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Invisible Children and Dear Francis films

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RagamuffinA
Nov 03 2005
02:34 pm

Just wondering if anyone has ever heard the films, “Invisible Children” or “Dear Francis”?
Invisible Children is about child trafficing in Uganda — children being recruited for the rebel forces.
Dear Francis is about the HIV/AIDS crisis in Swaziland…

More on them later, but just wondering what kind of circulation there is on the other end of the country…

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kirstin
Nov 04 2005
08:31 am

I haven’t heard of those films, but it sounds like I’d be interested in seeing them. Our small town is getting yet another video store, but something tells me they won’t be carrying [i:6082465164]Invisible Children[/i:6082465164] or [i:6082465164]Dear Francis[/i:6082465164]. What can you tell me about them that will convince me to join Netflix? These sound like good films to show in our store.

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RagamuffinA
Nov 05 2005
02:32 am

Children[/i:63e245b1c4] is an independent film made by a few guys who were inspired to look into issues in the Sudan. They raised money, bought some miniDV tapes and got on a plane. They were changed by what they found there, especially regarding the children being consistently recruited to join Uganda’s rebel troops, brainwashed and force to kill their own. [i:63e245b1c4]Invisible Children[/i:63e245b1c4] reveals these issues in a powerful way, documentary style. Circulation of the film is still limited but is progressing nonetheless. www.invisiblechildren.com has a trailer and how to host a screening or fundraiser, etc. And a pretty impressive flash site. Francis[/i:63e245b1c4] is a film made by my very own APU alums – a documentary in the form of letters written by children from Swaziland to an unknown Francis in regards to HIV/AIDS crisis questions. This one proved especially impactful on me after being involved with the ONE campaign (“Making Poverty History”)here in LA. www.dearfrancis.org 100% of the proceeds go directly back to Swaziland.

I urge anyone interested or uneducated in either of these social justice issues to at least check out the websites. The goodness and grace of God are so badly needed in both of these countries…[/u] Awareness is the start, but how are we as Christians to respond?

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kirstin
Nov 05 2005
11:41 am

That’s the same question I was asking after seeing [i:7764c28ad3]Hotel Rwanda[/i:7764c28ad3]. I don’t think anything has ever driven me to repent like that film. I think a starting place, once we ourselves our educated is to educate others. Then we will be able to ask the “What next?” question in community with like-minded individuals.

Here are some suggestions of varying commitment levels that I can think of, related generally to Africa:
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Buy fair trade items from Africa, such as coffee, chocolate, baskets, clothing and other household items. A representative of Ghanian cocoa farmers said recently at a conference I attended that “in our part of the world, fair trade is seen as the solution to poverty.”

Find a denomination or organization that is putting together AIDS care kits and put together one—or several.

Sponsor an educational event. My husband noticed that [i:7764c28ad3]Invisible Children[/i:7764c28ad3] has a house party kit.

Take advantage of opportunities to send letters to government representatives, like this one from Sojourner’s or these from Amnesty International.
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Of course, these are all things we can do from the comfort of our own communities. There are many possibilities for action that involve risking our lives. How do we know if this is our particular calling? How do we support people who are called to risk their lives?

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sunkentreasure
Mar 04 2006
11:41 pm

There was a screening of [i:e73c70c8bb]Invisible Children[/i:e73c70c8bb] at Calvin last night.

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laurencer
Mar 06 2006
06:01 pm

We ended up showing [i:e0833e5b23]Invisible Children[/i:e0833e5b23] at our store, as Kirstin suggested we might. What did you think of the film, sunkentreasure?