PUSHING THE ELEPHANT

An Pushing the Elephant is an intimate family drama set against the backdrop of the 1998 conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pushing the Elephant tells the story of Rose Mapendo, who was separated during the conflict from her five-year-old daughter, Nangabire. Rose survived the atrocities of those years and was eventually resettled in Phoenix, Arizona, with her other children. Now, after 12 years apart, Rose and her daughter Nangabire are reunited in the US. Through the story of their reunion, we come to understand the excruciating decisions Rose made in order to survive and the complex difficulties Nangabire faces as a refugee in the US—torn between her painful past and a hopeful future.

Human Rights Watch has published extensively on armed conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Our most recent report—“Trail of Death: LRA Atrocities in Northeastern Congo”—provides the first detailed documentation of the Makombo massacre and other atrocities by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Congo in 2009 and early 2010.

http://www.hrw.org/africa/democratic-republic-congo

http://www.artsengine.net/pushing_the_elephant/