Lee Shapiro (1949–1987) was an American

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

maker. His one feature-length film, ''Nicaragua Was Our Home'', was released in 1986. It was filmed in

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

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 ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', July 29, 1986 The film was shown on some

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

stationsHow to Read the Reagan Administration: The Miskito Case
/ref> and at the 1986

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

. In 1987, Shapiro and fellow filmmaker Jim Lindelof were killed in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

during the

Soviet–Afghan War The Soviet–Afghan War took place in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from December 1979 to February 1989. Marking the beginning of the 46-year-long Afghan conflict, it saw the Soviet Union and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic o ...

. The armed group they were traveling with reported that they had been ambushed by military forces of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

or the

Afghan government The government of Afghanistan, officially called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and informally known as the Taliban government, is the central government of Afghanistan, a unitary state. Under the leadership of the Taliban, the government is ...

. However, the details have been questioned, partly because of the poor reputation of the group's leader,

Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (born 1 August 1949) is an Afghan politician, and former mujahideen leader and drug trafficker. He is the founder and current leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party, so called after Mohammad Yunus Khalis spl ...

. 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 The Unification Church () is a new religious movement, whose members are called Unificationists or sometimes informally Moonies. It was founded in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon in Seoul, South Korea, as the Holy Spirit Association for the Unificatio ...

and a graduate of its

Unification Theological Seminary HJ International Graduate School for Peace and Public Leadership is a private Unification Church-affiliated graduate seminary headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York. It was known as Unification Theological Seminary (UTS) from ...

, as well as the

London Film School London Film School (LFS) is a film school in London, United Kingdom, and is situated 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 The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...

. He also attended medical school at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

. His filmmaking was supported by CAUSA International, 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 1949 births 1987 deaths American Unificationists American documentary filmmakers 20th-century American Jews Journalists killed in Afghanistan Unification Theological Seminary graduates Unification Church and the arts Unification Church and Judaism Unification Church controversies Jewish anti-communists

See also

References

External links