Throughout
the world today children are handed a gun and expected to have the courage to
shoot and kill complete strangers. At the age of 12, Ishmael Beah was separated
from his family and traveled with nothing other than the fear of running into
the Revolutionary United Front (RUF). Eventually another rebel group that
performed similar cruelties as the RUF took him in. Beah was given a gun and
trained to kill; if he refused he would be shot. Eventually UNICEF rescued Beah
and he is now he U.N. ambassador for children affected by war. I think that
it’s very hard to realize that these events actually happened to this man but
at the same time stories such as his are so very common. People are still
recruiting children as soldiers today and I agree with Beahs’ answer to the
question: why children? He says in the article “Everybody always asks why do
they go after children? Because you can
easily manipulate them." Children at a young age are still learning about
the world and molding their thoughts and opinions about it all. This is why it
is easiest to take young children and turn them into monsters. This is
definitely a huge factor of why children war soldiers are so common all over
the world. I think that the ability to experience such horrible events and be
apart of this cruelty is amazing but the fact that this man was able to come
out of that and achieve so much is so inspirational. He is now able to connect
with other kids going through the same things he did and help them find
themselves once again. I think that with people like him maybe one day the
stories of these children will not be such common ones.
I
think that people need a better view on children war soldiers because a lot of
people think that this only goes on in Africa. Although it may be more obvious
and well known about this happening in Africa it does not mean that other
children in the world are not suffering. Groups such as Kony 2012 focus on
children suffering from this problem in Africa but do not really discuss other
places where this is a problem. These groups support a great cause, which is to save
these children, but they need to focus on children everywhere not just a specific place.
How do you think you would feel if you ever had to experience what this
boy had to? Would you come out as strong as he did and accomplish what he did
because of his experiences?
What would you think if this suddenly began to happen in the United
States?
What do you think would be an effective way of trying to solve this
problem?
In this article, Beah also describes his experiences after his status as "child soldier" was taken away from him. Rather than being relieved, Beah says that the ex-child-soldiers were angry and destructive, because "'all of a sudden you no longer have your military gear, you're just a kid.'" For me, this quote was perhaps the most eye-opening quote of the entire piece.
ReplyDeleteOf course, being a child soldier is equivalent to having your innocence stripped away and not being allowed to be a kid - another instance the article mentioned was when a nine-year-old was shot for missing his mother. But then, the child soldiers become adjusted to this role of destructive-mini-adult. And because childhood experiences shape life experiences, I assume that for many, even after they are taken out of the "child military," these aggressive feelings persist. Beah, who has overcome the trauma of his past, is likely the exception rather than the rule. Thus, to answer your question Ana, I am not sure if I would have come out as strong as Beah did and accomplish what he did because of his experiences.
Relating to ethnocentrism, which we discussed in class, we judge other regions' customs, status, and practices based on what we see in the United States. Yes, as of today we do not see the horrible violence that is taking place in other areas of the world. But we must remember, in Africa especially, the region has been torn apart for decades; for many years, children have not been children, their innocence has been taken away. It is likely hard for them to just forget the past and not become bitter, violent adults.
So yes, deploying child soldiers is horrible. But it is essential to remember that the ones "doing the deploying" may have been in similar situations - of having their innocence taken away - when they were younger. What does everyone else think? Should we be so critical of the ones "doing the deploying"? Or try to remember that they may have had similar childhood experiences that have scarred them?
II agree with what you said about organizations like Kony 2012. Specifically this organization focuses on only one child soldier group. While I feel that they are doing a good thing by trying to save these children and take down Kony, I think they have forgot to address the issue that there are children soldiers in other places as well. They are saying that Kony is a bad person, but why not address the larger issue, which are child soldiers in general.
ReplyDeleteWhile, it would be better to save all of the child soldiers, I think that it is not possible. Eventually, yes, you could rescue all of these children, but taking it one step at a time is a more beneficial approach. By starting with one group, you can make a difference. Once one group is taken down, there can be progress towards stopping others.
I think it is great that Beah has made steps towards stopping these groups and being very active in this field. I respect him for not letting his past cloud his future, and for looking at the bigger picture. He sees that it is not just about him, but also about every child who has ever been made a child soldier, and those who are still in these groups.