The Jordan Harbinger Show

622: Ishmael Beah | Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

Feb 8, 2022

Ishmael Beah, a former child soldier and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, shares his incredible journey from war-torn Sierra Leone to becoming a bestselling author. He details the terrifying reality of being a child in a civil war, where survival often means joining a faction or facing death. Beah discusses how music, especially rap, provided him an escape from the horrors around him. He also reflects on the deep scars left by trauma and the struggles of reintegrating into society, emphasizing the importance of awareness about the legacy of child soldiers.

01:33:34

Episode guests

Ishmael Beah

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Intro

2min

The Harrowing Journey from Innocence to Conflict

4min

Survival Through Sound: A Journey in War

20min

Childhood in the Crossfire: The Legacy of War

11min

The Cycle of Addiction and Exploitation in Wartime

3min

Chaos and Survival: The Dark Side of Conflict

23min

The Harsh Training of Child Soldiers

5min

The Harsh Realities of Combat Through a Child's Eyes

3min

Surviving the Abyss: From Sierra Leone to New York

18min

10.

The Haunting Legacy of Child Soldiers

7min

Ishmael Beah (@IshmaelBeah) is a former child soldier, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, and the New York Times bestselling author of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier and Radiance of Tomorrow: A Novel. His latest book is Little Family: A Novel.

What We Discuss with Ishmael Beah:

What the volatility of life in a warzone is really like from the perspective of a child.
How desperation drives human beings to rationalize committing any number of atrocities to survive.
Why trusting old neighbors, friends, and even family in the midst of a civil war can arouse suspicion and cost you your life.
The choice for all too many children in an area embroiled in armed conflict: accept recruitment into one of the factions as a soldier, or be killed before someone else can recruit you.
How rap music saved Ishmael's life.
And much more...

Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/622

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