Lee Shapiro (1949–1987) was an American documentary filmmaker. His one feature-length film, ''Nicaragua Was Our Home'', was released in 1986. It was filmed in Nicaragua among the Miskito Indians who were then fighting against Nicaraguan government forces. It features interviews with Miskito Indian people and some non-Miskito clergy who lived among them concerning actions of the government against them, including bombing of villages, shootings, and forced removal of people from their homes.ON 13, SANDINISTAS VS. MISKITOS
'' New York Times'', July 29, 1986 The film was shown on some PBS stationsHow to Read the Reagan Administration: The Miskito Case
/ref> and at the 1986

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

. In 1987, Shapiro and fellow filmmaker Jim Lindelof were killed in Afghanistan during the Soviet–Afghan War. The armed group they were traveling with reported that they had been ambushed by military forces of the Soviet Union or the

Afghan government The government of Afghanistan, officially called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is the central government of Afghanistan, a unitary state. Under the leadership of the Taliban, the government is a theocracy and an emirate with political powe ...

. However, the details have been questioned, partly because of the poor reputation of the group's leader, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. In 1988, both houses of Congress passed a bill recommending that Shapiro and Lindelof, along with journalist Charles Thronton, receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Shapiro was a member of the Unification Church and a graduate of its Unification Theological Seminary, as well as the

London Film School London Film School (LFS) is a film school in London and is situated in a converted brewery in Covent Garden, London, neighbouring Soho, a hub of the UK film industry. It is the oldest film school in the UK.

and the University of Colorado. He also attended medical school at the University of Oklahoma. His filmmaking was supported by

CAUSA International The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church, is a new religious movement, whose members are called Unificationists, or "Moonies". It was officially founded on 1 May 1954 under the name Holy Spi ...

, a church-related anticommunist organization. In 2006 the documentary film ''Shadow of Afghanistan'', by Suzanne Bauman and Jim Burroughs, was released. It incorporated footage originally shot by Shapiro.Shadow of Afghanistan - Suzanne Bauman and Jim Burroughs
, Alliance of Women Film Journalists, "It took 20 years to complete this documentary chronicling developments in Afghanistan, from Eisenhower's 1959 friendly visit, through Soviet invasion and expulsion, the ensuing civil war, to post-9/11 American bombing and occupation. The film uses extraordinary footage, some shot by slain journalist Lee Shapiro, to present the lives of a beleaguered people. (Seen at Tribeca Film Festival)"

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shapiro, Lee American Unificationists American documentary filmmakers 20th-century American Jews Journalists killed in Afghanistan 1949 births 1987 deaths Unification Theological Seminary graduates Unification Church and the arts Unification Church and Judaism Unification Church controversies Jewish anti-communists

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