Name: Global Public Affairs Presents: Marc Sommers' "We the Young Fighters"
Start: 2025-02-06T12:30:00-08:00
End: 2025-02-06T14:00:00-08:00
Location: UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs

For this Global Public Affairs (GPA) presentation, Marc Sommers will tell a story of war and peace through a pop culture lens.
About this Event

Global Public Affairs Presents: Marc Sommers

"We the Young Fighters"

Why did youth in the West African nation of Sierra Leone turn to Bob Marley for inspiration, the Rambo movies for instruction and Tupac Shakur for friendship? How did this pop culture trio influence war and the postwar peace?

For young Sierra Leoneans, Marley, Rambo and Tupac portrayed a perverse universe, where those in the right are blamed while the powerful attack them. During the nation's civil war, military commanders exploited the trio’s power over their fighters to fuel terror-based warfare. After the war, youth again turned to their pop culture heroes for inspiration.

Join us to explore the power and influence that film, music and culture hold across the world. To RSVP, follow this link.