The Conversation: Congo and Your Computer
Actor/activist Brooke Smith talks with Diane Sawyer about conflict minerals.
June 29, 2010— -- The computer, cell phone or other electronic device you're reading this story on might harbor a dirty secret -- it could contain minerals that have fueled brutal and bloody violence in Africa.
Many of the smartphones, laptops, cameras and other gizmos Americans rely on every day contain metals from the Congo, where profits from these "blood" minerals pay for guns, bullets and other weapons.
In most cases, Western consumers have no clue about the true costs of their gadget addition, but the people behind the Enough campaign hope to change that and push electronics companies, with help from a new web video, to do more to fight against conflict minerals.
In a video spoofing Apple's famous "I'm a Mac, and I'm a PC" ads, Enough explains some of the problems caused by the minerals tantalum, tungsten and tin. The spot's sad punchline claims that Macs and PCs have at least one thing in common -- they both contain those "three T" conflict metals.
Today on the Conversation, ABC's Diane Sawyer talks with one of the activists behind the web video, former 'Grey's Anatomy' star Brooke Smith.
What can you do to help the campaign? Watch the Conversation to find out.
Visit the Enough campaign's website at raisehopeforcongo.org.
