In Conflict is a book that tells the stories of 25 veterans who served during the war in Iraq. Their experiences were as different as their backgrounds. Author, Yvonne Latty captured America’s diversity. “By interviewing a lot of different types of people, you know I would get to where the truth is. I wanted diversity, I wanted my world, I wanted a book that reflected different types of people you know, like an African American woman who is a doctor.”
Latty made sure that the struggles of these veterans were not lost, and that their stories were told. “When you turned your TV on you didn’t see any of them” Latty explained “It was just politicians talking about the war. You never heard anything from the vets. I just thought there was a story to be told so, I just went about trying to tell it.”
In cooperation with Temple University professor Doug Wagner, the two tag teamed to create a more visual interpretation of Latty’s book. The play sold out in Temple Theaters and even made its way to Broadway and Scotland. They used Latty’s audiotapes from the interviews to capture the true personality of each veteran. No um or ah was improvised even every stutter was verbatim.
Tomlinson Theater hosted a screening of the original play in honor of Military Appreciation Month. All the donations benefited the Wounded Warrior Project. Wagner believes that even though the war ended, it is important to remember the men and women who still may be suffering from its effects. He said “The help is still not here, and the problem is 300% bigger than it was 7 years ago.”
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