Israelis And Palestinians Smile For The Camera

Here is an AP article about a worldwide project, created by a prize-winning French street artist, which encourages conflicted peoples to view each other eye-to-eye---- as brothers and sisters.

Here is the Israel execution of the project collaborated between Israelis and Palestinians.

JERUSALEM -- Large black-and-white portraits have been appearing on bridges, billboards and broken-down buses all over Israel and the West Bank as part of an international project that allows people to turn pictures of themselves into works of art or political statements.

The portraits of ordinary Israelis and Palestinians are part of a project created by a prize-winning French street artist known only as JR. The project, Inside Out, gets people worldwide to make a statement by having their photo taken and then printed on posters that they can then hang in a place they find significant.

Inside Out started in Tunisia in March and has also been to North Dakota in the U.S., Scotland and South Africa.

For two weeks, the project had two photo booths in the West Bank Palestinian cities of Bethlehem and Ramallah and a roaming photo truck that drove around Israel, taking a total of more than 7,000 portraits. It wraps up in Israel and the West Bank this weekend.

Israelis and Palestinians made different uses of their photos.
In the Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem last week, Palestinian youth activist Munther Amira came up with an idea for a political statement. He organized a group of children from the camp to have their photos taken and then painted flags on the posters of countries that support the Palestinian leadership's bid to win statehood recognition at the U.N. next week.

They took the portraits to Israel's nearby separation barrier and pasted them along the concrete wall.

In Tel Aviv early Thursday, a group of Israeli artists dressed in black pasted posters on the side of a bridge in what they called an apolitical art installation.
One of the participants, Maayan Iungman, said she felt the project was a way to reach people without talking about politics or opinions.

"Usually when we cross the street and see a big billboard with a photoshopped model and a lot of text, it doesn't move us. But to see a huge, simple bright face without words, you feel everything. I really believe this is a way of reaching people," she said.

In an interview with The Associated Press on Friday, JR, the artist behind the endeavor, said he envisioned the project as one in which his own ego was not a factor. Instead, the photo booths provide the materials and inspiration for people to take the idea and make it their own.

"It's about them. We transferred the power of the project to the people, and it's really their statements," he said.

Interfaith Peace

For 9/11, I attended an uplifting prayer and music service at Temple Judea. Prayers were read by rabbis, priests, imams, and ministers. Songs were performed by cantors and choirs. The Unity choir sang the Lord’s Prayer in Swahili. I could do this every day!

Eloquence, Excellence, and The Golden Rule

I just invested an hour to watch President Obama’s speech at Cairo University. Once again, he demonstrated excellence in crafting and delivering a powerful and relevant message. He emphasized the principles of peace, respect and human dignity. He spoke candidly about seven core issues: 1) Violent Extremism, 2) The Israel/Palestine Conflict, 3) Nuclear Arms, 4) Democracy, 5) Religious Freedom, 6) Women’s Rights and 7) Economic Development. He made strong points about what unites all nations, all religions, and all humanity—The Golden Rule. He quoted from The Christian Bible, Muslim Koran, and The Jewish Talmud.

Peace Sign-50 Year Birthday Celebration

My non-denominational church, Unity On The Bay, where EVERYONE is welcome, is conducting a ten-day marathon of activities, films, lectures, discussions, book studies, music, prayer, meditation, and other activities to help us embody peace. Our minister informed us today that the Peace Sign turned 50 this year. He shared the story of its origin meaning "surrender".

The following is an excerpt from "A history of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) (CND) logo" by the CND in UK.

One of the most widely known symbols in the world, in Britain it is recognised as standing for nuclear disarmament - and in particular as the logo of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND). In the United States and much of the rest of the world it is known more broadly as the peace symbol.

It was designed in 1958 by Gerald Holtom, a professional designer and artist and a graduate of the Royal College of Arts. He showed his preliminary sketches to a small group of people in the Peace News office in North London and to the Direct Action Committee Against Nuclear War, one of several smaller organisations that came together to set up CND. The Direct Action Committee had already planned what was to be the first major anti-nuclear march, from London to Aldermaston, where British nuclear weapons were and still are manufactured. It was on that march, over the 1958 Easter weekend that the symbol first appeared in public.
What does it mean? Gerald Holtom, a conscientious objector who had worked on a farm in Norfolk during the Second World War, explained that the symbol incorporated the semaphore letters N(uclear) and D(isarmament).
He later wrote to Hugh Brock, editor of Peace News, explaining the genesis of his idea in greater, more personal depth:I was in despair. Deep despair. I drew myself: the representative of an individual in despair, with hands palm outstretched outwards and downwards in the manner of Goya's peasant before the firing squad. I formalised the drawing into a line and put a circle round it.
The symbol almost at once crossed the Atlantic. Bayard Rustin, a close associate of Martin Luther King had come over from the US in order to take part in that first Aldermaston March. He took the symbol back to the United States where it was used on civil rights marches. Later it appeared on anti-Vietnam War demonstrations and was even seen daubed in protest on their helmets by American GIs.

Simpler to draw than the Picasso peace dove, it became known, first in the US and then round the world as the peace symbol. It appeared on the walls of Prague when the Soviet tanks invaded in 1968, on the Berlin Wall, in Sarajevo and Belgrade, on the graves of the victims of military dictators from the Greek Colonels to the Argentinian junta, and most recently in East Timor Although specifically designed for the anti-nuclear movement it has quite deliberately never been copyrighted. No one has to pay or to seek permission before they use it. A symbol of freedom, it is free for all.

addition:

Here is an article posted in The New Times

Peace Out

Just give it a chance at Unity on the Bay’s Peace-a-thon.
BY PATRICE ELIZABETH GRELL YURSIK

Christian or Muslim, Jew or Hindu, agnostic or atheist — we can all agree on one thing: This world is in need of a whole lot less war and a whole lot more peace. Although world peace might seem like a tall order to anyone with an IQ higher than your average pageant queen’s, there are folks actively working toward that lofty goal. But for every aid worker toiling in a refugee camp, or public official trying to bridge communication between rival factions, there’s a government waiting to invade another country for bull____ reasons, or a fundamentalist ready to blow harmony to smithereens. Why can’t the world just do what John Lennon asked, and give peace a chance? If you want to try, head to Unity on the Bay (411 NE 21st St., Miami).

Its Peace-a-Thon aims to use the power of collective hope to target a specific problem. The church is of Christian denomination, but its message carries beyond religious boundaries. Because September 11 is the Unity World Day of Prayer, and September 21 is the United Nations International Day of Peace, Unity on the Bay plans to embrace global unity and spiritual diversity for the 11 days in between.

Celebrations will include a concert with Deva Premal & Miten this Sunday — tickets for which cost $25 general admission in advance, $35 at the door. There’ll be a consciousness day-spa this Saturday that includes meditation, workshops, labyrinth walks, massages, Reiki, and Johrei. And this Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., like-minded individuals are simply welcome to come to the Return to Self Silent Retreat. There’s a “suggested love offering” of $30, and pre-registration is required. Visit www.unityonthebay.org or www.peace-a-thon.com.