to raise the visibility of the people and
issues of Congo."
In June 2008, Affeck appeared in an
ABC News report exploring the humanitarian crisis in eastern Congo. "I
think the more painful something is,
the more you want to distance yourself
from it," he said during the interview.
"I think the hard part is actually to let
some of that go and to realize that when
you see some of these images of people
suffering in some way or another, to
kind of remember that these are people
who are in fact just in different circumstances than you are, but who are kind
of dealing with [those circumstances]
in a pretty brave and enduring way."
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Tempus-Magazine.com . Spring 2013
Shortly after the report, Affeck teamed
up with the United Nations to produce
a short flm highlighting the plight of
Congolese refugees.
Over the next several years, Affeck's
success as a critically acclaimed actor
and director enabled him to move back
to his activism on behalf of the Congolese people. Taking his involvement to a
higher level, Affeck formed the Eastern
Congo Initiative (ECI) in March 2010.
It became the frst U.S.-based advocacy and grant-making initiative wholly
focused on working with and for the
JoIN the effort
eci'S granT-Making FocuSeS on four key areas fundamental
to strengthening the social and economic capacity of the congolese to
shape their own future: economic development, maternal and child
health, access to justice, and access to higher education.
Follow eci on the Web and through social media by visiting
easterncongo.org, and donate and learn about and support congolese
partners in the region.