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Uganda and LRA rebels sign truce
BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5288776.stm
"The International Criminal Court (ICC) wants the LRA's
top officials - among them leader Joseph Kony - to face charges
including murder, rape and forcibly enlisting children.
Against the wishes of the ICC, Uganda has offered amnesty to LRA leaders in exchange for the peace talks.
The LRA has abducted thousands of children and forced them to fight since the conflict began."
The twenty year war in which many child soldiers have fought may be coming to an end.
Have you watched Invisible Children?
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| If you haven't watched Invisible Children yet, you should. It's about children in Uganda who walk miles every night to evade capture by a rebel army that forcefully recruits children as soldiers. I had read an article about the Lord's Resistance Army about seven or eight years ago so when I heard the name again, I was surprised to find out that the war has been waged for twenty years and is still being waged.
My first response was total shock. We first watched it at core meeting so we could come up with discussion questions for the next day's large group meeting. Instead we sat there, paralyzed and staring at the floor. That night while studying, I couldn't stop thinking about them. Hundreds of their faces surrounding me, serious but not crying because if they cry, the LRA will kill them.
Later, I realized that I might be able to show it to my high school students. Francine was afraid they would get nightmares. I'm not particularly worried about that though since I think they probably watch scary movies often. Besides, the point of the movie is not to frighten; rather it is to provoke viewers to consider the perpetuation of brutality and to act against it. The three filmmakers were college students at the time they shot the footage (one was from USC, which might explain the dramatic editing). On the DVD, many of the people who campaigned to raise awareness were teenagers.
I bought the DVD (2 copies are included in each set) and lent out one copy. If anyone wants to borrow the second one, let me know.
Lastly, the Global Night Commute will be on April 29th. People all over the United States will be showing solidarity and raising awareness for the issue by staging sleep-ins in major cities. Since AACF's End of the Year Dinner is on the same night, I'm not sure what will happen yet...
Still praying for the invisible children--that God would put upon our hearts a wise reaction. As Jacob said, "Don't forget us."
From USC AACF staffer Melanie Chow:
Websites to consider:
www.invisiblechildren.com
– this is more detailed and up to date on what we saw
http://www.globalyouthfund.org/news/2006/02/action-global-night-commute-with.html
- this is more info on the walk on the 29th
http://www.farreachingministries.org/index.html
- this is the Far Reaching Ministries agency, that explains the costs of those
who desire to help
She mentioned that although the filmmakers are pushing for a monetary response, the infrastructure of Worldvision in Uganda and Sudan are not yet equipped to use the funds efficiently. Far Reaching Ministries is working adults and children who were victimized by the LRA (four FRM staff have been killed by the LRA since 1999).
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| I forgot to mention this:
THE IMMIGRATION DEBATE
Massive Student Walkout Spreads Across Southland
By Cynthia H. Cho and Anna Gorman, Times Staff Writers
March 28, 2006
Nearly 40,000 students from across Southern California staged walkouts
to protest proposed immigration legislation Monday, blocking traffic on
four freeways and leaving educators concerned about how much longer the
issue will disrupt schools.
Many students in the LAUSD are of Latino origin so they were protesting stricter border control and illegal immigration laws...so difficult to make policy regarding the futures of people who are already here. I just read another article about illegal immigrants pouring in to reconstruct New Orleans. There's no question that our racial demographic is changing rapidly...it's a matter of figuring out how to naturalize the people who are already here and to make the entrance process fair for people who want to come...
Oh yeah. I asked the students about the protest. One student says she walked out even though the principal locked down the school.
How?
"I just climbed over the fence."
lol...
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| Here is a series of inspirational essays that I thought were particularly insightful. They are all winners of the Power of Purpose, a worldwide essay competition.
The Face Collector by Dr. Mitch Ablett
Haunted by his past, a veteran of the Vietnam War becomes a photographer.
The Bathroom Cleaner by Elizabeth Orndoff
A woman cleans public bathrooms as an act of service.
Listening to Purpose by Bennett Johnson
Everyone has a story to tell. Are you to busy to listen?
Brother John by August Turak
Christianity: we strive to live as the Christ did but we cannot. How then can we hope?
Do you want to know some secrets? Do you want to share a secret?
http://postsecret.blogspot.com/ from Lu who got it from Kent who got it from his friend Check it out. It's pretty cool. | | |
| just a reminder that your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is in theaters today =D | | |
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