When wars end and peace agreements are signed, countries must often confront the heinous realities of battle.

Healing takes place on local and national levels. In some African communities, tribal cleansing ceremonies welcome former combatants back into the community. Truth and reconciliation commissions scour countrysides and refugee camps to collect wartime stories to better understand the casualties of war, in an attempt to unite and move forward as a nation.

WIDE ANGLE visits the Liberian community on Staten Island and speaks with Mike Wessells, a psychologist who has worked with war-affected youth in over 15 situations of armed conflict, including Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Colombia, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Photos of spiritual cleansing ceremony courtesy of Lindsey Stark.