Trying To Educate Others Can Get You Arrested??
Two quick questions: Ever read a novel that raised ultra-current cultural issues? Ever heard of Jose Ramos Horta and Desmond Tutu?
Horta and Tutu are Nobel Peace Prize laureates who are spearheading a campaign called Education Under Fire.
Seems the government of Iran is throwing educators into prison…
My work of fiction, Notes from An Alien, uses a far distant civilization's efforts toward peace to bring current, Earthly issues to light. If you glance at the Special Page, Can We Create Global Peace?, you'll see a list of issues raised in the book—many of which focus on governmental suppression of human rights.
A letter I received recently says the initiative, Education Under Fire, "…will include a striking 30-minute documentary to be co-presented with Amnesty International; an open letter to the international academic community coauthored by Nobel Peace Prize laureates Jose Ramos Horta, President of East Timor, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu; and a campaign to take—to campuses and communities across the country—a series of meetings combining a screening of the documentary with conversation."
Having written and published a book that attempts to educate folks, through the power of story, about what's necessary for peace and tranquility, there was no way I could not decide to support Education Under Fire.
The Huffington Post had a recent front-page article, Iran's War Against Knowledge — An Open Letter to the International Academic Community and there's a special web site where you can sign the letter.
Here's an excerpt:
"Freedom of education and freedom of information are integral to freedom of thought. Few advances have been made for humankind which were not preceded by new ways of looking at our world and new schools of thought.
"So it is particularly shocking when despots and dictators in the twenty-first century attempt to subjugate their own populations by attempting to deny education or information to their people….
"…Iranian youth have been expelled from universities for their beliefs or for holding viewpoints determined to be counter to the ruling party, including pro-reform views. Iranian officials have forbidden new delivery of and are in the process of rewriting the course content of twelve social sciences on the university curricula—including law, philosophy, management and political science—to make them more closely align with their own interpretation of the Islamic faith. They have stated that up to 70% of the course content in the social science will be rewritten by government officials."
Please notice they mention that these gross violations of human rights are not specifically demanded by the Islamic Faith, just by the governments twisted interpretation of that Faith…
Another quick question: Ever heard of Rainn Wilson from the TV show, The Office? He plays the character Dwight Schrute, said to be, "…a predictable caricature of a character that demonstrates the futility of most TV."
Rainn is particularly concerned about what's happening because he belongs to a Faith who's members in Iran are attempting to provide education to citizens, in spite of the government's suppression tactics.
I'm going to include a video by Rainn but first want to caution anyone who feels these issues aren't important to them because such oppression isn't happening in their country.
Are you sure your country doesn't use tactics, though hidden from the media, that suppress various classes of people?
Are you confident, in this age of confusion and global chaos, that your country's leaders are of strong moral fiber?
Do you feel that it's important to support other humans, primarily because we are all in one Global Family?
To me, it's important to note that, even though Rainn will tell you about a particular type of educational suppression, of a particular group of people, in a particularly oppressed country, Jose Ramos Horta and Desmond Tutu are working to support and aid these people… Because they are members of Our Human Family and because inaction is unconscionable…
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Tagged: Amnesty International, Desmond Tutu, Dwight Schrute, Education, Iran, Jose Ramos Horta, Nobel Peace Prize, Notes from An Alien
