I attended a very interesting seminar last night at UK. It was for Invisible Children, which helps orphaned children in Uganda whose parents have (often times) been killed by the rebels.
I was very touched and moved by the presentation. They showed us ROUGH CUT, which told the story of a few of the children who, at that time, (2006) were homeless and sleeping in the bus station, doing homework by candlelight. I was so moved and then at the end, a very attractive young man with dark skin and a smile that lit up the room took the microphone. He said with a wave, "Hi. I am who they call Boni." He was one of the children from the film! He is now 19 and he is hoping to attend a university.
He was abducted by the rebels and had to live in the bush for two weeks where they tried to desensitize him to violence and killing. He escaped and lived a homeless life for a while before the rebels finally moved on. They are now in Sudan and other places.
They have a website...I encourage you to visit:
www.invisiblechildren.com
Going to that seminar has changed my life. It really has. Talking to Boni afterward was so nice too. He hopes to become a priest and then a journalist.
4 comments:
Sounds like that was a great seminar! How awesome that you got to go there and meet one of the actual survivors.
Have you ever read "A Long Way Gone" by Ishmael Beah? It's his memoir and he has a story similar to Boni's, though Beah's story takes place in Sierra Leone. You might find that book interesting.
It's so heartbreaking what people are forced to endure, but Boni sounds like he has a bright future ahead of him.
Nicole, thanks for the book recommendation! I need a good read. :) I'll try to pick it up soon.
Post a Comment