By: Mahathi Tallapragada, Red Cross Youth Volunteer

I watched with nervous anticipation as the meeting attendee number ticked up. Slowly at first, then quickly picking up speed.

20. 30. 40. 50.

Finally it began to level off at 80 people, all waiting to hear our team speak.

6:03. I unmute, and the show begins. We had been developing this webinar about the lives of the inspiring female war correspondents on the battlegrounds of World War II, centered in the context of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). Thinking about how their work contributed not only to further legal protections for journalists during armed conflict but also to open doors allowing women a bigger voice in the entire field of journalism.

This webinar was a part of my team’s campaign for the IHL Youth Action Campaign (YAC) Program, following this year’s annual theme of journalism in armed conflict. The entire year, we had been preparing for this moment: countless hours of research on three incredible women in history, discovering IHL provisions protecting journalism on the battlefield, and applying what we learned to our advocacy campaign.

The campaign serves to educate the public — and especially youth — about crises and the legal protection of civilians during armed conflict. By sharing how armed conflict should be conducted ethically, ensuring minimal harm to non-combatants and their objects, advocates imbue a sense of social responsibility within the people they reach to promote humanity and the alleviation of human suffering in the same way the Red Cross works to do.

The three journalists we discussed in our webinar — Lee Miller, Marguerite Higgens, and Dickey Chapelle — all had a duty to their readers: to provide accurate news on the war. Not providing an impartial view of the war would not have given readers a candid look behind-the-scenes. Likewise, to be a neutral and independent organization allows the Red Cross to provide aid to those in armed conflict settings, regardless of personal beliefs, State lines, or any other biases that may divide us as people. The IHL YAC Program taught me that no matter where we stand, like in war reporting, we have a responsibility to spread awareness in an honest, moral way that upholds humanity. This is why I volunteer.