video!!!

Hey all, there's a fundraiser on March 7th at the UofW to raise funds for Uganda Hands for Hope (the org I'm with) here's a video James Janzen and myself put together (actually James did the putting together, but we both did the filming and still photographs) check it out: http://www.sendspace.com/file/qzq17g it's a big file, hopefully it will work!

Peace!!!

Matt

F.Y.I

I had the Amish french toast and it was just as I thought it would be......AWESOME!!!!!! (check a previous blog post referring to Amish french toast for reference).

Forced to grow up fast

These past few weeks I have been both witness and participant in what is at the same time a story of sadness and inspiration. As I've stated previously the people face seemingly insurmountable odds to lift themselves out of the dire situations that they are in. To the best of my knowledge we are the only NGO working in a slum which is home to an estimated 7000 people, and it is often hard to maintain hope as we have people coming to us on a daily basis with issues that we don't always have the capacity to address. However, there is a family of four children that we sponsor that have reminded me of the hope that is very much alive among the people. The children don't have a father and their mother fell ill nearly a month ago and has gone back to the village for traditional treatment. This often happens either because the family cannot afford the hospital bills, or because they are near death so they go back to the village to die. In any event, the children have been left at home all alone. The oldest child is 13 and the youngest is 4, yet everyday the children wake up and get themselves ready to go to school which starts at 7:30. The youngest child attends the nursery at our offices and we keep him there until the older children come for him after 4 in the afternoon. We make sure of course that we closely monitor their situation as they have not heard a word as to the health of their mother since she went back to the village. Before the mother left she made sure they had enough food to last them a while, and we also make sure the children are not going hungry. I am truly amazed by these children and their determination, and perseverance to endure such hardships and yet carry on going to school. I can't imagine any 13 year old at home that would be able to do such a thing. I know I wouldn't have. I wouldn't have had a clue how to cook for my siblings, and besides I probably would have been too busy watching TV to care less about making sure my siblings went to school. I can't imagine at the age of 13 having to be so responsible as to make sure your 3 younger siblings are washed, fed, and make it school on time. It is these children that we are fighting for. They really put everything into perspective for me. My only worry is what happens if their mother doesn't recover and she dies in the village? Then what? Often what happens is that relatives in the village will take the children in, but this might mean that they will have to drop out of school and lose their opportunity to pursue their dreams. I am of course hoping that their mother makes a full recovery and returns to them soon so that they can continue on with their education.

I just wanted to share that story with you all. It is quite something to see young children that 'get it', that value their education, that are determined not to let obstacles, no matter how big, stop them from achieving their goals.

Struggling with hope, suffering, and injustice

My time in Uganda thus far has been largely positive. I have seen children that have never been to school now have the chance at a better future through sponsorship. I have heard the positive stories of women in our small loans program that can now afford school fees for their children, needed medicine, and better foods for their families. I have listened to people share their stories of immense suffering and violence, but who remain determined to press forward because their hope and faith will not allow them to quit. All of these examples have given me the hope and encouragement that perhaps justice will find these people in this lifetime.
However, every so often a situation occurs that shakes one's soul to the core and you wonder if in fact, people that have suffered and lived through hell will ever realize their hope and see justice and freedom from suffering. Such a situation happened a week ago. I received a text message from the father of a family whose children we sponsor through our organization ( I am also very close friends with the family). Just to give you all a little background on the family:

The family came from DR Congo just over a year ago. The father was caught by rebels and severely tortured, they cut off the fingers on his right hand, and cut his chest with knives leaving deep scars. The rebels burnt down the family's home with the mom and children inside, thankfully they escaped, but the youngest child suffered burns to the lower half of her body (she still carries the scars). One of their children was killed by the rebels, and two others were lost in the chaos when the mother and her children were fleeing the home trying to escape. The father was separated from the family for some time and did not even know if they were still alive. He eventually found his way to Uganda and ended up in a refugee camp, where, on a list of names of people living in the camp he found the name of his wife and two of the children. This is the shortened version of the story. Back to the text.....

In the text the father told me that his youngest daughter (only 4yrs old) had been raped that Friday afternoon. I didn't know how to respond to this news. A picture of this sweet, innocent, little girl's face could not escape my mind. Who could ever do something so horrible? I have never felt such deep inner sorrow, and anger as I did that day. I don't agree with the death penalty, but for such cases I might be persuaded to change my mind even though I know it would not reduce the suffering of the family. That might be the anger talking. I've always considered this family as a model or inspiration for my own life. It is evident that the family loves each other, the parents are faithful to each other, they work very hard, and they see the importance of education for their children as a way out of poverty. After all they've been through in their lives already, why do they now have to suffer through this? Haven't they been through enough? When will they see justice? I am not speaking about legal justice here, although that too would be welcomed, but rather I am speaking about justice as freedom from suffering. I became even more angry when I learned that the family had to pay to file a police report, as well as paying for the perpetrator to have an HIV test! The victims have to pay! Without the assistance of others many families in the slum wouldn't have the money to pay for this, and thus they wouldn't be able to pursue the legal process (not that the legal process will bring healing or even justice for that matter). Perhaps this is why there is so much vigilante justice here, people don't have the means or confidence to go through the legal process.
I've heard people say that those who suffer in this life will find justice in the next. However, this answer is inadequate to me because it reduces the human existence into one of suffering and injustice, and surely there must be more to human existence than that. Although this is not a new question for the universe, I do wonder why injustice seems to plague certain people or groups of people continually throughout their lives, many of whom hold a deep faith in a just god. I suppose the answer is that the world as a whole is unjust, and the fact that people such as myself have suffered very little if at all in my life, while others continually suffer through a living hell is a signal of that injustice.
So as the family is consumed with this new tragedy in their lives, here I sit pondering why injustice and suffering continue to plague this family and others like them. If I think about it, it is even a luxury to do so, and perhaps that too is not just.
I realize I could drive myself crazy contemplating the reasons for injustice. In fact, such pursuits could even paralyze and distract from the pursuit of justice itself. As I stated earlier, when I first heard this horrible news I was very saddened and angered. It has taken me a few days to realize this, but I was letting my anger consume me. Instead, I must focus on offering my love and support to the family as they go through this tragedy. I must continue to hope for justice while also actively doing my part in bringing that closer to reality. I am also amazed at the strength of the family. I have not heard them speak one ill word about the perpetrator. When the perpetrator was marched in front of us at the police station the father did not lash out physically or even verbally. I do not know how he was able to hold back his anger, but to his credit he did. Through all of this the family continues to hope, they continue to press onward. They are an inspiration. Nothing can undo the injustice and suffering they've endured, but I have to hope as they hope, that their suffering, and the injustices committed against them will end in this lifetime and not only the next.

hoping for a future of justice and freedom from suffering...

Catching up with Kampala

Despite all the pollution and garbage strewn about certain parts of Kampala it is encouraging to see steps being taken to reduce the ecological footprint of the city. I'm not sure if the government paid for the solar/wind powered lamps to be installed or if they were part of a project funded by the EU or something similar. However, it makes me wonder why don't most cities have these? Or maybe most cities do have them, but Winnipeg is just a little behind the eight-ball (Thanks Mr. Katz). The wind power/solar power street lights seem like an obvious environmentally friendly idea. Perhaps they are too costly to install? Who knows, but all I could think about when I saw them was why doesn't Winnipeg have these? Someone get me Sam's and Gary's numbers I want an explanation!

A Day of Reflection

Today is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. day. In Canada, to my knowledge this has never been a day that has drawn much attention. Growing up I don't recall it ever being mentioned in school and certainly there was never an assembly to honor it. However, we do have Remembrance Day where we remember our soldiers who have fought in various wars, in particular WWII. In a sense they become our heroes, and our heroes are war heroes. Sadly, most of the American soldiers that fled into Canada seeking asylum because they no longer wanted to participate in what history has shown as an unjust war of aggression in Iraq are now being deported back to the United States where they will face persecution and criminal charges. If we as a society value peace and those that stand for justice then why do we allow this to happen? Should we not value these people and even celebrate their act of consciousness? Should they not be heroes instead of criminals? I suppose this is the way of the oppressors, as King was also once a 'criminal'.
I have to ask, why isn't there more attention paid to 'peace heroes'? Nonviolent heroes like Dr. King that have fought oppression and risked their lives for the people of their country? Is it because there are none? Is it because we value violence more than nonviolence? I would hope the answer to both of these questions would be NO!
I believe there are people acting everyday in a nonviolent way to fight for freedom, equality, democracy and liberty. The very things wars are apparently fought for. Perhaps the reason these people don't receive as much attention is because quite often they are the dissidents, they are the people that are challenging the government. In fact, since 9-11 North America has seen governments become more and more suspicious of nonviolent peace movements. Instead of honoring them, they have been viewed as potential threats to the centers of power. So much so, that governments have spent resources infiltrating these groups much like they did during the time of MLK.
In light of the ongoing 'war on terror' that has imprisoned many Arab men without trial or access to a lawyer, as well as what has been happening in Palestine and other parts of world, we cannot afford to forget what MLK, Gandhi, and others like them have shown us. They have shown us that the power of nonviolence can force governments to change their policies. It can bring oppressors to their knees. I think this is often lost on us in today's world of people that think 'what can I do? I'm just one person, I can't change the world' WRONG! Heroes like Dr. King, Rosa Parks and Gandhi (being the obvious ones) have shown us that the ideas and actions of individuals are so powerful they can change communities, countries, and the world. When Rosa Parks took her seat on the front of that bus did she have any idea what she would inspire? I doubt it, but it is these seemingly simple actions by everyday people that make all the difference, and collectively they can inspire change throughout the world.
The nonviolent actions during the civil rights era of King were not just actions for that time and place in history. They are actions that can be, and need to be used and reflected as a useful tool to oppose oppression and other acts of injustice throughout the world. I often think that Hamas needs to realize that Israel holds the monopoly on violence in the conflict and an end to occupation will not come through the use of violence. If Hamas truly wants a lasting peace and an end to Israeli occupation and aggression then perhaps they need to accept nonviolent confrontation through mass demonstrations etc. as a way forward to lasting change. I'm not an expert on Middle East politics, or any politics for that matter, but I do know that oppressors always hold the monopoly on violence for it is how they maintain their power over the oppressed. However, one thing oppressors do not have the monopoly on is nonviolent action. That monopoly belongs to the oppressed, and once this notion has been awakened within them, history has shown us it can be more powerful than guns or bombs.

Although I do not know the name of the person who said it, I will leave you with a quote I read in a Ugandan newspaper during the American election that I feel is appropriate for the day:

Rosa Parks sat so Dr. King could walk.
Dr. King walked so Obama could run.
Obama ran so our children could fly!

Does anyone have any T-shirts?

I realize that some of my posts are a little on the 'heavy' side at times, so to change things up a little I've decided to post a blog about the new t-shirt collection that I've started. Now some of you may be thinking 'what's the big deal about a t-shirt collection? Everyone has t-shirts.' This may be true, but my collection is t-shirts of political figures. In all honestly I didn't exactly start the collection, it sort of just happened to me. Some of these shirts I've had for years while others are more recent. So here's the story....
The first shirt I received was of Moammar Gadhafi from when Charlotte was teaching in Libya. the front has his picture (which is essential) and the back says 'El Fatah Forever' which I think means 'The Revolution Forever'. Gadhafi was coming to visit the town where Char was teaching so they were handing out shirts to the community, she never saw him or met him, but at least I got a shirt. The second shirt I acquired is of Che Guevara . I realize how cliche and exploited the image of Che has become, but I bought it when I was in Cuba and seeing as there were no Castro t-shirts, Che had to do. The third t-shirt I received is of John Garang founder and leader of the Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army until his death a few years back (RIP). The front of the shirt has his picture and underneath it are the words 'Freedom Fighter'. On the back are the words 'Join SPLA/M'. I got this shirt from my friend Chol who was in Sudan when I was in Uganda last year and he brought it back for me as a gift. My fourth and most recent t-shirt is of Obama. A friend of mine is traveling to DC for Obama's inauguration and I wanted him to pick up a shirt for me there in keeping with the tradition of getting the shirts from the actual places where these political figures made a name for themselves. However, yesterday when I was in Owino market (the biggest market in Kampala....HUGE) I saw an Obama shirt. Since the election, Obama pictures, shirts, and bumper stickers have been everywhere in Uganda. He has become somewhat of a hero here as people see him as one of their own. Needless to say, I decided to buy the shirt here and not in DC.
It wasn't until I received my Garang t-shirt that I thought 'hey I may have the start of a t-shirt collection here'. So If anyone has any t-shirts that would compliment my collection please let me know as I want to keep the collection growing.
This is sort of a mindless post, but I was a little bored so my apologies.