Friends,
It's hard to stay optimistic right now. With civilians under attack in Gaza, innocents being shot out of the sky in Ukraine, people threatened with water shut-offs in Detroit and being denied their basic humanity at U.S. borders -- there is much reason to despair.
That's why our spirits are uplifted when reminded by Saif Alsaegh, one of the featured presenters at the Future Is NOW conference next month, that:
 "Words live longer than wars and injustice. Through poetry and art we resist a culture based on oppression and violence."
Saif is a poet and writer from Baghdad, Iraq, and one of the workshop presenters at The Future Is NOW -- an intergenerational summit for people committed to economic, racial, environmental, and social justice in Berkeley, California, from Aug. 15 to 17.
"Reading the news makes me depressed, so I write and maybe, through that, I can wake someone up and tell them: what's happening is not right. Presenting poetry and art through the Future Is NOW is a way to share life. Life that is not fully happy, but it can smile from time to time," says Saif.
Join Saif in Berkeley next month and let's build something that will outlast wars and injustice.
FOR is hosting the intergenerational summit in partnership with the Center for Spiritual and Social Transformation at the Pacific School of Religion, with volunteer support from the Nursha Project. Registration for the conference is a sliding scale beginning at just $35.
 Saif will be joined at The Future Is NOW by Josue Bustos, a resident of Los Angeles and one of the members of the 2012 Arts of Resistance delegation to Palestine sponsored by FOR. In Berkeley, Josue will invite all attendees to create a public mural. He writes:
"A creation as a collective mind is a transforming, self-empowering and inspiring moment so irresistible that it makes you want to do it again and again.
"The only prerequisite is your vision for a better tomorrow. Join us at Future Is NOW and help us paint our future, today."
 In addition to Saif and Josue, featured presenters include Kazu Haga, Mahsea Evans, Jakada Imani, Rev. Phil Lawson, Rev. Deborah Lee, Cesar Hernandez, Samina Sundas, and Rev. Osagyefo Sekou. FOR Freeman Fellow Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb is the coordinater of the event as well as a presenter, and FOR Executive Director Rev. Kristin Stoneking and longtime organizer Shauen V.T. Pearce will also present workshops.
The Future Is NOW will consist of three days of conversations, collaborations, workshops, mural arts, poetry, and performances and is designed for people of all ages and backgrounds.
Register for The Future Is NOW and let's build movements across generations!
Linda E. Kelly
Acting Director of Communications
Fellowship of Reconciliation
P.S. We're particularly interested in getting young folks to this event, in order to help build the next generation of leaders. If you know young people who might be interested, please invite them to attend and consider sponsoring their attendance. And do forward this email to friends and colleagues! |
