CBC Archives

Have students brainstorm examples of complex historical issues or current events and to explain why they consider the issues complex. Identify that complex issues are usually multi-faceted, that information may be incomplete or contested, and that people hold passionate views about them. Ask students to suggest some ways to enhance understanding of complex issues.

The class will hold a forum on the Somalia affair in which groups of students present differing perspectives or points of view. Divide the class to ensure representation for the following individuals or groups, as well as any others students would like to add:

The Somali people

The Canadian soldiers

Lt.-Col Carol Mathieu

Maj. Barry Armstrong

Kyle Brown, Maj. Anthony Seward, and Private Mark Boland; Clayton Matchee’s family

Jean Boyle

Gilles Letourneau and members of the Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces to Somalia

Senior members of both the Progressive Conservative and Liberal governments

Direct students to the topic The Somalia Affair on the CBC Radio and Television Archives Web site. Have them browse the clips, including The Story and Did You Know? sections and the Additional Clips, to gain an overview of the events. Groups of students should select the clips they find most helpful to present the point of view they have been assigned.

Give students time to give informal presentations in a forum setting. Ask them which parties in the forum agree, which disagree, and why.

After the forum, students can express their own points of view on the Somalia affair. Ask: What can be done to prevent tragedies of this sort in the future?