Bok began his story at the age of seven, when his village was attacked by Arabs from Northern Sudan while he was out at a market in a neighboring town. The attacked killed his parents and most of his family. The raiders then moved on to the market, killing men, women, and children and taking others captive. Eventually, Bok was delivered to the farm of an Arab family, where he would remain as a slave for 10 years.
Bok described his terrible treatment at the hands of this family. He recalled being particularly affected by a feeling of isolation, as he was not allowed to speak to any member of the family. After many years of regular beatings and torment, he made two failed attempts to escape, and was promised after the second attempt that he would be killed if caught trying to escape again. Yet eventually, Bok made a final attempt and escaped from his captors.
Soon, Bok made it out of Sudan and into Egypt, gained amnesty into the U.S. and began living in Boston. After a period of uncomfortable isolation, he relocated to Iowa where there was a large community of Sudanese refugees. Later, he went to Boston where he began speaking to local groups about his experiences. He has also spoken on Capitol Hill and at many other events.
Bok's message, even during the story of his captivity, was not one of hatred or anger. "I'm not anti-anybody. I'm not anti-Arab when I mention Arabs, and I'm not anti-Muslim when I mention Muslims," he said.
Students were glad they had the opportunity to hear Bok's message. "It was inspiring to hear someone discuss the tragedies in their life without succumbing to bitterness or hatred," Brandon Mendoza '08 commented. "The stress of school, and the never-ending gossip around campus, often blinds us to the real problems in the world. If nothing else, speakers like Bok help give us a genuine perspective of the world that professors and academic journals never can," he added. Michael Baca '06 appreciated Bok's first-hand account of the horrors of slavery. "Francis Bok's lecture drove home the gross human rights abuses taking place in the Sudan," Baca said.
During the question and answer session, Bok was asked about the current situation in Darfur, including what governments, the United Nations (U.N.), and even students should be doing to help. He criticized the U.N.'s inaction in Darfur, saying that "The U.N. has not done its job. They were founded to help situations like what is happening in Darfur right now, but instead they just sit back there."
The lecture came on the heels of the decision by Amherst Board of Trustees to divest from their holdings in Sudan. Bok commended Amherst's decision to divest. "That's a great thing," he said, "and I can't thank the students enough, the students who protested about this." He said that to do business with Sudanese companies was to buy goods that were taken at the expense of his people. "Everything that benefits them is used against us," he said.
Bok was brought to Amherst by ReThink, a student political group founded by Michael Simmons '06 in 2004, which dissolved in April of that year only to be recreated by Simmons and Conor Clarke '07 this semester. Bok's lecture marked the first event hosted by ReThink in its second incarnation. "Bok's vivid recounting of his experiences as a slave in northern Sudan and his escape certainly were fitting for our kickoff event," Simmons commented. He hopes that ReThink will give students an outlet to share their own political insights and provide them with opportunities to get involved.