Bring PEACE not PainTM

FILMS: 

The Betrayal ---The filmmaker and film subject, Thavisouk Phrasavath tells his own story of struggling as a young man to survive both the war and the hardships of immigrant life, from war-torn Laos to the mean streets of New York. Filmed over the course of 23 years, The Betrayal (Nerakhoon) is as much a tale of perseverance and of the human spirit’s inspiring capacity to adapt, rebuild and forgive.

www.nerakhoon.com

The Trials of Darryl Hunt --This award-winning documentary investigates a brutal rape/murder case and a wrongly convicted man, Darryl Hunt, imprisoned nearly 20 years for a crime he did not commit. At once a social justice story, a decades-long courtroom drama, and a personally driven narrative, the film follows this capital case from 1984 through 2004 through exclusive footage from two decades, the film frames the judicial and emotional response to a chilling crime - and the implications that reverberated from Hunt's conviction - against a backdrop of class and racial bias in the South and in the American criminal justice system.

www.breakthrufilms.org

Taxi to the Dark Side - The film asks and answers a key question: what happens when a few men use the wartime powers of the executive to undermine the very principles on which the United States was founded? :www.taxitothedarkside.com

The Big Question -A troubled man bursts into your child's schoolhouse. Without warning, he chases out all the boys and lines the girls up. Then he begins to shoot them one by one. Your own mother is brutally raped and slain by a random burglar. What would you do? Could you forgive? Should you forgive? In this remarkable new film the filmmakers explore “the big question” through astonishing acts of forgiveness, courage and will. Featuring Desmond Tutu, Deepak www.darklightpictures.com

Mad Hot Ballroom- Eleven-year-old New York City public school kids journey into the world of ballroom dancing and reveal pieces of themselves and their world along the way.

http://www.paramountvantage.com/madhot/

A Man Named Pearl -a subtle and intriguing film that opens both hearts and minds. It offers an upbeat message that speaks to respect for both self and others, and shows what one person can achieve when he allows himself to share the full expression of his humanity.

www.amannamedpearl.com

Life. Support. Music- In August 2004, Jason Crigler, one of New York City’s most sought-after guitarists, suffered a brain hemorrhage during a concert in Manhattan. That night at the hospital, the doctors told Jason’s family—if he makes it through the night, there won’t be much left of him. Days passed, and Jason’s family and pregnant wife were forced to accept the new dark reality at hand. But they refused to accept the dark future described by doubtful doctors. So in the face of wrenching despair and horrifying odds, the Criglers made a resolution—Jason will make a full recovery. And thus began the long, grueling, implausible and mystifying journey chronicled in Life. Support. Music.

BOOKS:

The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America is a sobering book in which educator and author Jonathan Kozol describes the educational realities in the United States facing black and Hispanic students.  As Kozol reveals through extensive research, the world in which these students live and are educated, is one of socially and economically arranged apartheid. Filled with the passionate voices of children, principals, and teachers, and some of the most revered leaders in the black community, The Shame of the Nation pays tribute to those undefeated educators who persist against the odds, but directly challenges the chilling practices now being forced upon our urban systems. Kozol offers a humane, dramatic challenge to our nation to fulfill at last the promise made some 50 years ago to all our youngest citizens.