Many hands were needed to help in the transition for the immense number of Afghans that fled Afghanistan with the fall of the government there to the Taliban last year. Among those answering the call was Sahar Taman, providing legal assistance to the 13,000 Afghans located to Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, last fall. The personal situations & the legal requirements were complex, demanding deeply dedicated work of both the heart and head.
Afghanistan
Brilliant Non-violence: The Albert Einstein Institution
Jamila Raqib is executive director of The Albert Einstein Institution, the brain-child of Gene Sharp, leading researcher in non-violent action & civilian-based defense. Jamila was a refugee from Afghanistan at age 4, with a keen and innate sense of the power of non-violence to preserve and obtain freedom and justice, at the least cost.
Making Friends Among the Taliban - Jonathan P. Larson
Dan Terry did things that are unbelievable in many Western eyes - being welcomed among diverse peoples of Afghanistan, including some among the Taliban. After a life of aid, friendship, and living on the edge in the region, Dan was killed in 2010, and his story and stories are captured in Making Friends Among the Taliban: A Peacemaker's Journey in Afghanistan, written by Jonathan P. Larson.
Singing & Biking Afghan Vet Jacob George
Jacob George, a 3-tour Afghan vet, has just released Soldier's Heart, part of his recovery from the Moral Injury of war. Self-described as "a peace seekin, bicyclin, ramblin hobo from the hills of Arkansas", Jacob has biked across much of the South in the past 3 years, spreading peace and healing.
Purple Peace Wagon - War and Peace Talk Between Parents and Kids - Judith Myers-Walls
Purple Wagon is the site of Perdue Professor Emerita of Child Development & Family Studies, Judith Myers-Walls. In 1989 she began research and applications around parent/child communication about war & peace, a passion that comes out of her background with the Church of the Brethren, one of the traditional peace churches
On the Ground in Afghanistan - Santwana Dasgupta
Santwana Dasgupta is Director of the Partnership for the Education of Children in Afghanistan (P.E.C.A) for the past 2 years, working from Kabul. The path to Afghanistan grew from her youth in India, the events of 9-11 and from her work with Friends for a Non-violent World (FNVW).
Music Featured:
Come to School Afghani girls - Atai Sheery