Ben Affleck Urges Hope in Eastern Congo
By Paul Chi
Ben Affleck wants us to keep a "glimmer of hope" for the Congo.
The actor, 36, continues his ardent activism with an essay for the current issue of Time about his personal experiences and the ongoing war and displacement in eastern Congo.
Affleck has been traveling to the African country since 2007 to learn firsthand about the devastation and has also made a documentary about the war-torn country's urgent crisis.
In the essay, "A Glimmer of Hope in Africa," Affleck, citing the decades of instability and violence caused by rebel fighters, extremists, and outlaw militia, writes: "In the past 10 years alone, millions have died here, and more die each day as a result of the conflict.
"Most die not from war wounds but from starvation or disease … one in five children in Congo will die before reaching the age of 5."
What he hopes to prevent, Affleck writes, is a feeling of hopelessness or being overwhelmed by the country's problems.
"The nation most in need of investment gets the least by the cruel logic that it is the most broken," he writes. "It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that ultimately fosters indifference in the guise of wisdom."
Starry Event
This Wednesday, Affleck is slated to attend an event to the International Medical Corps, a group that works to help those in the eastern regions of Congo, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The event, which will be held at the House of Blues in West Hollywood, is expected to draw other celebrities as well, including Diane Keaton, Joel Madden, Felicity Huffman, Nicole Richie, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Spacey and Kate Walsh.
4 comments:
Call me a cynic, but if all of these STARS donated a portion of their enormous salaries to their pet projects, and stayed to see that the monies went directly to the needy rather than into the pockets of those who caused the horror we would willingly scrabble into our pockets to send money. Perhaps they do and I apologise to them if that is the case. These visits do well in highlighting the problems but it is a terrible indictment on man's inhumanity to their fellow man that this interminable fighting for power continues to kill and maim the innocent.
Yes...well done Ben Aflick, but when will it stop?
OK, so I'm imagining you healing up a lot now, I hope it's true x
My 8-year old was weeping over a book of Dresden photographs post bombing(it was very graphic) and we somehow got into the whole second world war stuff and the Holocaust. It's all such shades of grey. I talked about how the idea was that we remembered all this so it would never happen again. My eldest said, 'Yeah, it already is...' So if anyone does anything to stop 15 year olds feeling terminally cynical good on them.
PS I have also been the full cancer scare plus invasive tests plus let's be on the safe side surgery.....Keep going. Sue the lot of them.
Moannie
I have no answers for you - but I do think our being aware is a good thing. If enough people care - it will stop. I believe that.
Thank you for coming by.
Sparx
Better every day! Thank you for coming by.
OmegaMum
All right you need to go and have a cup of tea! I hear you about the cynical feelings and the necessity of keeping the medical profession honest!
Thank you for coming by.
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