Grilled Cheese and Movies for Human Rights

Photo by Chris Missiuna

Heather Webb, Law '09, Cathy Longo, Law '10, and Jenni Macko, Law '10, grill sandwiches at the fundraising event in the Student Lounge on January 16, 2008, to support the upcoming CLAIHR film festival.

The aroma of toasted bread and melting cheese wafted through Queen’s Law on January 16, 2008, as students and professors donated dollars to enjoy lunch and support the school’s annual film festival for human rights.

The festival, run by the student group Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights (CLAIHR), is taking place on February 2, 2008. The festival has captivated audiences since 2002.

Heather Webb, Law ’09, co-chair of CLAIHR, said the lunch sale is a great way to let people know about the festival. She hopes a popular activity like a film screening will get people talking about important international issues.

“It’s a means for us to foster discussion about issues people might not otherwise hear about,” said Webb.

Three different documentaries are slated to be screened. After each, a speaker who is an expert on the issues presented or played a role in the documentary will be available to take questions and spur discussion.

The day’s first film, “The Women’s Bank of Bangladesh,” delves into the micro credit revolution sweeping Asia and Africa.

Also featured is the documentary “No End in Sight,” which looks at U.S. foreign policy. It won a 2007 Sundance special jury prize for best documentary.

The festival will finish with “Tambogrande: Mangos, Murder, Mining.” The critically acclaimed film documents what happened when a small town in Peru discovered it was, literally, sitting on a gold mine.

The documentary’s protagonist, Ulises Garcia, will be one of the festival’s speakers.

The film tells the story of Garcia’s father, who was the leader of a group trying to stop a Canadian mining company from evicting local farmers from their land so it could access the gold. Garcia was witness to his father’s murder. He will be making a small presentation, and be available for questions after the film is shown.

Webb said the film raises important issues, because Canadian corporations operating in Latin America are able to act without much concern for the law.

“The mechanism for dealing with atrocities lies either with the Canadian government or with the government in which they actually operate,” said Webb, noting there are few laws and even less enforcement affecting multinationals abroad.

“Movies like this might get people talking,” said Webb.

The festival is open to the public. Admission is free, with a small suggested donation. Webb said proceeds will go towards the cost of licensing the movies, with any extra going to non-profit organizations that advocate international human rights.

Tanya Rocca, Law ’09 and co-chair for CLAIHR, said it is important for Canadians to use a festival like this to look outside the country and consider how the world can be changed for the better.

“The value that Canadians place on human rights is a given. It is important to understand that, on an international level, that value is not always there,” said Rocca. “Just because people are on different continents doesn’t mean our actions won’t affect them.”