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Zlata Mucic'

Zlata Mucic'

St Louis Park Resident, Parent and Immigrant from Bosnia

Born: Bosnia and Herzegovina
Heritage: Bosnian

Try to work hard at school. Try to go to college and try to go see the rest of the world.

Zlata Mucic'

St Louis Park Resident, Parent and Immigrant from Bosnia

I was born in 1964 in Bosnia Herzegovina. We grew up with Christians and Muslims. When the war started, my children went to Muslim and Christian classes. Shared Adam and Eve stories. We didn’t worry about who is Muslim and who is not.

My children are Majra, who is 20, and Amra, who is 12. My husband is Edin.

At the time of President Tito it was a really nice life, like here. We had freedom. Josip Broz Tito was the president till his death in 1980. After that, tensions arose in Yugoslavia and conflicts started in 1991 when Slovenia declared independence from Yugoslavia.

In April of 1992, aggression by Serbia-Montenegro started and Bosnians suffered the most losses. Somewhere between 100,000 and 250,000 died in genocide and during ethnic cleansing. When people ask me about Bosnia and I tell them my religion, Muslim, they are confused. They think if you are Muslim you must be Arab.

I came here in 1995. It was a hard life. My husband and I wanted to give our kids a chance to have a better life than we had. Our daughter was four years old and I had to go to work. Work was mandatory. The men had to go fight in the war. He had to go to different cities. My city was mostly Muslim people. We were all put into one city. Non-Muslims wanted us to die.
The only things to buy were on the black market. For one egg we had to pay $5. I remember one time in 1995 when my daughter wanted chocolate. We couldn’t afford it.

It took us two years to get permission to come to Minnesota. We came here in July 2001. One thing I remember on the first day when we came to America we saw only smiles on people who live here. They wondered why we were so sad.

HONOR SONG LYRICS

Herzegovina and Bosnia My Home

Honoring Zlata Mucic'

Herzegovina and Bosnia My Home
(Honoring Zlata Mucic′)

(CHORUS)
Oh me – why is there so much war
Oh my – what are we doing that for

My people are Muslim but I grew
Up with Christians and with Jews Went to school together – played a lot
In those days of Tito – seldom fought
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
We use to be part of the Empire of Rome
Then the Turkish Kingdom came and took control
In 1463 – called the Ottoman
That’s when my people became Islam
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
(Chorus)

Four hundred years later Austro-Hungarian
Then not long after Yugoslavia
After we fought in World War II
To defeat the Nazi’s for me and you
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
In those days of Tito it was really nice
We had the freedom to live a good life
Health care and education granted to all
During summer vacations we had a ball
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
(Chorus)

My home, Sarajevo the only city besides Jerusalem, where you can find
A mosque, a synagogue, and a church
Within one hundred meters our lives merged
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
Some call it ethnic cleansing, others genocide
Not long after Tito died
Seven years of war when the war was through
The country we loved was split in two

Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
(Chorus)

In 1995 we could not afford
To buy chocolate for our children we were too poor
To buy chocolate for our children, so we came here
To the United States, I hold dear
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
One thing I remember on that first day
When we first came to the U.S. of A.
People were walking and smiling and such
I wanted to be like them so much
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home
(Chorus)

Something I want to tell you, “Try to work hard
Try to go to college
And you will go far
You might not understand now what it means
But when you have a passport you are free!”
Herzegovina and Bosnia my home

Words & music by Larry Long with Mrs. Smith’s & Ms. Robinson’s 6th Grade Class of Cedar Manor Intermediate Center, St. Louis Park, Minnesota

© Larry Long 2008 / BMI