Boycotting Blackhawk Down

by Omar Jamal, Excecutive Director, Somali Justice Advocacy Center

What happened in Muqdisho (Mogadishu) in 1993?

On December 4, 1992, President George Bush announced he was sending up to 28,000 U.S. troops to Somalia to help provide humanitarian relief in a strife-torn country where hundreds of thousands of innocent people had died of starvation. Somalia had descended into anarchy after the collapse of the last regime in 1991.

Other countries also pledged to send troops to Somalia: Pakistan, Italy, France, and Turkey. This mission was divided into many phases. The first, which was called "UNISOM I," was to feed the starving. "UNISOM II," the second phase, began when the U.S. handed over the mission to the U.N. on May 4, 1993.

General Aidid was very much aware of the moves of the U.N. and U.S. Soon, he was to be forcefully disarmed and marginalized. Utilizing "Radio Aidid," his personal station, General Aidid started accusing the U.N. of being an occupying force. He called on Somalis to defend their country.

An attempt by the U.N. and U.S. Envoy Robert Gosende to destroy the radio station led to the death of 25 Pakistani soldiers. The Pakistani envoy and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Madeleine Albright presented U.N. Security Council members with a draft resolution naming Aidid as responsible for the attacks; they demanded his arrest. From there on, the U.N./U.S. mission created more anarchy than that which the country was already suffering.

The film Blackhawk Down is a compelling account of the 1993 war of Somalia that is based on the book by Mark Bowden, but is not even close to what happened. The movie lacks the political circumstances surrounding this tragic moment, and thus has the potential to mislead anyone who is not familiar with those circumstances.

The Somali Justice Advocacy Center would like to remind viewers that the film is only fiction. We caution people not to buy into stereotypes of Somali people and we encourage them to explore further the complex history of Somalia--particularly this event. The center will soon arrange lectures to shed more light on this historically tragic moment both for the Americans and the Somalis.

WAMM Action!

WAMM activist Joe Hesla is organizing leafleting outside theaters showing Blackhawk Down. For information on how you can get involved, please call the WAMM office, 612-827-5364.