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OUT OF THE POISON TREE, a Documentary Describing the Suffering of the Cambodian People Under the Rule of Pol Pot, Will be Final Film in the 2008-2009 Daemen College Film Series
Special Guest Will be Thida Mam, Survivor of the Pol Pot Regime, Whose Story is Told in OUT OF THE POISON TREEThe final film in the 2008-2009 Daemen Film Series will be “Out of the Poison Tree”, a documentary describing the suffering of the Cambodian people under the rule of Pol Pot: “On the eve of the long-awaited Khmer Rouge trial, an American survivor of the genocide returns to Cambodia hoping to unlock the mystery of her father’s disappearance in 1975. Thida Mam’s pursuit of the truth dredges up one family’s nightmare, brings to light inconceivable heartache and ultimately shatters a people’s long silence.”
A special guest for the film showing will be Thida Mam, who has shared her gripping story of survival of the Pol Pot regime on such shows as The McNeil News Hour, Oprah, and People are Talking.
“Out of the Poison Tree” will be shown 7:30 p.m., Monday, April 27, in Alumni Lounge in Wick Center on the Daemen College campus, 4380 Main Street, Amherst. The film is free and open to the public. Post-film discussion will be led by Dr. Edwin Clausen, Daemen College Academic Vice President for Academic Affairs.
In addition to her numerous media appearances, Thida Mam has been the keynote speaker at the Yale University Genocide Conference and The Conference on Genocide in Melbourne, Australia. Her family’s story has been told in the film “Out of the Poison Tree” and in three books: To Destroy You is No Loss (1986); Bamboo and Butterflies: From Refugee to Citizen (1992); and Children of the Killing Fields (1999). Most recently, she gave the keynote address at the Southeast Asian Studies Student Conference “Memory and Resistance,” at The Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois University (March 22, 2008).
Thida Mam is an active advocate for the creation of a Cambodian Genocide Tribunal; Thida balances her international advocacy and activism with being the mother of two and a software developer for eBay, Inc in Silicon Valley, California.
Interviews with Thida Mam are available and can be arranged through Mary McCutcheon – a good friend, who worked with Cambodian refugees at the Thai-Cambodian border 30 years ago. Mary can be reached by phone at (716) 652-6105 or by e-mail, mjmccutcheon@gmail.com .