Interview with Gary Tower Brown, September 17, 2020

Partial Transcript: Hello. Today is September 17, 2020. My name is Jay Sztuk. I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Fiji in 1974 through '76. And, uh, today, I am going to be interviewing Gary Tower Brown who was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Somalia, uh, 1966 through 1969. Gary worked in the education program there, uh, health, and also youth in development.

Segment Synopsis: Brown grew up on a farm in western New York state. As a junior in high school, Brown went to Belgium as part of an American Field Service program and first became aware of the Peace Corps. After high school, Brown attended SUNY Buffalo and studied to be a pharmacist. Brown had a cousin who was in the Peace Corps in Peru and was having an interesting time. So, halfway through his 5-year program, Brown took the Peace Corps entrance exam and passed. After Brown graduated and got his pharmacist license, he contacted the Peace Corps again. Brown was offered and accepted a teaching post in Somalia.

Keywords: American Field Service; Awareness; Career paths; Choices; College majors; Commitments; Examinations; Exams; Family; High schools; Influences; New York; Traveling

Subjects: Belgium; Canada; Emotions; International travel; Parents; Peace Corps (U.S.)--1960-1970; Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Peru; Teaching; Universities and colleges; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: So, our training was at, uh, Columbia University, uh, Teachers' College. Great school.

Segment Synopsis: Of the 60 trainees who started in Brown's group, 44 finished. Besides language training, Brown's cohort did practice teaching and community service.

Keywords: Columbia University; Community service; Language training; Practice teaching; Technical training

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: Um, Somalia's a country about the size of Texas.

Segment Synopsis: Brown gives an overview of Somalia. At his rural work site, Brown found the people unfriendly. His house was broken into twice. Brown never even began teaching at his work site. Brown returned to Mogadishu with the intent of quitting Peace Corps. There was some anti-American sentiment as the U.S. was supporting Ethiopia which was Somalia's traditional enemy. As an alternative, Brown agreed to join a small team from the World Health Organization which was starting a pre-vaccination tuberculosis survey. Subsequently, for the next year, Brown traveled around northern Somalia as part of a team which gave tuberculosis skin tests and vaccinations. Brown had a place to stay in Hargeisa but work took him away 80% of the time.

Keywords: Anti-Americanism; Changes; Choices; Difficult; Flexibility; Haile Selassie; Hargeisa (Somalia); Illness; Improvements; Inoculations; Language barriers; Learning; Local people; Locals; Medicine; Mogadishu (Somalia); Peace Corps directors; Problems; Quitting; Returned Peace Corps Volunteers; Returning; Rural areas; Self-confidence; Sickness; Skills; Texas; Travel; Traveling; Tuberculosis; Vaccinations; Vaccines; World Health Organization

Subjects: Culture shock; Ethiopia; Ghana; Interpersonal relations; Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Public health; Somalia; Stress (Psychology); United Nations; United States; Voluntarism; Volunteer workers in medical care; Volunteers; World politics

Partial Transcript: So, I ended up back at the end of the year in Mogadishu again. We were reporting to W.H.O., the, the TB hospital, our findings and, and de-briefing with them.

Segment Synopsis: As the tuberculosis survey ended, Brown was back in Mogadishu. Brown noticed a lot of people with disabilities and was told the cause was polio. Brown went to the U.S.A.I.D. office and asked if they could supply polio vaccines to treat the children in Mogadishu. After U.S.A.I.D. agreed, Brown helped to implement the program through his contacts at the Ministry of Health.

Keywords: Bureaucracy; Community involvement; Cooperation; Disabled persons; Illness; Improvements; Medicine; Mogadishu (Somalia); Polio; Sickness; Support; Sustainability; Tuberculosis; Vaccinations; Vaccines; World Health Organization

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; People with disabilities; United Nations; United States. Agency for International Development; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: And, uh, I had been in the north with a fellow named, uh, Chuck Baquet, who was, uh, one group ahead of me in Somalia III.

Segment Synopsis: While implementing the polio program, Brown's route took him past the Mogadishu central prison. One day, Brown stopped at the prison and asked the commander if there was anything Brown could do there. The commander took Brown to the youth detention where 80 kids, age 10 to 17, were locked up in one room 23 out of every 24 hours. Most of the kids had been picked up for petty infractions and had to wait up to 6 months before being brought before a judge who would often just send the kid home. Brown suggested a morning sports and recreation program run by Brown which began the next morning. As a result, fighting among the youths stopped and they became supportive of each other.

Keywords: Age ranges; Changes; Charles Baquet III; Cohorts; Friends; Improvements; Kids; Mogadishu (Somalia); Peace Corps staff; Prisons; Support networks; Young people; Youth development

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers; Washington (D.C.)

Partial Transcript: I was, um, getting near to the end of my 2 years. And I thought, you know, this has some ways to go. It, it could be so much better. So, I asked for a third year extension.

Segment Synopsis: When Brown informed the Peace Corps staff that he was working at the prison in the mornings and doing the polio program in the afternoons, they were supportive of him. Brown suggested to the prison commander that Brown could provide some education to the youths, to which the commander agreed. Brown also suggested that teachers among the adult prison population be asked to teach the youths and this came to pass. Brown also provided some English instruction to the adult prisoners.

Keywords: Changes; Education programs; Improvements; Peace Corps staff; Support; Teaching English as a foreign language; Young people; Youth development

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Teachers; Voluntarism; Volunteer workers in education; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: Well, you know we weren't--I wasn't the only one. We had several in our group that--a couple branched out into doing things beyond their teaching.

Segment Synopsis: Brown describes a drama project which became popular and had been started by Volunteers in their spare time. Brown comments that people in Somalia tended to be anti-American but over time, became pro-Peace Corps.

Keywords: Anti-Americanism; Attitudes; Changes; Cohorts; Improvements; Local people; Locals; Prejudice; Secondary projects

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Somalia; Teaching; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: And, uh, in fact, I had just left Somalia on a, on a long trip through Africa to, to get back to the States in time for Christmas, um, in August of 1969. I was down in Zambia at the time and I heard there was coup and the military took over that was Russ--Russian backed and very shortly afterwards, the Peace Corps was invited to leave. And it's never been back in Somalia.

Segment Synopsis: Shortly after Brown left Somalia to return home, there was a Russian-backed military coup in Somalia. Subsequently, the Peace Corps was asked to leave Somalia and has yet to go back.

Keywords: Changes; Coming home; Holidays; News; Returning; Traveling

Subjects: Africa; International travel; Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Russia; Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers; World politics; Zambia

Partial Transcript: Tell me about life in, uh, Somalia in those days. What it was like. Uh, living conditions of the people.

Segment Synopsis: Brown reports that many people lived a nomadic life. Towns were more Westernized but were subject to shortages. Brown touches on the region's colonial past and food culture.

Keywords: Deaths; Food culture; History; Towns

Subjects: Lifestyles; Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: So, in your third year, you were in the city. You were in Mogadishu.

Segment Synopsis: During his second and third years, Brown lived in an old house in Mogadishu. The building was in terrible condition but it was right on the beach. Most of Brown's close friends were Somalis from different walks of life.

Keywords: Acclimation; Friends; Housing; Language skills; Mogadishu (Somalia); Readjustment; Socializing

Subjects: Interpersonal relations; Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: What did that teach you about, about other cultures and the, the differences between, between cultures?

Segment Synopsis: Brown states that each culture has pros and cons. Each culture has a certain validity. It's enlightening to experience other cultures.

Keywords: Advantages; Challenges; Culture; Personal growth

Subjects: Acculturation; Culture; Lifestyles; Manners and customs; Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: So after 3 years, um, um, it must have been difficult to leave. Did you, did you have an opportunity to extend longer or was that, uh...

Segment Synopsis: After 3 years, Brown was ready to leave Somalia. Brown was considering whether to return to a career in pharmacy or to pursue teaching. Both the polio program and the prison program could and did continue without Brown.

Keywords: Career paths; Decisions; First Goal; Returning; Second Goal; Sustainability

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Somalia; Teaching; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: Were you able to keep in touch with any of your local, um, uh, counterparts, your colleagues, and friends after you left, uh, Somalia?

Segment Synopsis: Brown has not been able to maintain contact with people in Somalia because to do so would have caused trouble for them under the new regime. Brown remains in contact via Google with some other Somalia Volunteers.

Keywords: Dangerous; Friends; Letters; Returned Peace Corps Volunteers; Social media

Subjects: Emotions; Interpersonal relations; Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Somalia

Partial Transcript: And what did you end up doing after Peace Corps?

Segment Synopsis: Brown returned to pharmacy work but decided not to make it his career. Instead, Brown went to Bahrain as an English teacher. Brown remained in Bahrain for over 30 years and eventually became the principal of the school. Brown is currently in Bahrain doing research for a book.

Keywords: Book; Career paths; Choices; Research; Teaching English as a foreign language; Traveling

Subjects: Bahrain; International travel; Teachers; Teaching

Partial Transcript: And I've been, I've been comfortable with the choices. I've never regretted, uh, never regret the experiences. Peace Corps taught me so much.

Segment Synopsis: Brown is happy with the choices he has made and has no regrets. Because of his Peace Corps service, Brown feels he experienced a lot of personal growth. Brown expresses some disappointment in himself for leaving his first work site. Brown feels that his Peace Corps service had a positive impact.

Keywords: Choices; Disappointment; Impact; Personal growth; Regrets

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: Um, over the years, uh, you've probably had an opportunity to run into younger people that are considering joining Peace Corps. Uh, what, what kind of advice do you give them?

Segment Synopsis: Brown generally encourages those with an interest in joining the Peace Corps. Brown expresses gratitude to those who guided him during his career. Brown believes that Peace Corps Volunteers have brought wisdom back home.

Keywords: Advice; Career paths; Encouragement; Flexibility; Questions; Third Goal

Subjects: Bahrain; Peace Corps (U.S.); Peace Corps (U.S.)--Somalia; Somalia; Voluntarism; Volunteers