Kid's-Eye View
May 15, 2002
Kids Around the World Speak Out
TFK kid reporter Alexandra Tatarsky talks with kids at the United Nations Special Session on Children
 Alexandra shows off her U.N. media credentials. |
On Thursday morning, I stood outside the United Nations headquarters in New York City in the rain. It was the second day of the United Nations Special Session on Children. The session attracted kids from all over the world to help grownups address ways to create a world that is "truly fit for children." Although the umbrellas I saw around me were all similar, the languages I heard and people I saw were all different and unique.
 |  Seventeen-year-old Fabio Calambas, (center), works with a child-led organization in Colombia. |
Navigating the U.N. Maze
I started out by attending a couple of panels where people discussed important issues at a table while a large audience listened intently. The first panel was about kids in refugee camps and the second was about kids who lead organizations. After the panels, I began interviewing kids from all over the world attending the conference. Each shared some words of wisdom with me.
The International Kid Community
Fabio Calambas is a 17-year-old boy from Colombia who spoke in Spanish about his wishes for peace in Colombia and in the world “in all aspects.” I was able to talk with him through the help of a translator.
|  David explains how he got involved in causes that help kids in Zimbabwe. |
David Chimbete is an 11-year-old boy from Zimbabwe. In a clear tone with beautiful English, he told me he believes kids from different parts of the world are more similar than different because there “is no such thing as a country without problems.” His advice to kids who want to get involved is to go out and “join (organizations). Take risks. You never know, you might even enjoy it!”
Then I spoke to Reena, an 11-year-old girl with big brown eyes from Uttranchal, India. Speaking in Hindi through a translator, she said that if all people treat one another “nicely” and everyone gets an equal education, then we will “work like one big family. One big global family.” Later she said it was important to “get united. Come forward and fight for your rights.”
|  Eleven-year-old Reena of Uttranchal, India listens to a translation of Alexandra's questions. |
Bringing Kids Together for Peace
Over email, I interviewed Julia Ray from Israel, who started working with peace organizations at the age of 14. She said she was inspired to begin working on peace efforts between Palestinians and Israelis because she was "tired of hearing about how 'unhuman' the other side was…I wanted to prove (those people) wrong!"
Julia said the barriers between nationalities can be broken down through education for peace and conflict resolution. She said this should happen, "not by violence, but by tolerance! Through simply bringing youth from both sides together." She also said her ideal world would be based on “just pure faith in happiness.”
|  Alexandra turns the pages of a giant book of stories and pictures created by kids from all over the world. |
An Inspiring Day
Talking to these kids made me so inspired and hopeful. Their intelligence and similar dreams proved the old cliché true: we might look or act different but we are all the same on the inside. Everyone I spoke to thought the most important things for kids all over the world are education and peace.
In the brief time that I spoke with each kid, I felt a real connection. The fact that I will never see them again makes me sad. Every time I saw a kid’s face in the swarm of grownups, we would smile at each other. Differences in language and nationality didn't seem to matter. We connected because we were kids and we all have the same wish: To have our voices heard.
