Creativity, Resolution, Art, Illness & Community (CRAIC)

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NO SILENCE, NO SHAME: SPEAKING OUT ON VIOLENCE AND TRAUMA
Recorded February 9, 2011

What would you do if a close family member were murdered? What if you discovered that a loved one had killed? How would you react? What would your response be?

These unthinkable questions were confronted by Renny Cushing, whose father, Robert, was violently murdered in his home in 1988, and David Kaczynski, whose brother, Ted, was arrested by the FBI in 1996, accused as the Unabomber responsible for a series of bombings that caused three deaths and numerous injuries over 17 years.

As Renny and David told the New York Times in January, the parents of Jared Lee Loughner and his Tucson shooting victims, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, are confronting these difficult emotions even today.

In this webinar, Renny and David share how they have used their experiences to help people cope with the repercussions of violence and trauma in their families.

SPECIAL GUESTS

Renny Cushing
His father’s murder in 1988 shaped Renny Cushing’s work as an advocate for crime victims and death penalty opponent. Founder and Executive Director of Murder Victims’ Families for Human Rights, Cushing has been a pioneer in the effort to bridge death penalty abolition groups and the victims’ rights movement. He travels throughout the world and the United States speaking on behalf of those constituencies.

A lifelong social justice activist, Cushing is also a former, three-term member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives and serves on the board of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and the steering committee of the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty.

David Kaczynski
Through his life and his work, David Kaczynski has sought solutions to human problems through understanding and compassion as opposed to violence and coercion. His story touches on the things we must learn and the balances we must achieve to develop meaning out of trauma and suffering, and to keep our sense of humanity alive through adversity and crisis.

In late 2010, David published a book of his poetry, A Dream Named You, started in the months after his brother, Ted, was captured by the FBI, in an effort to understand the turmoil he was facing.

NOVEMBER 3, 2010 MEETING VIDEO

GUEST ARTIST

David Kaczynski
Through his life and his work, David has sought solutions to human problems through understanding and compassion as opposed to violence and coercion. His story touches on the things we must learn and the balances we must achieve to develop meaning out of trauma and suffering, and to keep our sense of humanity alive through adversity and crisis.

David has recently published a book of his poetry, A Dream Named You, started in the months after his brother, Ted, was captured by the FBI, in an effort to understand the turmoil he was facing. Visit http://davidkaczynski.com for more information about David, his work, and his new book.

AUGUST 25, 2010 MEETING VIDEO

GUEST ARTISTS

	Scott Petito Scott is a Grammy nominated composer, producer, bassist and multi-instrumentalist. His NRS Recording Studio in Catskill, NY has been a popular destination for acoustic and jazz artists for many years; James Taylor, Rory Block, The Band, Dave Brubeck, Jack DeJohnette, Mercury Rev and Keith Richards are a few of the many artists with whom Scott has recorded and/or performed with. Visit http://www.myspace.com/scottpetito to hear "When the Night Spills," featured in the Webinar. Also, visit http://www.leslieandscott.com/ and click on "Recordings and Links" to hear Scott's other music with partner Leslie Ritter.
	Beth Reineke Beth has recorded and/or performed with numerous artists including Rick Danko, Tom Pacheco, Pete Seeger, Michael Jerling, Scott Ainslie, Michael Franks, Helen Avakian, Aine Minogue and Anne Hills. She has worked in numerous roles, including recording assistant and session singer, at NRS Recording Studio since 1997. Beth has also worked as a music publicist, radio promoter and road manager for numerous performers. Visit http://www.myspace.com/lehemmusiconmyspace to hear Beth's music, including the song featured in the webinar, "My Father's Violin."

JUNE 16, 2010 MEETING VIDEO

ARTISTS' IMAGES

	This is the inner part of the high country of Denali National Park in Alaska. My husband and I traveled with backpacks by train from Anchorage to Fairbanks and then into Denali Park. It seemed so good to be free and unencumbered as we moved from here to the southern area where we saw fantastic glaciers and whales. Photos give back the beauty of times spent and experience with family that will always be part of your life. Copyright Ann Fantauzzi.
	My fellow colleague and traveler and I hiked in this large park and reservoir area just outside of Windhoek, the capital city of Namibia. We were in Namibia working on educational outreach for a month. At the time, it was a great feeling of freedom to realize I was in Africa — a dream for me — and in a place where no one else knew I was. This photo does not look like the prototypical African landscape. It changes peoples' ideas of Africa. We sat and watched the baboons play and make noises at us. Copyright Ann Fantauzzi.
	The famous sand dunes in Sosssusvlei, Namibia are the highest in the world. On a 104-degree day my group climbed to the top. I struggled to climb and lagged behind the others and ran out of water, but made it, and afterward felt I had done something that was more than I was capable of. Not that I didn't pay a physical price for it afterward, but I accepted the risk and met it. I can look at my dune photos and recall the beauty as well as the feeling of accomplishment for me personally. Copyright Ann Fantauzzi.
	This photo of a young Himba boy was taken in his village, Otutati, in the northern part of Namibia near the Angolan boarder. He and other children are waiting to go to the mobile tent school nearby. The learners will only go when there is food for a meal, so we brought millet and sugar and oil for them. The Himba are struggling to maintain their cultural ways in the midst of a modern world that wants their land and resources. Learning some English and some math will give them an advantage to get by as they deal with the outside world to some degree. Many more teachers are needed to teach in these tent schools every year. Copyright Ann Fantauzzi.
	An autumn sunset on the Erie Canal. This photo was taken as I returned home from a doctor's appointment early in my illness, while still struggling to come to an understanding of my changed circumstances. Copyright Bill Glenning.
	Wild flowers in the early morning. Just before I took this photograph, I had been speaking with a dear relative who was coming to the end of a terminal illness. The outdoor lighting illuminated the flowers and their beauty brought me a sense of peace during a time of deep sadness. Copyright Bill Glenning.
	I rose early one morning to capture images of the colorful hot air balloons at a local ballooning festival. Copyright Bill Glenning.