Archive for the ‘Profiles of passion and courage’ Category
Posted by Gayle Gifford on January 18, 2010 in Profiles of passion and courage, World News
“Together we must learn to live together or we will perish as fools…
America, the richest and most powerful nation in the world, can well lead the way in this revolution of values. … There is … nothing except shortsightedness to prevent us from guaranteeing an annual minimum—and livable—income for every American family…”
” … Our only hope today lies in our ability to … go out into a sometimes hostile world declaring eternal opposition to poverty, racism and militarism …
“… We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now … Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words: ‘Too late.’ ”
From: “The World House“ chapter in Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?, The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on December 8, 2009 in Profiles of passion and courage, World News
This week we are blogging stories of human rights to commemorate International Human Rights Day, December 10th.
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Some of you may have seen the “60 Minutes” program Congo’s Gold that aired November 29, 2009. The story detailed how the selling of “conflict minerals” such as gold are paying for the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). With almost five million dead, this war has been described as the deadliest war since WWII.
Amnesty International USA describes this as a ” ‘war against women’ where “women and girls are being raped in great numbers as a means of destroying their families and communities.”
What seems so far away and removed from our lives came to us up close Sunday when Congolese refugee Albert Mulenda Rajabu spoke about his experiences in the DRC at the Write-a-Thon for Human Rights sponsored by Group 49 of Amnesty International USA.
Mr. Rajabu, a former teacher, stoically shared his own story of surviving two civil wars despite arrest and jailing for his human rights work in the DRC. But he wept when he reported incidences of sexual violence perpetrated against women and girls. He shared with the room the following story of a survivor’s account of the sexual violence. Read More >>
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on September 21, 2009 in Great quotes, Profiles of passion and courage
“We will not build a peaceful world by following a negative path. It is not enough to say we must not wage war. It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war but on the positive affirmation of peace… We must see that peace represents a sweeter music, a cosmic melody, that is far superior to the discords of war.”
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Nobel Peace Prize Lecture, 1964
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on August 29, 2009 in Big ideas, Great quotes, Profiles of passion and courage
“Circumstances may change, but the work of compassion must continue. It is surely correct that we cannot solve problems by throwing money at them, but it is also correct that we dare not throw our national problems onto a scrap heap of inattention and indifference. The poor may be out of political fashion, but they are not without human needs. The middle class may be angry, but they have not lost the dream that all Americans can advance together…
“A fair prosperity and a just society are within our vision and our grasp, and we do not have every answer. There are questions not yet asked, waiting for us in the recesses of the future, but of this much we can be certain because it is the lesson of all our history: Together a president and the people can make a difference. I have found that faith still alive wherever I have traveled across this land. So let us reject the counsel of retreat and the call to reaction. Let us go forward in the knowledge that history only helps those who help themselves.
“There will be setbacks and sacrifices in the years ahead but I am convinced that we as a people are ready to give something back to our country in return for all it has given to us.
“Let this be our commitment: Whatever sacrifices must be made will be shared and shared fairly. And let this be our confidence: At the end of our journey and always before us shines that ideal of liberty and justice for all.”
Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democratic National Convention 1980
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on January 20, 2009 in Profiles of passion and courage
Words seem inadequate to express all that I am feeling today. But this one, Jubilation, comes closest. Def. Jubilation – “a feeling of extreme joy”, “full of high spirited delight”, “a joyful occasion to celebrate a special event.”
Congratulations, President Barack Obama. The hopes and dreams of the world’s people rest with you today and throughout your presidency. Courage. While there is much to do, there are many who are willing to help if asked.
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on January 5, 2009 in Communicating, Great quotes, Profiles of passion and courage, Public engagement
Senator Claiborne Pell and Gayle Gifford 1981
It’s not often that I get weepy over the death of a politician. But I couldn’t help tearing up when I heard New Year’s Day that former Senator Claiborne Pell had died. While he served Rhode Island for six terms in the Senate, he truly was a Senator for all of us, a man who believed in public service as a noble calling, and had faith in the power of civility and diplomacy. He worked tirelessly for international peace, human rights, education, the arts and scholarship, the environment and historic preservation.
He was quirky, the way we like our politicians in RI. Known for his frayed cuffs and collars, his summer seersucker suits, he was a patrician beloved by the working class, interested both in science and UFOs and ESP. He defined his Senate job as “translate ideas into action and help people.” Read More >>
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on November 17, 2008 in Big ideas, Profiles of passion and courage
“If you want to make peace with your enemy, you must work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.”
Nelson Mandela
This picture shows Mandela with F.W. de Klerk, his lifelong enemy. De Klerk represented a ruthless and racist regime that used massacre, torture, infiltration and assassination over decades in relentless efforts to destroy Mandela and his colleagues in the South African resistance movement. Yet Mandela had the wisdom to make de Klerk his partner-adversary in creating a new South Africa. Mandela’s own release from prison in 1990 after 28 years, was just one milestone in that long and difficult partnership. Four years later, Mandela’s African National Congress won South Africa’s first non-racial election, ending apartheid and creating a peace which lasts to the present day.
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on November 10, 2008 in Great quotes, Profiles of passion and courage
Today’s quote comes from author, activist and extraordinary woman,? Helen Keller, and is a reminder that we still need to reach for our grand vision, even in the most trying of times.
“One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.”
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Posted by Gayle Gifford on November 3, 2008 in Big ideas, Great quotes, Profiles of passion and courage
We believe that ordinary human beings can create a world of opportunity, liberty, civil & human rights, human dignity, shared abundance, beauty, healthy natural resources and healthy, compassionate people together in a world of peace and prosperity.
That’s why we do the work that we do. Because we see nonprofits as essential to bringing that hope to pass.
So, on this momentous day, we thought we’d share a few words in the same spirit from our President to be and wish him great luck and all of our assistance on this journey:
“So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it?s that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers ? in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people…”
“America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves ? if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?
“…This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time ? to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth ? that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can?t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:
“Yes We Can.”?Excerpts from victory speech of President-elect, Barack Obama
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