American College Student Drops Books, Picks Up Guns for Libyan Rebels
Life can be funny sometimes. One day you want to be a family therapist. The next, you’d rather be fighting an Arab dictator to liberate Libya. That’s how life is for Adam, a 22 year-old American now fighting for the Libyan rebels.
According to Reuters, at an interview at a rebel training site in the Western Mountains of Libya, Adam said, "I just had a year left before getting my degree but I dropped out," said Adam, 22.
"But I had to do this. Gaddafi is killing so many people. I felt I needed to take a stand. Why not?"
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Adam, who was born and raised in America to Libyan immigrant parents, said they do not know he is fighting in Libya.
"If my parents knew I was on the front lines in Libya, they would freak out,” he told Reuters.
Aside from keeping his military activity a secret from his parents, Adam is also using his own savings to buy his food, drink, clothing, and even weapons. Nevertheless, he is excited to be a part of the fight against Qaddafi.
"I don't regret a thing. Not for a minute. But I must say I hate guns. After it's all over I want to go back to being regular old Adam," he said.
Idealistic volunteers fighting in other countries' revolutions are nothing new, whether it's to fight for ideals or in search of excitement.
The most famous example of adventure-seeking volunteer soldiers might be George Orwell, who volunteered to fight alongside the Republicans against Franco’s fascist regime in the Spanish Civil War. He later wrote about his experiences in Homage to Catalonia.
More recently, Erik Flakoll, a Chilean-born, UK-raised man who was featured in a 2008 Guardian profile, flew to Nicaragua in 1980, soon after the Sanidista overthrow of the American-backed dictator.
Flakoll ended up joining the Sandinista fight against the American CIA-funded Contras, a decade-long war that saw him rise to the upper levels of the Nicaraguan military hierarchy.
As for Adam, the call to arms was something he just had to do, regardless of excitement.
"I think I would have been a good family therapist,” he said. “But right now more than anything I want to liberate Tripoli."
