By Valeria Carrano

Los Angeles photojournalist Sara Terry presented her slideshow, “Aftermath: Bosnia’s Long Road to Peace,” in the Behrakis Health and Sciences Building Wednesday. The slide show, sponsored by the School of Journalism, illustrated Bosnia’s reaction during the years after the war.

“My whole intention is to say that humanity is the final word, not inhumanity,” Terry said.

Terry showed photographs of a wheelchair basketball team in Bosnia. Before the war, there was only one team. After the war, as a result of injuries, there are eight teams. She also showed an exhumation team putting bones and clothing together from victims of the war, then allowing family members to identify the bodies in order to bring closure to the pain.

“The situation in Bosnia in the early ’90s was similar to the situation in Iraq now, because it affected multiple groups of people. The United States is occupying Iraq, and there are mixed reactions between countries, so I think it would have been the same with Bosnia,” said Brooke Breen, a sophomore sociology major. “Some would have supported our help, and some would have opposed it.”

Many of Terry’s slides featured women who lost loved ones and buildings that were destroyed during the fighting.

“I want to be a part of humanity that tries to live again,” Terry said.

Kaca Bradonjic, a senior philosophy and physics major from Bosnia, said that she is hopeful that Bosnia will rebuild itself.

“The best part of the presentation was a spark of hope that the young people in Bosnia might get over the whole thing and get on with their lives in peace,” Bradonjic said.

Other photographs contained reflections in windows of people and fashion shows featuring women wearing clothing worn by different people throughout the war.

“[Terry’s] presentation was amazing, with striking images that made me want to laugh and cry. It really illustrated a beautiful country truly scarred by a horrendous war,” said Anne Ferriera, a sophomore journalism major.

Terry said that she feels the U.S. media only covers actual conflicts, but abandon the story once the fighting stops. She used examples like Vietnam, Afghanistan and Bosnia. She now is creating an endowed grant project where she needs to raise $5 million. This project is meant to educate people about the aftermath of this war. She has already raised $30,000 to help support her personal project.

Bill Kirtz, one of the journalism professors that sponsored the event, was happy with the event and its turnout.

“The presentation was terrific. I was impressed with the variety of people who showed up,” Kirtz said.