research on Sierra Leone

While researching the Sierra Leone Civil War I came across, what I assume, is the topic of child soldiers. These children soldiers are forced to commit unspeakable acts by individuals who have no regard for their well-being, only furthering their own ambitions. In the United State, we often joke about having “first world problems” and how we have so much more than others that we can afford to poke fun at our situation.  We have access to things that only the richest individuals in other countries can afford to have. We complain about our childhoods and how our parents would send us to our rooms or make us go to bed early. Very few of us can state that at the age of twelve or younger that we killed our first man in cold blood. Or that we slept in one room with our entire family wondering where our next meal was going to come from. But this blog isn’t an attack on America; it’s about how these children were treated. I merely state that as we have nothing in this country with which to appreciate the problems facing people in far-off places and that no matter what I write, we will most likely never experience such hardships in our lives. I have friends who are just now getting out of the military after five or more years of combat. These are men and women who, being adults went to war and fought and killed. They are coming back to the states as changed individuals who know that they have seen and been the cause of death. I can’t even imagine how traumatizing that must be. Now, take that fully grown, matured individual and decrease their age by ten years or more. In that same situation, how would they fare? Let’s add onto that. Suppose you were eight years old and had to begin military training? When I was eight, my major concern was whether or not I had enough money to buy all the candy I wanted at the gas station. I never even thought about having to kill anyone or anything for that matter. These child soldiers need years of therapy. Many of them can never fully recover.