Interviews With Afghan Kids Who Dare to Hope

Not long ago, Linda Ellerbee traveled to Afghanistan and toured war-ravaged Kabul with a camera crew, hearing from “the most valuable asset this devastated country has.”

Its youth.

The result is “Faces of Hope: The Kids of Afghanistan,” Sunday’s rewarding 30-minute special airing on Nickelodeon under the banner of one of TV’s most honored resources, “Nick News With Linda Ellerbee.” What a remarkable series for youngsters this has been through the years.

Some of Sunday’s program is a status report, with Ellerbee telling viewers what she is observing as she walks through parts of the decimated capital. Somewhere outside the city, a teenager says in English: “We need some water. There is no helping in this village.” Another adds: “We were scared from these people who have weapons.”

Later Ellerbee visits an Afghan family of 10 in a house where the eight children sleep in one room. “What do you like to do for fun?” she asks one of them. Based on the happy face we see, being interviewed on TV will do for a start.

Much of the program, though, consists of Ellerbee asking local children questions from their U.S. counterparts, who have been recorded on videotape. This long-range kid-to-kid dialogue has a distinctive resonance.

American girl with braces: “If you would have one wish, or any one thing, what would you wish for?”

Teenage boy in Kabul: “If I want to be a literate man, I have to have a computer.”

The reply affirms what Ellerbee took away from her brief visit to this region whose children have never known peace until now. “Everywhere we look in what seems to be a hopeless situation,” she says, “we find hope.”

“Faces of Hope: The Kids of Afghanistan” will be shown Sunday night at 8:30 on Nickelodeon. The network has rated it TV-Y (appropriate for children of all ages).