About this Event
In 1979, at just seven years old, Monica Macias was sent from Equatorial Guinea to North Korea to be educated under the guardianship of Kim Il Sung – an arrangement made by her father, President Francisco Macías Nguema. Within months, her father was executed in a coup and her mother became unreachable. Orphaned in one of the world’s most secretive nations, Monica grew up in Pyongyang, learning fluent Korean, handling weapons at military school, and forging an identity far from the world she was born into.
In her remarkable memoir Black Girl from Pyongyang, Monica retraces her extraordinary journey across continents, confronting questions of belonging, race and identity along the way.
Monica Macias is an Equatoguinean author and daughter of the country’s first president, Francisco Macías Nguema.
Growing up in Pyongyang, she became fluent in Korean and later studied textile engineering before leaving the country in 1994.
Monica will be in conversation with Becky Branford, editor at The Washington Post’s London hub and a former BBC international affairs journalist, who has followed Monica’s story closely for many years.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Frontline Club, 13 Norfolk Place, London, United Kingdom
GBP 6.13 to GBP 16.96
