When Amanda Lindhout traveled to Somalia as a freelance journalist in 2008, she planned to return to Canada a week later with published articles on victims of the war. Instead, she came home more than a year later with haunting stories of kidnap, abuse, and suffering of her own, she explained at an event hosted by Ottawa Cornerstone Housing for Women on Nov. 21.
Lindhout saved money as a waitress in Calgary after high school and at 19 began travelling. She grew an interest in storytelling and entered war-torn countries as a freelancer. In Somalia, she was kidnapped and held for 15 months for a $1.5 million ransom.
“I was really alone for the first time in my life . . . with a dirty foam mat on the floor, and my own mind,” she said. “I would spend my days walking in circles around that room and using my imagination [to] think about all the things I would do with my life if I were lucky enough to make it out.”
Since returning home five years ago, Lindhout has founded an organization called the Global Enrichment Foundation, published her book “House in the Sky,” and now travels around North America to speak about her experiences.
The event, involving a gala dinner and local musicians with Lindhout as the keynote speaker, celebrated the 30th anniversary of Cornerstone Housing for Women, an organization providing shelter and support for women in Ottawa.
Sue Garvey, executive director of Cornerstone, said the organization is about “resilient women,” a term she said Lindhout embodies.
“It’s about how women can go through terrible things and come out the other side to do something amazing with their lives,” she said. “[Lindhout] has a wonderful story of moving beyond trauma and turning it into something great.”
Lindhout described her kidnapping as “just like a Hollywood movie.” She explained being forced into a car at gunpoint, being threatened and abused by her teenage captors and her attempted escape resulting in being locked inside what she calls the “dark room” for the remaining 10 months.
Her story was signed by a Hollywood movie production company earlier this year and will be turned into a film starring Rooney Mara.
But her story does come with criticisms. Andrew Cohen, a Carleton journalism professor, wrote a column in the National Post shortly after her return, explaining how without journalism training or education she cannot refer to herself as a journalist.
He said she “takes risks in the world’s hot spots without institutional support,” an act of naivety.
Reflecting back on her decision to travel to Somalia, Lindhout herself admits she went into her trip feeling “invincible.” But she emphasized her extensive plans for the trip and travels in war-torn countries prior to Somalia.
“As a traveller I explored many countries we see as off-limits,” she said, listing countries including Sudan, Pakistan, and Lebanon. “Nothing really bad had ever happened to me and in your twenties, it’s very easy to believe that it never will.”
Her speech ended on a hopeful note as she explained the success of her foundation and how she is on the path to forgiving her captors. She received a standing ovation followed by a book signing.
“I’m in the middle of reading her book. It’s amazing,” said Debbie Bowie, a Cornerstone supporter and attendee. “She’s an amazing speaker, went through a lot, and came out stronger. It really is all in the way you look at it.”
