Afghanistan

I Had to Protect My Daughters

I brought my daughters here for their sake

Mosuma
Mosuma

Edited by Sarah Porter

Photography by Lindsay Silsby

I have six children, four daughters and two sons. My husband was a soldier. He lost both of his feet when he was fighting to defend our homeland. He died four years ago because his feet kept pouring out filth.

After he was injured my daughters and I were in danger because we had no man to speak for us or to protect us. Everybody protested and told us, “Your husband is a cripple and he cannot protect his wife and children.”

After his death our situation became even worse. They said my daughters must get married. But my daughters refused. They would have forcibly married my girls off and their studies would have been in vain. They would have destroyed their lives and it would be worse for me.

I brought my daughters here for their sake. I told them that regardless of what happens to me, they must be in a safe place for they have their own wishes, too.

Mosuma and her five children are currently living destitute in a camp in Serbia, trapped behind closed borders and cut off from opportunity. They are unable to go back, and unable to move ahead.

Mosuma
Afghanistan

Mosumas Daughters Painting Fingernails
Mosuma's daughters painting fingernails
Mosumas Oldest And Youngest
Mosuma's oldest daughter with her youngest son
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Our team members obtain informed consent from each individual before an interview takes place. Individuals dictate where their stories may be shared and what personal information they wish to keep private. In situations where the individual is at risk and/or wishes to remain anonymous, alias names are used and other identifying information is removed from interviews immediately after they are received by TSOS. We have also committed not to use refugee images or stories for fundraising purposes without explicit permission. Our top priority is to protect and honor the wishes of our interview subjects.

What would you do if you had to leave everything behind?

By the end of 2025, more than 117.8 million people worldwide had been forcibly displaced by war, persecution, or human rights abuses — and 45 million of them are children.

They arrive in refugee camps and countries seeking safety and carrying little: legal papers, if they're lucky. A backpack. A child's hand in theirs.

What they carry that we can't see is heavier: fractured families, homes they'll never return to, professions they loved, friends and relatives they may never see again.

In a climate where immigrant stories are often ignored or twisted, we believe stories are a form of justice. When someone shares what they survived, they reclaim their voice. When we amplify it through film, photography, and advocacy, the world listens. Hearts soften. Policy begins to shift.

Because when a lawmaker sees a person instead of a statistic, and a neighbor understands instead of fears, rebuilding becomes possible.

Your support helps us share these stories where they matter most.

— Kristen Smith Dayley, Executive Director, Their Story is Our Story

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