Working to Give Peace a Chance

“It takes one to know one.” That may sound like fighting words overheard on any L.A. playground, but they had a far different meaning coming from Wilfrido Zambrano.

For Wilfrido, 18, and four other representatives of the Colombian Children’s Peace Movement, such words help them share their horrific experiences and offer hope to other children whose lives have been shattered by the drug trafficking and guerrilla warfare that have ravaged their country for four generations. Last week, members of the group came to L.A. to spread their upbeat message of nonviolence, hoping their zeal for a better way of life would influence teens at risk here.

But this quest for peace comes as a result of personal loss and anguish. For Mayerly Sanchez, 17, her best friend was killed by a Colombian gang. For Juan Elias Uribe, 17, his father, a local doctor who spoke against the rampant killings, was slain. Dilia Lozano, 15, couldn’t stand watching children her age being kidnapped or butchered in the streets. Wilfrido, the target of several death threats, and Farlis Calle, 18, both hail from Apartado, the most violent of Colombian villages, where bodies litter the streets.

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The five activists, who were nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize this year--a first for youngsters--visited schools all over the city, followed at times by a CNN news crew. “Soldiers of Peace--A Children’s Crusade,” CNN’s documentary on the group, airs tonight at 7. It shows how the relentless efforts of Colombia’s young people, ages 7-18, prompted 2.7 million youths to vote in a special election called the Children’s Mandate for Peace and Rights, which is helping shape the future for peace in Colombia--or at least the hope for it.

Kyra Thompson directed the documentary. Lydia B. Smith served as the group’s interpreter during their L.A. visit and as producer with Kathy Eldon and her daughter Amy. Kathy had lost her son Dan, 22, to violence. A Reuters photojournalist covering Somalia, he was stoned to death the day before he was expected back in the U.S. When the Eldons learned of the Colombian children’s Peace Movement, they felt it exemplified what they were searching for--a way of turning horror, anger and tragedy into a mission for peace and hope. So, with financial support from CNN, Turner Broadcasting, the Jerome and Kenneth Lipper Foundation and their own Creative Visions Foundation, they put together the documentary and found a way to bring the youths to L.A.

“What good does it do to be afraid? We have a choice,” said Dilia, who runs a children’s radio show for peace at home. “Enough is enough, and we won’t accept this anymore. We demand change.”

Farlis added: “Children aren’t just about tomorrow. We are about today. We have the right to make a difference. That is what we want to tell kids here in Los Angeles, children all over the world. We deserve peace. We all have the right to it and the right to fight for it.”

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And that is exactly what they told the crowd of 1,200, mostly teens, who turned out at Friday’s “Jam for Peace Teen Celebration,” sponsored by A Season for Nonviolence--Los Angeles. In addition to the world premiere of CNN’s documentary, Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) gave a brief speech. And there were some moving dramatic performances by children from L.A. gangs who are students of Pasadena child therapist Hector Aristizabal, a Colombian national who lost a brother to violence and now teaches children to vent their pain through art. Near the end of the event, the Colombian teens offered the microphone to the crowd.

When one African American teenage girl stepped forward and asked: “How can Americans make a difference?” Farlis looked at her comrades, grinned and stepped to center stage: “Help kids in this country. By doing that, you will make a difference. And that is how you can help us.”

“Soldiers of Peace--A Children’s Crusade” will be shown tonight at 7 on CNN.