail.  This video takes a documentary-style approach to exploring how global tragedies affect families long after events have passed, and why acknowledging history is essential for healing and awareness. Liz shares her perspective on learning difficult truths, honoring those affected, and the importance of open dialogue around collective trauma.  Ideal for viewers interested in real-life stories, historical reflection, and meaningful conversations, this episode offers thoughtful insight into how personal identity can be shaped by history and why remembrance matters.  Whether you’re seeking to better understand generational trauma or value interviews that address serious subjects with empathy and care, this video provides context, reflection, and perspective.  👉 Follow our DailyMotion channel for more interviews, real stories, and documentary-style discussions. 👍 Like, comment, and share to support the channel’s growth.  #LizFerrari #Interview #Documentary #RealStories #History #RealTalk

Transcript

00:00Let's start from the beginning. You actually grew up in South Africa, but that's not where

00:04your family is from. So tell us a little bit about your background. Okay. So I was born in

00:09South Africa. My dad, when he lived in Rwanda, he worked for the government and he was also in the

00:17war for the genocide. He was an RPF member. So he was the Tutsis, the like rescued everyone kind of,

00:28you know? So the genocide was between the Hutus and the Tutsis and he was on the Tutsi army and he

00:37also worked in the government. So after the war, he was able to move my family to South Africa so that

00:42we can grow up there and have a lovely home and everything and be away from kind of turmoil and

00:50any kind of leftovers from the war. Right. Okay. So tell us a little bit about your actual family in

00:57Rwanda because you come from like an aristocratic background. Is that right? I do. So my, uh, I'm a

01:03descendant of Kings and Queens and everything. And there's a lot of descendants, but, um, during

01:091959 or so, um, the Rwandan Tutsis were exiled from Rwanda and the monarch like fell apart. That's

01:20when the King was exiled. And so my parents, parents grew up during that time. So they had

01:27to flee Rwanda and they moved to Uganda and my dad and my mom grew up in refugee camps and stuff. So

01:34they didn't get to enjoy their country necessarily anymore. Um, so, uh, as refugees, they, they suffered

01:42a lot. Yeah. Yeah. I can imagine. Um, when they got exiled, uh, there was like a civil war that

01:48happened and my great grandma, um, she was thrown in like a latrine, like a hole in the ground where

01:56you go potty and she, she died a horrible death. Um, yeah. So the rest of my family was just lucky

02:03to get out of them. Wow. This is your great grandmother. She was murdered and it was terrible,

02:09but it was between the Hutus and the Tutsis. So the Tutsi when Rwanda was founded were the monarch,

02:16like the royalty people. Right. And the Hutus were like farmers and agriculture and stuff.

02:22And until the Belgians came, there was no identification for that. You know, it wasn't

02:28like you're a Hutu because your ID card says that. So when the Belgians came, they, um, enforced this ID

02:35thing and it really caused a lot of turmoil and led to civil wars and, and the genocide eventually.

02:42So they kind of wanted to categorize everybody. I would imagine in a way to be able to conquer

02:49and rule them. So like the Tutsis were described as tall with long, thin noses. And, uh, the Tutsis

02:57were described as shorter with like flatter nose and, um, wait, the Hutu, which one? The Hutus were

03:04the, the farmers and stuff. So the Tutsis were the royalty and stuff. Right. And they had the long

03:10thin noses and the tallness and the tallness can be up to seven feet tall as a Tutsi. And there's a

03:15picture from like 1961 of like the Belgians coming and there's the Tutsi men, the Kings

03:22and Queens. And they were just like this tall and the Belgians are like right next to them

03:26but they're so tiny. And they kind of favored the Tutsis when they came to Rwanda. And

03:32Was it cause they were, cause they were the ruling class at the time. Right. So that caused

03:36a lot of like hatred and racism within our own country. Right. And that led to the Hutus like

03:44exiling a bunch of Tutsis about 300,000 people were kicked out in the sixties. Wow. My parents

03:50grew up in that time. So it was kind of like the, the underclass, which is what the Hutus

03:57had been made. Yep. Like overthrowing the Bunibuaji. Right. And they kicked them out and now they're,

04:03then they were in power for about 10 years or something. And the genocide started when the

04:08Hutu president, um, I think he was trying to do a deal. I don't quote me on this, but they

04:15were trying to have a balance within the government with Tutsis and Hutus, you know? So he signed

04:21an agreement, I believe, or something to join these two people. And then his, his plane got

04:26shot down and he was with the, the Burundi president as well. And that's what kicked off

04:31the genocide of 94 is the plane crash and they blame it on Tutsis or Hutu extremists. Like it's

04:38unclear who shot the plane down, but it definitely kickstarted the war and Hutus. Cause there was

04:44like a power vacuum. Right. And so they were on the radio and stuff doing all kinds of propaganda

04:49and TV and stuff. Like you should go kill all the Tutsis. They're the reason for your problems.

04:54They just shot down the president, like go murder them now. And about 800,000 people were killed

05:01in like six weeks. Neighbors just started murdering people. And like, if your neighbor's a Hutu and

05:08they know you're a Tutsi, they would just come in with machetes and just murder your whole family.

05:12So it wasn't just like the government coming after people. It was like everyone, you know,

05:16would just murder you. So there's a lot of horrible, horrible stories. And the church sometimes would

05:23lie to people. Like, uh, the priest would be like a Hutu, right? And he would get a bribe

05:29from the extremists. Like you get as many Tutsis in this church as you can. And they'd put grenades

05:35in there and just blow them all up as under false pretenses. Like we're going to save you,

05:39come to the church, we'll rescue all the Tutsis and then you get murdered. Yeah. It's pretty awful

05:45stuff. Yeah. So, so your father was able to escape. Sounds like your great grandmother did not.

05:52But your grandmother and your grandfather did with your, with your father. And then your mother

05:59went through the same, she went through the exact same thing. They were actually like family friends

06:03at the time. Okay. So they kind of grew up knowing each other. And my dad was a little bit older than

06:08my mom and they fell madly in love. And, um, during the war, my dad was actually in the army to try to

06:15get Rwanda back because there was a, uh, a political party called the RPF and they were founded by the

06:24Tutsis that were exiled in the sixties, um, to come back and take Rwanda back, you know? And my dad

06:31was part of that. Um, so he saw a lot of awful things. Yeah. But, um, uh, the RPF eventually won the

06:40war. And so the leader of the RPF Kagame, he's the president to this day. Okay. So they, they kind

06:49of won and rescued Rwanda. Yeah. Yeah. So what is, what is the political climate like now there?

06:56It is good. Um, yes, he's back there. He retired from his job in the government and, um, the country

07:06as a whole is about forgiveness. You know, I've never seen a group of people go through so much

07:11hatred and turmoil and then turn around and hold hands with everyone and just be like, let's never

07:17let this happen again. And let's move on as a country and try to be better. And economically,

07:22they're just developing like crazy. Like it's a really lovely country. It's one of the cleanest

07:28countries in Africa. There's gorgeous hotels and resorts and mountain gorillas. If you like those,

07:35you can go to a resort and spend time with them alongside them. And that's something I've always

07:40wanted to do. So maybe I'll, maybe I'll go back for that. Wow. So you would recommend that like

07:45people visit Rwanda? Oh yeah. Big time. It's gorgeous. The hotels are pristine. They've just made

07:51like a whole, um, like movement to, for, for forgiveness. And these people that did the genocide

07:59and stuff like there, they will have meetings between the families that they murdered and the

08:05murderers, and they will come and apologize and have like public apologies. And it's so emotional.

08:12Wow. Like it's really incredible. And they really come in. Some people forgive them. Some people don't

08:16forgive them, but it's about the effort. Right. As a nation. Yeah. I mean, we, we definitely shy away

08:24from like political conversations on this show just because that's generally not what people are here

08:28for, but I mean, you know, we can't ignore what's going on in Israel and in Gaza right now. So when you

08:36see that and people are like calling it a genocide, um, how does that make you feel knowing what your

08:41family went through? It's devastating because I know it's been like a long war between Israel and, uh,

08:49Palestine for like a long, long, long time. Yeah. It just breaks my heart because there is so much

08:56love to be had in the world, but a lot of times people choose to hate and it, I think it roots

09:03from ignorance. You know, if we could just all be a little bit more kinder to each other and consider

09:08it that we're just human beings and you won't have such awful things, but that's, you know,

09:13like cartoon world. Nothing really happens that way. And people do have conflict and it's just

09:20heartbreaking. Hello, my amazing listeners. You know how much I love bringing this podcast to your

09:27ears every week. So if you're looking a way to support the show and get some fantastic perks,

09:32I've got just the thing, my Patreon page with plans starting at just $5 a month, you can be part of our

09:39exclusive community. Your support not only helps to keep this podcast going, but it also unlocks

09:44some really cool bonuses. Imagine getting access to the live streams of my interviews as they happen.

09:50You'll be right in the middle of the action, seeing all of the inedited moments, but that's not all.

09:55As a Patreon member, you'll also get exclusive bonus content. I'm talking extra mini episodes where our

10:02guests answer questions submitted by you. Plus you'll have access to my fine art photography and

10:07behind the scenes videos, giving you a sneak peek into my creative process. And guess what? If you

10:13opt for a discounted year long membership, you'll save even more while supporting the show. Longtime

10:19subscribers even get free HRU merchandise as a token of my gratitude. So want to join us? Head over

10:25to patreon.com slash hollyrandallunfiltered and become a part of our growing community. Your support

10:32means the world to me. Let's make this podcast even better.

Category

Transcript

Comments

Recommended