K'Naan

I chose the song just take a minute by K’naan because it is heart felt. K’naan grew up in a place where there was a lot of child soldiers and the song reflect Ishmael now and not how he was as a child soldier. I am so glad that he is not still a child soldier. 

Child Soldiers

Child soldiers are used everywhere and in some places it is normal. In America it is out of the norm, so when I hear of children being drugged and trained to be killing machines it breaks my heart.  It is not right that children are given drugs to kill. What happens is that they become addicted to the drugs and the only place they can find the drugs is when the kill for them. Many children grow up and that is all they know is to kill for food, drugs, clothing, and shelter. I hope that someday this will stop and children will grow up in a perfect world but that will not happen. I hate the fact that children are killing to survive. I wish there was some way we could change the way things works so the children that are soldiers can live as children. 

Burma

Burma Is bordered by the following countries India on the top left side, The Bay of Bengal on the bottom left side, China on the top right side, and Thailand on the bottom right side. Burma is currently fighting in a war with the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) this makes it a civil war.Right now the SlORC has government over the entire country but there is a large group of people who don’t want the SLORC to be in office. At this time there are 70,000 child soldiers fighting for their country.

"The Message" by Grand Master Flash

“A child is born with no state of mind

Blind to the ways of mankind.”

Quote from Rapper Grand Master Flash

This quote related to the book A Long Way Gone, because in the book children live such different life style than we do in America. They are free to roam throughout towns without telling anyone where they are going. They also are a really poor country and the children are born without a chance for education. They wakeup to crime and war. Infants are born in crime and war.

“God is smiling on you but he's frowning too

Because only God knows what you’ll go through.”

QUOTE FROM Rapper Grand Master Flash

This quote also relates to the book in the same way. Children are born into war and and lack of food. Most people can't relate because they don't have to live in the same environment and wakeup starving like the children do in the book A Long Way Gone.

RUF

Revolutionary United Front (RUF) is a terrorist group formed in the 1980s in Sierra Leone; seeks to overthrow the government and gain control of the diamond producing regions; responsible for attacks on civilians and children. In the end the Rebels lost the war although there are still people being tried for the acts that were committed.

Hip-Hop/Rap

Facts about Lovebug Starski

Starski recorded his first single, "Positive Life," on the Tayster record label in 1981.

Lovebug Starski and World Famous Brucie B also worked together at the Rooftop Roller rink in Harlem during the 1980s.

In the 1990s Starski began DJing again with his friend, DJ Hollywood.

He began his career as a record boy in 1971 as hip-hop first appeared in the Bronx, and he eventually became a DJ at the Disco Fever club in 1978.