Two
Little Pearls for post-Katrina America:
After
the Storm: Compassion, Wisdom, Change (3:13
min)
and
After the Storm
(30 sec)
Play
3:13 Minute Video:
WMV:
14.8 M 
MOV: 18.2 M
Play
30 Second Video:
WMV:
6.0 M
MOV:
7.5 M
Play
these files in High Definition
For best results, right click on a video link and choose
'Save Link/Target As' option. Extend click on a Mac.
The four minute After the Storm compilation,
developed for film festivals and presentations, can be downloaded here.
Play
4:04 Minute Video: WMV: 31 M MOV: 39.5 M
It is also up on YouTube (in reduced quality, but it gives a good feeling for the piece): youtube.com/watch?v=g5Kok4JrHro
Can the devastating power of Hurricane Katrina also share with us the power of compassion and community? The two After the Storm Little Pearls speak to the need for our nation to reconsider our priorities.
The
Story Behind After the Storm
The
After the Storm
Pearls are inspirational, as all Little Pearls are, yet they are
also op-ed pieces, intended to be thought-provoking.
The
original concept for After the Storm came
to Linda McLean, Executive Director of Little Pearls, through compelling
dreams and intuitions that began three days after the world woke
up to the suffering caused by Hurricane Katrina. The words on the
Statue of Liberty (“Give me your tired, your poor….”), memorized
by many Americans as children, kept going through Linda’s mind.
The compassion and grace in these words did not mesh with what we
were seeing in the Gulf Coast, so powerfully and relentlessly broadcast
in the media.
After
the Storm (30 seconds) juxtaposes the Statue
of Liberty’s familiar, historic poem of American caring with images
of the devastation in Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath. After
the Storm invites
the viewer to consider the apparent discrepancy between American
ideals and our current reality, and to help create positive change
to close the gap. This Pearl does not give answers
– those must come from each of us, and from our shared wisdom and
efforts.
After
the Storm is more challenging and intense than
earlier Pearls; one friend calls it a “medicine Pearl”. It seemed
to have a will of its own, requiring multiple attempts at ending
lines, music and even footage. The ending lines include words that
can have more than one meaning. Several friends and professionals
served as a loose focus group – their feedback, ideas and even resistance
were all part of the process.
Five
of Linda’s friends who care deeply about their community and the
world – and who can also speak from the heart with power and ease
– were asked to look right into the camera. They said those familiar
words on the Statue of Liberty, our national symbol of compassion,
hope and freedom, from Emma Lazarus’ poem “The New Colossus,” written
in 1883:
“Give
me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
The
Statue of Liberty is a wonderful symbol for America at her best.
She holds a torch instead of a sword – a light for the masses looking
for a new, better life. She lights a way for us through the darkness
– but we must find and follow the path ourselves.
After
the Storm: Compassion, Wisdom, Change
(3:13 minutes) was unplanned. It arose from the deep empathy, love
and wisdom in the spontaneous responses of our five on-camera speakers
to three questions, captured while shooting for After the Storm(:30):
·
What do you hope will change in the wake of Katrina?
· How have you been changed?
· Why did you choose to help send a message with this Little
Pearl?
This
is our first BIG Pearl at slightly over 3 minutes. Inspirational
and moving, it is more like a traditional Pearl, yet it also challenges
the viewer. This one came together easily. The big Pearl is meant
to be viewed just before the little Pearl, as it reveals the hearts
of our speakers and sets the context. Both After the Storm
Pearls are a mix of high definition studio and standard definition
news footage – another first for us.
Purpose:
The After the Storm
Pearls are intended to challenge American viewers to remember who
we are and what we cherish at the deepest levels; to consider the
bigger issues for ourselves; to participate as citizens in constructive
dialogue and change; and to take inspired action. They were created
to encourage open thought, dialogue and citizen participation for
the daunting challenges and choices ahead.
Our
hope is that: America
is waking up after the storm. The truth can change us – for good.
Context:
The After
the Storm Pearls address our post-Katrina country as a whole
– not just those most directly affected by the crisis.
This hurricane shattered more than lives, property and communities
over a huge part of our Gulf Coast. It broke the heart of America
open, creating a national “pattern interrupt” – an unexpected point
of choice for individual Americans and for our country.
A sense
of helplessness from exposure to the unfolding disaster, the prolonged
suffering and our once-“invisible” social, economic and environmental
problems had a profound impact on so many of us. We are prompted
now to look more carefully at what happened and at what we can do
to make a difference in the future, in the Gulf Coast and beyond.
Human
beings are generous in times of crisis, but how long will the generosity
last? Will we address any of the deeper,
underlying problems? We have allowed a shift in national priorities
that leaves more and more people, animals, communities and natural
systems at risk – just one disaster away from ruin.
Did “we the people” consciously choose this? Have we been too busy
with our own lives to notice or speak out?
We
can take this disaster as a catalyst to explore
what happened; what might have prevented so much suffering; how
we can revitalize the Gulf Coast in sustainable ways; how we might
prevent the human-caused aspects of a natural disaster in the future;
and how to avoid “business as usual” mistakes. Lofty speeches and
short-sighted, “band-aid” repairs for long-standing, complex problems
are not the answer. We need a wise,
meaningful, comprehensive vision.
We
must look at how we deal with national and global issues involved
in creating true security for all of us:
social and economic justice; fiscal responsibility; race and class
equity; reasonable military activity and spending; and sustainable
environmental practices. It is time
for each of us to participate more actively as citizens and to re-prioritize
how we spend our time and money – from personal to national levels
– based upon what we truly value.
In our own country and in our relationships with the rest
of the world, it is time for new choices.
DVDs
of After the Storm
are being sent to national media contacts, public opinion shapers
and key policy makers involved in post-Katrina investigation, debate,
choices and action.
The
wonderful people featured in the After the Storm Pearls
span four decades. In order of appearance on the big Pearl:
Carolyn
Wallace
spent her early years in Mississippi and came to Asheville, NC in
the late 1970’s. She has been deeply involved in the life of this
community, contributing to positive change and transformation in
many ways. She has worked as Executive Director of Manna Food Bank;
as a consultant in strategic planning, problem solving and organizational
change with non-profits; in grassroots community action for social
and environmental justice issues; and, most recently, as Director
of Service Learning at Warren Wilson College. Carolyn has recently
returned to work after a medical leave for much of the past year.
Tyrone
Greenlee
is
a native of Asheville, North Carolina and currently works as a church
administrator and co-director of Christians for a United Community,
a non-profit organization which mobilizes people of faith around
issues of social justice. Tyrone is also a community activist, having
served on numerous boards, and currently volunteers with the Building
Bridges of Asheville anti-racism organization and the Western North
Carolina AIDS Project. Tyrone also attends New Mount Olive Missionary
Baptist Church where he is a member of the Sanctuary Choir and the
Men's Chorus.
Sue
Walton
is originally from New England and moved to Asheville in 1977 with
her husband and six children. She was one of the founders of MAGIC
Community Gardens and also of Building Bridges, an inter-racial
dialogue process. She is retired from the Asheville Housing Authority
where her work with residents promoted and supported personal and
family empowerment. These issues continue to be her focus in her
current involvement with Help-Mate and Big Brothers/Big Sisters,
and she also nurtures her 11 grandchildren!
Daniel
Barber's
lives as a social worker, research statistician, video producer
and social and environmental justice activist have morphed into
a passion for playing music that enlivens, inspires and transforms.
Originally from Texas, he now leads the Jubilee! Community World
Beat Band, which supplies the musical charge for Sunday morning
celebrations in Asheville, NC. Whether for live events, film/video/radio,
or workshops and retreats, Daniel uses the universal language of
music to smooth the path to personal transformation, community healing
and harmony. Visit newcontext.com.
Kat
Williams
is the on-camera person Linda saw in her dream – we later discovered
her given name is Katrina! Kat is a gifted, versatile and powerful
singer with a big heart and a knack for easily connecting with her
audience. Because of her strong presence, she anchors both Pearls
and later did the vocals and voiceovers. Kat also has an entertainment
booking business. Born in upstate New York, Kat now lives in Asheville.
Visit katwilliams.com, Kat on myspace
CREDITS
Camera: David Bourne – bournemedia.com
On-Camera:
Kat Williams, Carolyn Wallace, Tyrone Greenlee, Sue Walton, Daniel
Barber
Broadcast
footage (Hurricane Katrina and Statue of Liberty)
courtesy of WLOS -TV, Asheville, NC
Editing:
David Bourne – bournemedia.com
with Linda McLean
Voiceover
for Big Pearl: Kat Williams – katwilliams.com
Vocals
of “America the Beautiful” for little Pearl – Kat Williams - katwilliams.com
Music
for Big Pearl: “Amazing Grace” – arranged and performed by Robert
Mari
(from
“Arrival: Solo Piano Reflections”) - syntonicarts.com
Studio
Lighting: Stewart Andrew Young – Sayworks – sayworks.com
Sound
Studio: Chris Rosser – Hollow Reed Arts – chrisrosser.com
Sound
Studio: River Guerguerian – guerguerian.com
Audio
Engineer: David Schmidt – Acapella Audio - AcapellaAudio.com
with David Bourne – bournemedia.com
Special
Thanks to the friends and professionals who helped
in the formation of these Pearls, including:
Debra
Roberts, Kat Williams, Ruth Williams, Shane Peters, Jim Stokoe,
Daniel Barber, Mary Olson, Diana McLean, Darlyne Sahara, Tyrone
Greenlee, John Charping, Dana Garber, Bill Weaver, Sherry Lepage,
Gloria Karpinski, Richard Shulman, Clay Griffith
