The sun chased me to Seattle early this morning, first leg of Rwanda trip. Arrived in DC at Dulles tonight. In the morning I'll be meeting the group I'm going with this time – Theater students from Buffalo State College and their fabulous professor Drew Kahn – some of you will remember Drew from last January when he and I visited Rwanda, Drew wrote these amazing blogs on that trip! Buffalos theater department is serious about addressing social justice issues through theater and they want their students to experience Rwanda. More tomorrow! Got to crash now:) best, Carl

http://www.livestream.com/worldoutsidemyshoes/video?clipId=pla_898eadfc-1c71-4d7d-b7b4-5c89bbc747d8&utm_source=lslibrary&utm_medium=ui-thumb

 2011 books in December!!  This is   A big ONE!!!   We have set a goal for the month of December of getting  2011 copies of  the book I'm Not Leaving into the hands of people you want to share the story with.  We think together we all can do this by the end of 2011!!!  -  We are already over 200 books and we haven't even announced it on facebook yet!  Well now we have:)  We will send out event invitations sunday – just wanted to give you a heads up – maybe you want to start  donordering (donate+ordering)  early??  http://worldoutsidemyshoes.org/im-not-leaving-book

1. For a suggested donation of $16 we will send you 1 book

2. For a suggested donation of $40 we will send you 3 books

3. For a suggested donation of $70 we will send you 6 books

4. And for a suggested donation of $320 we will send you 40 books!

on Kindle – only $4.99 -introductory

offer. Click here

Please feel free to put a review on Amazon:)

Carl & I are in Buffalo, NY right now at the invitation of the Buffalo State Theatre Department who produced a play based on Carl's book, "I'm Not Leaving". If you haven't seen the book yet, it's based on the cassette tapes that Carl recorded during the 100 days that he was in Kigali, Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. And if you don't yet have a copy of the book and would like one, you can get one by making a donation to World Outside My Shoes athttp://worldoutsidemyshoes.org/im-not-leaving-book.

The play's premier performance will be Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. (Buffalo, NY time) as part of the Anne Frank Project event taking place on the Buffalo State College campus this week.

You can watch the play live online 8pm eastern time at:http://theannefrankproject.com/ where you will then click on the "2011 AFP Conference Live Stream" line under the "Welcome" heading. Once you click on that line you will see several events and the list will grow longer in the coming days. Streaming for the conference starts at 9am eastern time Wed. Sept. 14. Below is a schedule of all the events that will be streamed live during the 3-day conference.

Anne Frank Conference 

schedule of events that will be streamed live online.

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2011

9:00-10:50 AM OPENING CEREMONY Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Welcome: Dr. Aaron Podolefsky- President, Buffalo State College

AFP 2011: Looking Inward: Drew Kahn- Director, The Anne Frank Project

Keynote Speaker: Hope Azeda

Panel Discussion- Employing the Arts For Social Justice:

Hope Azeda- Mashirika Creative and Performing Arts Group

Carole Karemera- ISHYO Performing Arts Center

Nadia Nikwaya- ISHYO Performing Arts Center

Gary Wolfe- Artist

11:00-11:50 AM Carl Wilkens Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

A Dialogue with Carl Wilkens

1:00-1:50 PM Sophia Veffer Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

From Bullying to Hate Crimes, to the Holocaust, to Genocide: Can The Anne Frank Project Change a Bystander Into an Involved Citizen?

The Anne Frank Project offers an analytical approach to the causes of discrimination, hate crimes, the Holocaust and Genocides through the words of Anne Frank and lessons learned from the history of societies, where annihilation of large segments of the civilian populations became the norm of justice and government policies. Every genocide, including the Holocaust, requires three groups of participants: The Victims, The Perpetrators and the Bystanders. Of the three groups, the Bystanders are the most dangerous and the most numerous, because they enable the Perpetrators to commit these crimes.

Using Anne Frank’s words, we educate young people from kindergarten through college that discrimination and hate crimes are detrimental in achieving a peaceful Global Society. Our Shared Humanity Has No Room for Bystanders.

3:30-4:00 PM Emily Michel Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

MY NAME IS HATE

HRC Art and Writing Contest Best in Show, Emily Michel will read her award winning poem, followed a short discussion with the participants.

Introduced by: Lillian Gerstman- Holocaust Resource Center

THE ANNE FRANK PROJECT OUR SHARED HUMANITY:LOOKING INWARD

4:00-5:10 PM Andrew Beiter and Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Springville Students for Human Rights

Ripples of Hope: Profiles of People Who Have Changed the World

The students will perform monologues, music, dance and poetry, all of which is designed to inspire their audience to repair the world. The piece performed by Springville Middle and High School students recreates the lives of historic and current human rights defenders.

5:15-7:15 PM Dr. Ricky Fleming Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

A Soldier’s Tale

“A Soldier Tale” or Histoire du Soldat was written in 1918 to be read, played and danced, set to music by Igor Stravinsky. The original story was based on a Russian folk tale, written in French by the Swiss writer C.F. Ramuz. The libretto was about a soldier who trades his fiddle to the devil for a book that could predict the future. However, this performance will feature a later version of the libretto that is set in World War II. This version written by Kurt Vonnegut, chronicles the arrest, court martial and execution of an American soldier named Eddie Solvik. Eddie Solvik refused to take part in the war as he felt that it was hazardous to his health. The story really shows what lengths a person will go to stand up for what he or she believes in, even if it means death. The music was written for a septet as to compensate for the lack of players available during World War I.

7:15-8:00 PM Carl Wilkens Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

A Dialogue with Carl Wilkens author of I’m Not Leaving

8:00-10:00 PM Joseph Price Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Ensemble Theater Class

I’m Not Leaving WORLD PREMIER

I’m Not Leaving, World Premier is a play based on a manuscript of the same title by Carl Wilkens. Mr. Wilkens was the only American to remain in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. The Ensemble Theatre class has devised a theater piece based on the manuscript that looks at the genocide through the lens of Carl’s experience. The piece is presented with the hope that the understanding the audience and performers reach, might lead to a more just and tolerant world where genocide and exclusion have no place. The play seeks to create a bond between the audience and Carl. If the audience is moved by Carl’s acts of heroism and develops a relationship with Carl through his story perhaps we can live the words of Anne Frank: “Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart.”

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2011

9:00-10:30 AM Panel Discussion Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Defining the Role of Social Justice

Ronnie Podolefsky

Sophia Veffer- Holocaust Resource Center

10:50AM-12:05PM Carl Wlikens Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

A Dialogue with Carl Wilkens

1:40-2:55 PM Dr. Charles Bachman Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Love and Cohesion versus Hatred and Enmity in Native American Traditional Stories

Dr. Bachman will tell three Native American traditional stories. Each of the stories relates to the title and the importance of caritas, charity within a community. A discussion will follow each story asking the participants what ethical/spiritual lessons can be gleaned from the tale.

“The Enemy

“Poia” (Scarface) "

“Hodadenon, or the Last One Left”

3:00-5:00 Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

of Erie and Niagara Counties, Inc.

UNSEEN TEARS

Native American families in Western New York continue to feel the impact of the Thomas Indian School and the Mohawk Institute. Survivors speak of traumatic separation from their families, abuse, and a systematic assault on their language and culture. Western New York Native American communities are presently attempting to heal the wounds and break the cycle inter-generational trauma resulting from the boarding school experience. Unseen Tears documents testimonies of boarding school survivors, their families, and social service providers.

5:00-6:00 PM Panel Discussion Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall The American Experience

Peter Hill- Native American Community Service of Erie and Niagara Counties

Michael Martin- Native American Community Service of Erie and Niagara Counties

Raul Neira- Associate Professor, Modern and Classical Languages, Buffalo State College

Ruchatneet Printup- Native American Community Services of Erie and Niagara Counties

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2011

9:00- 10:50 AM Panel Discussion- Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Expressing Community

Victor Habinshuti-

Michele Ninacs- College Writing Program, Buffalo State College

Deborah Renzi- Social Work Department, Buffalo State College

12:00-1:30 PM Ntare Ali Gault Warren Enters Theatre- Upton Hall

Erika Haygood

Njozi Poets

The Njozi Poets have been performing throughout the country for over 12 years inspiring audiences.

“ I simply can’t build my hopes on a foundation of confusion, misery and death…I think….peace and tranquility will return again.” Anne Frank. This quote expresses the hope that whatever confusion or turmoil one may experience, peace is still possible. Erika Haygood, witnessed the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. As brutal as the attack was Ms. Haygood birthed poetry of hope.

Ntare Ali Gault uses his real life family stories, weaving them into poetry that people of all backgrounds can relate to. Using both of his grandmothers’ stories, his poetry connects historical narratives to present challenges today. Taken together, the poets presentations will undoubtedly stimulate an open discussion with audience members and provide a forum where peace and tranquility can truly commence.

AT THIS POINT i DON'T THINK THE CLOSING CEREMONIES WILL BE STEAMED ONLINE AS THEY ARE TAKING PLACE OUTSIDE IN THE MAIN SQUARE

Recommended Books:

A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide, by Samantha Power
From 1993-1996 Samantha Power covered the grisly events in Bosnia and Srebrenica, becoming increasingly frustrated with the United States and their inability to counteract the genocide.  “The United States had never in its history intervened to stop genocide and had in fact rarely even made a point of condemning it as it occurred.”

Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing, by James E. Waller
From the Turks’ massacre of Armenians in 1915 through the Serbians’ slaughter of Bosnian and Albanian Muslims during the 1990s, the 20th century was an era of mass killing.  Social psychologist Waller develops a four-layered theory of how everyday citizens became involved.

Blood and Soil: A World History of Genocide from Sparta to Darfur, by Ben Kiernan
Humans have been slaughtering each other for thousands of years, but only now is the field of genocide studies blooming.  This grim account of history notes remarkable parallels in the patterns of mass slaughter, from Carthage to Darfur.

Guns, Germs and Steel, by Jared Diamond
The book asks and attempts to answer the question, once human kind spread throughout the world, why did differ populations in different locations have such different histories?  The modern world ha been shaped by conquest, epidemics and genocide, the ingredients of which rose first in Eurasia.  The book’s premise is that those ingredients required the development of agriculture.

Mobilizing the Will to Intervene: Leadership to Prevent Mass Atrocities, by Frank Chalk, Romeo Dallaire, Kyle Matthews, Karla Barqueiro, and Simon Doyle
The recurrences of genocide and crimes against humanity around the world demonstrate that the international community has been largely ineffective in stopping mass atrocities.  Drawing on interviews with 80 key figures involved in American and Canadian responses to the Rwandan genocide and the Kosovo crisis, the book explains why and provides a roadmap for change.

Preventing Genocide: Practical Steps toward Early Detection and Effective Action, by David A.Hamburg
Analyzes the problem of mass violence, describes pillars of prevention, and concludes that focal points of knowledge and skill in prevention are essential to identify warnings and to prepare and propose appropriate responses before a genocide begins.  It recommends the establishment of international genocide prevention centers in strong institutions and outlines their tasks.

State of Darkness: US Complicity in Genocides Since 1945, by David Model
The  thesis of State of Darkness is that the United States is either guilty of or complicit in eight genocides since 1945.  Two different levels of guilt were defined in the Genocide Convention, one depending on whether a country is directly responsible for genocide and the other, complicity, on whether it contributed in some significant way to the commission of genocide.

The Responsibility to Protect-Ending Mass Atrocity Crimes Once and For All, by Gareth Evans
R2P was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2005.  Many misunderstandings persist about its scope and limits.  Much remains to be done to solidify support and to build  capacity.  Evans posits how R2P, with its acceptance in principle and effective application in practice, the promise of “never again” can become a reality.

Worse Than War: Genocide, Eliminationism, and the Ongoing Assault on Humanity, by Daniel Jonah Goldhagen
Worse Than War gets to the heart of the phenomenon, genocide, that has caused more deaths in the modern world than military conflict.  In doing so, it challenges fundamental things we thought we knew about human beings, society, and politics.

Recommended Films:

Screamers
The film a 2006 documentary by director Carla Garapedian examines repeating pattern of genocide, from the Armenian genocide, to the Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda, up to Darfur today.

The Last Survivor
This disturbing group portrait of Dachau’s modern-day residents is a Holocaust book unlike any other.  American journalist Timothy Ryback, whose Austrian heritage includes a distant relative in the SS and a Nazi-sympathizing grandfather, depicts the wide range of perspectives held by those who live in the German town best known for being the site of a concentration camp.

Worse Than War
Goldhagen is convinced that the overall phenomenon of genocide is as poorly understood as the Holocaust had once been.  How and why do genocides start?  Why do the perpetrators kill?  Why has intervention rarely occurred in a timely manner?  These and other thought-provoking questions are explored in this documentary film.

Compiled by Paulina Robles and Barbara English of Orange County for Darfur and Martina Knee of the San Francisco Bay Area Darfur Coalition.

Raindrops Over Rwanda –

Just 22 minutes of your day today – Today is the day the

genocide in Rwanda officially ended — Maybe you could

watch during lunch hour with colleagues – To honor

those who were taken from us and raise funds for the

Kigali Memorial center –http://www.snagfilms.com/films?/title/raindrops_over_rwanda/ 

Thanks Carl 

From Zanna Gilbert:

Please watch the free documentary,Raindrops Over Rwanda, on July 18, 2011 and help raise $50,000 (donated by Explore.org) for the Kigali Memorial Centre, funding crucial education programs for school children. Honor the victims of genocide. Help the survivors heal and build a lasting peace.

 

Spread the word to your audience via Facebook, Twitter and blog.

 

When: Monday, July 18, 2011

What: Watch Raindrops Over Rwanda

Where:www.snagfilms.com/films/title/raindrops_over_rwanda/

Why: Because you care about preventing genocide

 

Thank you for the important work you do to promote peace and champion human rights.

 

Sincerely,

 

Zanna Gilbert

 

Recommended Books:

A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide, by Samantha Power
From 1993-1996 Samantha Power covered the grisly events in Bosnia and Srebrenica, becoming increasingly frustrated with the United States and their inability to counteract the genocide.  “The United States had never in its history intervened to stop genocide and had in fact rarely even made a point of condemning it as it occurred.”

Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing, by James E. Waller
From the Turks’ massacre of Armenians in 1915 through the Serbians’ slaughter of Bosnian and Albanian Muslims during the 1990s, the 20th century was an era of mass killing.  Social psychologist Waller develops a four-layered theory of how everyday citizens became involved.

Blood and Soil: A World History of Genocide from Sparta to Darfur, by Ben Kiernan
Humans have been slaughtering each other for thousands of years, but only now is the field of genocide studies blooming.  This grim account of history notes remarkable parallels in the patterns of mass slaughter, from Carthage to Darfur.

Guns, Germs and Steel, by Jared Diamond
The book asks and attempts to answer the question, once human kind spread throughout the world, why did differ populations in different locations have such different histories?  The modern world ha been shaped by conquest, epidemics and genocide, the ingredients of which rose first in Eurasia.  The book’s premise is that those ingredients required the development of agriculture.

Mobilizing the Will to Intervene: Leadership to Prevent Mass Atrocities, by Frank Chalk, Romeo Dallaire, Kyle Matthews, Karla Barqueiro, and Simon Doyle
The recurrences of genocide and crimes against humanity around the world demonstrate that the international community has been largely ineffective in stopping mass atrocities.  Drawing on interviews with 80 key figures involved in American and Canadian responses to the Rwandan genocide and the Kosovo crisis, the book explains why and provides a roadmap for change.

Preventing Genocide: Practical Steps toward Early Detection and Effective Action, by David A.Hamburg
Analyzes the problem of mass violence, describes pillars of prevention, and concludes that focal points of knowledge and skill in prevention are essential to identify warnings and to prepare and propose appropriate responses before a genocide begins.  It recommends the establishment of international genocide prevention centers in strong institutions and outlines their tasks.

State of Darkness: US Complicity in Genocides Since 1945, by David Model
The  thesis of State of Darkness is that the United States is either guilty of or complicit in eight genocides since 1945.  Two different levels of guilt were defined in the Genocide Convention, one depending on whether a country is directly responsible for genocide and the other, complicity, on whether it contributed in some significant way to the commission of genocide.

The Responsibility to Protect-Ending Mass Atrocity Crimes Once and For All, by Gareth Evans
R2P was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2005.  Many misunderstandings persist about its scope and limits.  Much remains to be done to solidify support and to build  capacity.  Evans posits how R2P, with its acceptance in principle and effective application in practice, the promise of “never again” can become a reality.

Worse Than War: Genocide, Eliminationism, and the Ongoing Assault on Humanity, by Daniel Jonah Goldhagen
Worse Than War gets to the heart of the phenomenon, genocide, that has caused more deaths in the modern world than military conflict.  In doing so, it challenges fundamental things we thought we knew about human beings, society, and politics.

Recommended Films:

Screamers
The film a 2006 documentary by director Carla Garapedian examines repeating pattern of genocide, from the Armenian genocide, to the Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda, up to Darfur today.

The Last Survivor
This disturbing group portrait of Dachau’s modern-day residents is a Holocaust book unlike any other.  American journalist Timothy Ryback, whose Austrian heritage includes a distant relative in the SS and a Nazi-sympathizing grandfather, depicts the wide range of perspectives held by those who live in the German town best known for being the site of a concentration camp.

Worse Than War
Goldhagen is convinced that the overall phenomenon of genocide is as poorly understood as the Holocaust had once been.  How and why do genocides start?  Why do the perpetrators kill?  Why has intervention rarely occurred in a timely manner?  These and other thought-provoking questions are explored in this documentary film.

Compiled by Paulina Robles and Barbara English of Orange County for Darfur and Martina Knee of the San Francisco Bay Area Darfur Coalition.

We will be spending two weeks in Poland speaking at schools against genocide!

More to come later. Carl

BBC Gisimba Orphanage

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00fvl4l

BBC Carl's 6 minute interview is 11 minutes into the podcast.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/worldupmc

Huffington Post Article

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/julia-lurie/humanizing-a-hero_b_845015.html

Mobile Alabama, Murphy High School

http://blog.al.com/live/2011/04/carl_wilkens_tells_mobile_stud.html