I have never looked at a film with as much trepidation as Machine Gun Preacher. The film is based on the true story of Sam Childers, an ex-con and drug addict who went to Africa and experienced a complete transformation. He exchanged his old days of drug addiction and violence to become the impassioned founder of the Angels of East Africa, a rescue organization for children orphaned in Sudan.

I had already known about the unspeakable horrors that families have experienced in Sudan. I had vaguely known about Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord's resistance army (LRA), and how he kidnapped children and then enslaved them. I knew that it would be incredibly painful to see the depiction of children suffering this way and being stripped of their innocence. However, I felt it was my duty as a citizen of the world to see this movie. You bet I was a crying basketcase during this film, but I became a transformed activist as well after the credits rolled.

Sam Childers is a real flawed hero, a larger than life personality that Hollywood scriptwriters can only dream of creating. As an ex-biker-gang member, he found God and made the life-changing decision to go to East Africa to help repair homes destroyed by civil war. He became outraged by the horrific violence faced by the region's vulnerable populace, especially the children. Ignoring the warnings of more experienced aide workers, Sam breaks ground for an orphanage where it's most needed -- in the middle of territory controlled by the brutal LRA, the renegade militia that forces children younger than ten to become soldiers, or sold into sex slavery (which fortunately was not depicted in this film). But Sam not only builds a shelter, he leads armed missions deep into enemy territory to retrieve kidnapped children, restoring peace to their lives. He wields an AK-47 in one hand, and a bible in the other, channeling all of his anger into finding Joseph Kony. That a biker with lambchop sideburns and tattoos could single handedly save over a thousand orphans is an inspiring message that one person could indeed affect positive change.

Actor Gerard Butler gives an intense performance, channeling the intimidating yet empathic Childers. While it is hard to empathize with his unlikable character in the beginning of the film, you transform along with him in his journey toward the end. You see his intensity and passion when he is preaching, even as his Scottish accent is replaced with a very believable Southern drawl. You can feel every bit of anger in the sweat beads on his brow as he pleads with community members to help him with his cause. Equally important to this narrative is his wife Lynn, who patiently and bravely supports him as he sells his business to use the money for the orphanage, flies to Sudan regularly to dangerous missions, and nearly forecloses his home to raise more money for the orphans' food and supplies. Michelle Monaghan was perfectly cast as a woman who appears vulnerable, but has the quiet strength and fortitude to counterbalance Sam's angry and unpredictable outbursts.

Some critics may argue that Machine Gun Preacher relies too much on Sam's boldness and not enough on the character exploration of the children, but I can see the motive. If the job of this film is to embolden people to do more to help the situation in Africa, then the goal has been accomplished. Perhaps the director, Mark Forster, wanted the audience to feel for the children's plight without exploiting them.

Anyone can identify with San Childers, whether wealthy, poor, a victim, a perpetrator, a religious person, or an atheist. If the point is to move people across the board into action to save these children, then I think Machine Gun Preacher does this brilliantly. Of course the children deserve their own narrative, as they are victims of a man that would make Osama Bin Laden look tame in comparison. But they need our immediate help even more. The primary question in my mind after the film was: why don't more Americans know about the so-called Lord's Resistance Army, and the hundreds of thousands of innocent people they have killed for nearly three decades? Why don't they know that this army forces children to hack their own parents with a machete to death in order to instill violence and self hatred in their young hearts... and making it impossible to return home? Why don't they know that this army decapitates the lips, ears, arms and legs of these children and other villagers to punish them?

While I have always been a donor to Unicef, UNRWA, and St Jude's Hospital, this film compelled me to do two things: First, I donated to Sam Childer's cause at Machinegunpreacher.org/donate. Secondly, I decided to register and participate in the Global Forum on Human Trafficking through Notforsalecampaign.org. The primary victims of slavery still alive in this world are women and children from Sudan to Armenia, Thailand to Brazil. Machine Gun Preacher challenges us to take part in this narrative -- through the eyes and experience of fellow American Sam Childers. As I wrote earlier, I was a basketcase after watching this film, but I have now filled my basket with an arsenal of tools to try and make a difference in these innocent lives, the start of my own journey from a Link TV journalist, to an activist.

Link TV Journalist Blanche Shaheen had the opportunity to interview Machine Gun Preacher stars Gerard Butler and Michelle Monaghan about their experience making the film. Watch the conversation here:

To learn more about Blanche Shaheen, visit www.Blanchestudio.com

Two contrasting reports from Afghanistan on attempts to create local police and military forces capable of controlling the troubled country when the US and NATO leaves.

Afghan Special Ops Units May Be Key to US Exit

(Associated Press: 0851 PT, May 10, 2011) US personnel have been training and fighting alongside Afghan special operations forces. The development of such commandos may be key if Americans are to reduce their presence in the country.

Politics Dominate Afghan Police Force

(Al Jazeera English: 0238 PT, May 10, 2011) The Afghan Local Police (ALP) has been expanding fast across the country over the past year. Community-based units, they are seen as a pet project of NATO commander General David Petraeus, who has described the ALP as having a significant impact. But the police force has also faced allegations of theft, abduction and intimidation. Al Jazeera's James Bays reports from Maidan Wardak province.

Each Mother's Day, I celebrate the two most miraculous, deliriously happy days of my life -- the days I gave birth to my two children. What I counted on during my birth experiences: health care, a safe and sanitary environment, and supportive and trained birth personnel. What would have never occurred to me, a resident of the United States having a baby in a very typical way in a wealthy nation: the day I become a mother is the most dangerous and deadly day I will face.

But in many parts of the developing world, the day a woman becomes a mother is a day too often obscured by terrible tragedy and danger. She will face losing her baby and losing her own life - on a day and occasion that we commemorate with cards and flowers here in the United States as Mother's Day.

According to international development organization, Save the Children, "around the world, more than 350,000 women die each year from complications of pregnancy and childbirth, and millions more develop some kind of disability. When a mother dies, her children are much more likely to be poor, to drop out of school, and to die before age five." The ripple effect is dramatic.

To take a deeper look into the lives of the world's mothers, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work with independent non-profit broadcaster, Link TV, and Save the Children to co-produce a new half-hour documentary that takes viewers on a global tour of the best and worst places in the world to be a mother. (Conspicuous plug: You can view online at www.SavetheChildren.org/world-mothers or www.ViewChange.org beginning on May 3, or watch the broadcast on Link TV on Friday, May 6 and Tuesday, May 10. Check time and channel info.)

Based on Save the Children's just-released 2011 "State of the World’s Mothers" report, the special -- ViewChange: The Mothers Index -- takes viewers on an international journey to learn what it takes for global mothers and their children to thrive, introducing us to young moms and spotlighting programs that are changing the odds. In a unique collaboration in "global development storytelling," the show -- part of Link TV's ViewChange.org project that combines global development progress stories and direct action -- includes stories from the ONE campaign's Living Proof series.

WATCH "THE MOTHERS INDEX":

So, what's the data behind the stories? For its 2011 report, Save the Children conducted a comprehensive study of 164 countries, and compiled a "Mothers' Index." At the top of the index, women have access to excellent health services, skilled health workers, and opportunities for education and advancement. But the gap between the top and bottom-ranked countries is dramatic. At the bottom of the list, one in three children suffers from malnutrition, and one in 30 women will die from pregnancy-related causes. (See the full report at www.savethechildren.org)

When you watch, you’ll be struck -- as I was -- when you hear the story of one young mother who had buried eight babies and prayed that the ninth would live to see his first birthday. And you’ll hear from a 19-year-old mother in Nepal, nine months pregnant, as she matter-of-factly states, "My last baby was breech-born, and this time, I just might die."

But the terrible odds are not the whole story. The real story is the incredible strength and spirit of these mothers around the world -- and the importance of institutional solutions and government programs that are changing the statistics in preventable scenarios.

For example, we learn about the commitment from Sierra Leone’s government, which has just implemented a new program to provide free health care for pregnant women and children under five.

In Malawi, grandparents and village elders are now being trained as community health workers -- a tremendous program that's contributing to Malawi's breathtaking success in under-five child mortality over the past 20 years. Since 1990, Malawi has cut its under-five mortality rate in half thanks to its government’s commitment to programs like this -- a feat that seems even more remarkable considering that 40 percent of the Malawi population lives in poverty.

In rural Bangladesh, empowering girls through education will change the cycle of poverty, creating a ripple effect over the generations. And in India, one mother observes that "if you are uneducated, it is as if you have only one eye." The simple act of giving bicycles to girls -- to allow them to travel to school -- is changing the lives of young women in some of the poorest parts of the country.

What's the hope and mission of a project like this? To learn, of course, and to be inspired by the universal strength of mothers in all parts of the world -- and to take action and support programs that are working. For more info and actions you can take, visit www.ViewChange.org, click on the show, and consider the actions in the "take action" section of the player.

Happy Mother's Day.   

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Caty Borum Chattoo is Assistant Professor at American University’s School of Communication in Washington, D.C.  As a documentary producer and strategic communication consultant, she collaborates with Link TV and ViewChange.org.

(Al Jazeera English: 1248 PT, May 6, 2011) The once massive pro-democracy protests in Bahrain has been reduced to small clashes between youth and police in predominantly Shia areas. Security forces have allegedly launched a brutal crackdown on protesters with beatings and sweeping arrests. Nearly 1,000 demonstrators have been imprisoned, among them doctors, artists and lawyers.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, says severe torture is being used against prisoners, and he is calling on the Bahraini government to stop intimidating and harassing human rights defenders and political activists. May Welsh reports.

(Press TV London: 0252 PT, May 4, 2011) British voters will go to the polls on Thursday to decide whether to change their voting system. Opponents of the "first past the post" system say it ensures only the big parties dominate British politics, while supporters say it delivers clear election results and strong governments. Roshan Muhammed Salih reports from London.