When asked by reporters from The A-Blast, “where in the world is there a famine currently occurring right now?” the common response by the AHS student body is “I don’t know.” It’s horrifying to think that AHS students don’t know about the famine, especially when the UN reports that almost 750,000 innocent civilians are expected to die as a result in the horn of Africa within the next month.

“Kids aren’t involved in international events because of their ignorance,” sophomore Eric Lein said.

This is sad to think when the current drought is considered the worst of its kind reported in 60 years; over the last four months the UN has announced that more than ten thousand Somalians, half of which are children, have died.

What’s horrifying to the UN, and the countries affected, is that the famine is still expanding. A sixth area in the South of Somalia was added to the areas affected by the drought just last week.

The UN, which is frantically searching for funds and has been asking for $2.4 billion to be raised for the beginning of October since July, is still $1 billion short. But money isn’t the only problem. Getting aid to Somalian regions is also dangerous and laborious. Somalia’s lack of a stable government is easily manipulated by the Al-Shabab, an Islamic extremist group that alleges allegiance to Al-Qaeda. The group has been forcefully blocking aide, and according to the New York Times, the clan plans on intensifying attacks.

One reason the AHS student body is in the dark can be credited to the famine’s lack of media attention. Although major media outlets and newspapers have been keeping tabs on the worsening crisis, it seems that viewers haven’t seen or acknowledged much of the existence of the famine. Media sites aren’t being fueled by famine awareness, and the lack of student awareness of current international events contributes to their naiveté.