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Journalism of Courage
Better late than never. The picture from Ahmedabad of those bright, shining faces looking in awe at their favourite cricketers tells a story that goes far beyond cricket. After eight months of living in fear and anguish, six children affected by the Ahmedabad riots finally got some star visitors. What made the interaction more meaningful was the involvement of Virender Sehwag and Mohammed Kaif, two young stars but, more importantly, smalltown boys who can appreciate what it8217;s like to be on the fringes. It8217;s a telling comment on our own psyche, on the way we deal with those we can8217;t relate to 8212; and, for all the column space we8217;ve given them, we really can8217;t identify with what these people have gone through.
Send them a couple of politicians, a president, a prime minister, a social worker or two and all the camera crews ready to take a bite of the misery pie. But where have the celebs been? The message a prime minister carries is not so much for the victims as for every other constituent: errant local satrap, coalition allies, community leaders, the world at large. For those visited, the attendant security and bureaucracy does little more than add to the misery. And they can never forget the bottom line: they are all politicians and they come with political baggage.
