Spring Break
Journalist, author sheds light on lives of child soldiers in new Amanpour lecture series
Chris Curtis
Issue date: 4/4/08 Section: News
"The future is a coffin," Briggs said, quoting a child soldier he interviewed for his book. This is a sentiment he has heard repeated by youth from Colombia to the streets of Chicago, he said.
"All these stories are the same," he said. "The names are different, the languages are different, people may be a different coloring, all these stories are the same."
Briggs said he first became aware of the issue while reporting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997. Prior to this point, Briggs said he subscribed to the popular glorification of violence and the military that he sees in the United States, but was changed by the experience.
"I had seen kids up close kill or be killed, and so I came back transformed, wanting to do something about it, wanting to express their voices," he said.
Briggs said now he sees journalism as a tool for advocacy and as a means of revealing and promoting unity.
"The power, the blessing, the gift of journalism the way I see it … is that journalism is not only a tool to uncover the truth but it is also a tool to bring us together, to connect all these stories together, to draw parallels between what's happening in Africa, in Latin America, to what's happening in Kingston, to what's happening in Boston or New York or Connecticut, all these places, to tell a larger story of all of us," Briggs said.
Many audience members reacted positively to the lecture.
"I liked it a lot. I think it was really interesting, I really hadn't heard about [child soldiers]," junior Aija Veiksane said.
Sophomore Mark Scialla offered a similar assessment.
"I thought it was really good, really eye-opening to issues that really aren't discussed a lot," he said. "I think it's really important that people learn about these issues."
The lecture was the first in what is to be an annual series of talks by distinguished journalists. The series is funded by a $50,000 endowment to the university from CNN international correspondent and URI alumna Christiane Amanpour.
"All these stories are the same," he said. "The names are different, the languages are different, people may be a different coloring, all these stories are the same."
Briggs said he first became aware of the issue while reporting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997. Prior to this point, Briggs said he subscribed to the popular glorification of violence and the military that he sees in the United States, but was changed by the experience.
"I had seen kids up close kill or be killed, and so I came back transformed, wanting to do something about it, wanting to express their voices," he said.
Briggs said now he sees journalism as a tool for advocacy and as a means of revealing and promoting unity.
"The power, the blessing, the gift of journalism the way I see it … is that journalism is not only a tool to uncover the truth but it is also a tool to bring us together, to connect all these stories together, to draw parallels between what's happening in Africa, in Latin America, to what's happening in Kingston, to what's happening in Boston or New York or Connecticut, all these places, to tell a larger story of all of us," Briggs said.
Many audience members reacted positively to the lecture.
"I liked it a lot. I think it was really interesting, I really hadn't heard about [child soldiers]," junior Aija Veiksane said.
Sophomore Mark Scialla offered a similar assessment.
"I thought it was really good, really eye-opening to issues that really aren't discussed a lot," he said. "I think it's really important that people learn about these issues."
The lecture was the first in what is to be an annual series of talks by distinguished journalists. The series is funded by a $50,000 endowment to the university from CNN international correspondent and URI alumna Christiane Amanpour.
