Monthly Archives: September 2010

A smart and refreshing call to rethink the human narrative, by author and social thinker Jeremy Rifkin:

“The Empathic Civilization is emerging. A younger generation is fast extending its empathic embrace beyond religious affiliations and national identification to include the whole of humanity and the vast project of life that envelops the Earth.” — Jeremy Rifkin

SHADOW GENERATION

… Continue Reading

Tomorrow we will honor the memory of Balbir Singh Sodhi – and all the men and women whose lives have been lost or damaged in the aftermath of 9/11, in hate crimes at home, terrorist attacks abroad, or in two wars raging in far-away lands. 

Since we launched the Common Ground Campaign few days ago, 717 people have signed our Charter in all 50 states. I invite you to commemorate tomorrow by signing the Charter for… Continue Reading

We’re very pleased to land on the front page of today’s New Haven Register.  The reporter Mary O’Leary captured the spirit of our campaign.  Worth the full read:

Students’ New Campaign Fights Islamophobia

Mary O’Leary – September 13, 2010

NEW HAVEN — Valarie Kaur is an award-winning filmmaker who has fought racism for the past nine years, and still she found herself overwhelmed and paralyzed by the anti-Muslim sentiment flowing from controversy over the planned Islamic… Continue Reading

What would happen if we felt empathy for those who we believe hold hateful views?  Would we lose some integral part of our identity or find common humanity?

On every 9/11 anniversary, I find myself showing my film or giving a talk, but this year, in the spirit of the Common Ground Campaign, I spent the day listening instead of speaking.  And what I found surprised me.

During the memorial at Ground… Continue Reading

We did it.  In ten days, working with an amazing core of volunteers, we conceived, developed, and launched a full-fledged campaign!  In the first 24 hours, we have hit 36 states, hundreds of co-signers and several news outlets.  And we have only just begun.

Sign the Charter.  Host a Dialogue.  Spread the Word.

On the 9/11 anniversary tomorrow, as some groups… Continue Reading

This morning, I am proud to announce that we launched our campaign!  The Common Ground Campaign urges young people around the country to join us in our pledge to stand against the recent wave of anti-Muslim violence and form common ground through compassionate dialogue:

Thanks to an amazing core of students who worked around the clock this weekend, we… Continue Reading

It is astounding what can happen in one week.

Last weekend, my friend Matt stopped by and started to vent his frustration and anger over the “Ground Zero Mosque” controversy and the wave of anti-Muslim violence sweeping the country.  I had been paralyzed over the issue for weeks, but hearing him began to thaw my frozen state: I wasn’t alone in my bewilderment and sadness.

Matt and I began to reach out to… Continue Reading

In the last few weeks, as the national firestorm over the “Ground Zero Mosque” reached a deafening pitch, I have not been able to stop thinking about a handmade sign hanging in a gas station in Mesa, Arizona (left).

On September 15, 2001, a turbaned Sikh man was murdered in front of this gas station, the first of at least two dozen people murdered in hate crimes in the months after 9/11. Neighbors and strangers… Continue Reading