Pushing the Elephant

Pushing the Elephant tells the inspiring tragedy-to-triumph story of Rose Mapendo, Congolese mother and Tutsi survivor of mass regional genocide at the hands of government forces. Separated from her 5-year-old daughter during the violence, Mapendo and her remaining nine children were imprisoned in the Congo while her husband was murdered by the military. Following their release, Mapendo and her family settled in Phoenix, AZ, where many African refugees have relocated. Filmmakers Beth Davenport and Elizabeth Mandel let Mapendo tell much of the story herself as they follow her over the course of one year, during which this devout Christian engages in a one-woman humanitarian quest to bring peace to the war-torn Congo. Mapendo attends speaking engagements and makes television appearances; returns to her still-dangerous homeland to spiritually reconnect with her former community and visit her husband's burial ground; and, in one of the documentary's most emotional sequences, reunites with the now 15-year-old child she had left behind. Throughout, Mapendo comes across as an emotional whirlwind of altruistic passion, constantly preaching forgiveness in the face of the cruelty that's befallen her family (including the impregnation during imprisonment of one of her daughters by an army officer). Telling the story of an amazing woman who is just as humble as she is heroic, this documentary is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (M. Sandlin)