Human Rights Unfolds in Iran

Iran is in the midst of a comprehensive human rights struggle. A new generations' worldview is putting social justice at the center of that nations' vision for the future. What constitutes a 'religious state' and how do citizens create unity through peaceful, nonviolent change? This photo(above) from Salvador, Brazil, says that the struggle of Mandela is our struggle, against apartheid there(South Africa) and here(Brazil).Baha'is in Iran have struggled for human rights and religious freedom for more than a century, including those currently imprisoned, and are a model for social justice and peace. In so doing, they are "serving the entire human race", or in the words of the Sioux-Mitayuke Oyasin (We are all related).

Gender HIV and the Church: A Case Study

For those concerned about spiritual solutions or whole life approaches to preventative health in communities of color around the world, Development Gateway's Imran Uddin reports "Gender HIV and the Church: A Case Study". This two-year pilot project in Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe used a faith-based , culturally-specific intervention to confront issues of gender inequality, human sexuality and relationshsips, and HIV disease prevention. Go to Development Gateway, become a member, and read more at: http://www.developmentgateway.org

MAKE ART NOT WAR-"Fear No Art" exhibition on point

Last nights' exhibition reception of Fear No Art at the Achilles project in Boston featured some of planet earth's prominent "underground artists" including Marka 27, Problak, and Kenji Nakayama with 13 other artists displaying their creative chops. Combining traditional media, portraiture, 3-D toys-for-adults, and technology, artwork snaked its way through the space molting a call and response aesthetic that celebrates a global urban sensibility. Spectators were awed at the multiple screens playing Wildstyle, wii stations in tables at the boutique-cum-gallery, and open bar ambiance.
Check out the one-month-long exhibition at 283 Summer St, Boston, MA. For more information go to http://www.fearnoart3.blogspot.com/.

Peace series-Collage

Between 1988 and 1991, I created a series of nine 2-D collages that examined how humanity had approached the peace process from our ancestral origins to the presenbt. I began with the internal life of every individual with the first work entitled “The Descent of the Spirit of War ” to the last entitled “The Lesser Peace.” To Check out my gallery.
(L., "The Lesser Peace # 6")

PEACE MARATHON

PDP will select three projects from around the world to demonstrate how many individuals and
groups are working for peace. We will change these stories weekly, so stay in touch AND send us your recommendations.[Note: Listing of any organizations, individuals, groups, initiatives, or campaigns is not an endorsement of those individuals or projects.]

1-Boston-based Peacegames keeps the peace

Peacegames is a national Boston-based project that em,powers young choildren to solve problems without violence. With satellite projects in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, the partnership between PG and Boston's Cathedral Grammar School, an inner city school, helps students “create their own safe classrooms and communities”. An impact study reports that 84% of teachers state that Peacegames has improved students’ ability to achieve more peaceful approaches to school life. Read more at: www.peacegames.org/

2-A Thousand waves as one: Baha’i Faith most organized, diverse, and peace focused

The recent persecution of Baha’is in Iran in the midst of that nation’s current upheaval is making people ask the question-‘What’s the Baha’i Faith all about?” For information on this newest
world religion, go to: info.bahai.org
Click on ‘A New Vision for Humanity’s Future’ to learn more and study the principles and teachings of the Baha’i Faith and its Prophet-founder, Baha’u’llah. It suggests that our collective future depends upon achieving world unity, embraces “likely the most diverse organized body of people on the planet”, and a focuses on moral behavior and character development as indispensable to world peace.


3-Silverton Foundation plants seeds of social justice that lead to peace

Through U.S. and international grant making SF supports school readiness, transition to college and career, and promotes economic inclusion to foster community awareness and commitment to social enterprise. Groups funded include Citizen Schools, Literacy Coalition of Central Texas, and Boikarabelo Children's Village in South Africa. The latter provides social services and partial funding for the facility in support of educational programming at this village-based HIV\AIDS orphanage (funded through Keep A Child Alive of Brooklyn, NY www.keepachildalive.org). Visit their site at www.silvertonfoundation.org

Join the Peace Doors Project Team-PDP Online

In my experience around the world, most of us are hungry for peace. Transforming ourselves and our societies from war-like, tribal, and nationalistic to peace-building communities requires daily exercise and attention. The PDP team online is an interactive and global community involved in changing the discourse and staging an international and intergenerational dialogue on making our deeds match our words. We want to involve everyone on planet earth in thinking differently about what we can each do to promote peace, regardless of our religion, class, race, gender. If we live in stable societies we may have the luxury of postponing active engagement with the social justice work that must precede peace.

As director of The Peace Doors Project, I am throwing out a challenge to everyone. The PDP is a plan to build nine monumental "peace doors" at nine sites around the world as a symbolic gesture. The real work of PDP is to create
a positive worldwide movement, young and elder, East and West, North and South to develop programs, activities, and workshops at the "sacred sites" where the doors will be built.
Let there be peace and let it begin with me and you.
Let's hear what you think, what you're doing, and what others are doing in your communities and around he world, that you admire. Far from being 'developing' and 'developed' nations, we are all related in one world, developing a new consciousness of human rights, social justice and peace.