Today, we create space...
...to remember those lost 5 years ago this day due to the tsunami. ASR's heart, thoughts, and prayers go out to those who are, for any and all reasons, grieving the memory of that day. We want to take this moment now to grieve with you, to remember, and to rededicate our commitment to the undeniable truth that...aid IS still required.
As a part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Campaign, Clint Eastwood graciously donated his new film, Invictus, for an advance screening at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, two days prior to opening. The gala evening, co-sponsored by the City of West Hollywood in addition to thecommunity.com, recognized various NGOs, honoring the work that they do in light of Human Rights Day [December 10th]. About 400 guests were in attendance - over 1,200 were on the waiting list!
Aid Still Required was asked to participate with other NGOs that included the One Campaign, Artists for Human Rights, CARE, the Enough Project, and Amnesty International.
Bonnie Abaunza, ASR friend, fierce human rights advocate, and Director of Special Projects for Remote Control Productions emceed the screening. A video presentation was shown before the film, in which Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave his illuminary words of gratitude toward Clint Eastwood for making the film, the collective work of NGOs and the essential work that they do in preserving our universal human rights [stay tuned for the video link of his message].
The performances in the movie were effortlessly brilliant, conveying this compelling true story about Nelson Mandela's endeavors to reunite his country through reconciliation and forgiveness...and rugby!
ASR's table got a lot of buzz as people came by, picking up ASR bookmarks, brochures on our upcoming projects, and asking more about our work. Hollywood Weekly also came by the table to take pictures of Andrea and Hunter with ASR volunteers Kanoe Y. Wheeler and Eileen Kim, as well as to get a few words from Hunter about our work.
As part of its continuing participation in the UDHR Nobel Peace Laureate Campaign, ASR organized a photo shoot with Lakers Andrew Bynum, Luke Walton, and Jordan Farmar at the Lakers' practicing facility.
The three athletes held up signs representing the various articles numbers from the UN document, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as signs that say, "Join Us!", written and signed by each of them in their own handwriting. Luke's dad, basketball hall of famer Bill Walton is also participating in the campaign.
ASR had the pleasure of seeing photographer Zoe Zimmer again, whom we had met at the Sunset Gower Studio shoot, a former UK high fashion model and daughter of renowned film composer, Hans Zimmer.
It was a particularly exciting day for Andrea and Hunter, who were able to have a brief conversation with Kobe Bryant and pass along to him a long-awaited gift of gratitude for his previous PSA work with Aid Still Required: a custom-made ASR t-shirt with Kobe's high school team motto, "Refuse to Lose"...written in Italian. Kobe was appreciative of the gift, continuing to show his very gracious support to ASR's work.
After the shoot ended, we ran into Lakers general manager and long-time friend of Hunter's, Mitch Kupchak, with whom we got to have an enjoyable conversation.
Seen below is Andrew Bynum, graciously posing with 5'5" ASR volunteer Eileen Kim.
Here's Luke Walton saying cheese with UDHR Article 14.
We are very grateful to all of the wonderful support we've received from our home team, the Los Angeles Lakers!
Thecommunity.com had invited ASR to participate in its Universal Declaration of Human Rights Campaign featuring Nobel Peace Laureates including the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was created by Eleanor Roosevelt and adopted by the UN in 1948. Its 30 articles spell out the fundamental facets of human rights for all people. UN General Secretary Ban Ki-Moon said, "The Declaration was the first global statement of what we now take for granted - the inherent dignity and equality of all human beings." ASR is honored to join a campaign that speaks so true of what it stands for...what we hope all of you will take a stand for.
Andrea, Hunter, and actress / filmmaker / ASR volunteer Lindsay Huff were at Sunset Gower that Monday doing a photo shoot with actors and athletes such as CCH Pounder from The Shield and Law and Order and Lakers Josh Powell and Didier Ilunga-Mbenga.
Seen below are Didier Ilunga-Mbenga giving a group hug to Producer Terri Melkonian, Coordinator Nikkie Pacuk, Production Assistant Raffi Petrossian, Associate Producer Larry Laboe, and Production Assistant Valentine Mathieu. Just how many people can DJ fit in his arms?!
Andrea is seen here with Malalai Joya, also known as "the most famous woman in Afghanistan." In 2003, at the age of 25, Joya stood up at a constitutional assembly and denounced the NATO-backed warlords. She was elected to parliament in 2005 at age 27, and in 2007, she was suspended for her persistent criticism of the warlords and the government.
Currently on tour of the US to promote her new book, A Woman Among Warlords, Hunter and Andrea met Joya at the home of CODEPINK Co-Founder Jodie Evans. Joya is petite and soft-spoken until she starts speaking about the tragedies currently going on in her country and about the calling for the withdrawal of NATO troops there.
The Paynes deeply appreciated the opportunity to hear a firsthand report about life in Afghanistan from Joya as well as from activist Sara Nichols, who traveled there recently on a CODEPINK delegation. What was especially moving was the story of a young girl, who had been given in marriage against her will as a child, escaped twice, found refuge in a woman's shelter, and who is now committed to becoming a lawyer on behalf of other women. There are only six women's centers to serve the approximately 13 million women estimated to be victims of domestic abuse.
Whatever point of view you may have about the US troops being in Afghanistan, you cannot help but be moved by Joya's courage and passion. She has survived four assassination attempts; for this reason, CODEPINK is requesting contributions to help provide an armored car for Joya's safety.
"For the children" - Aid Still Required Joins the Clippers and Maccabi Tel-Aviv for Migdal Ohr Benefit
In 2007, the New York Knicks and Maccabi Tel Aviv sold out Madison Square Garden in the first basketball benefit game for Migdal Ohr, the world's largest orphanage located in Northern Israel.
As the benefit was such a success, Migdal Ohr created two pre-season exhibition games for 2009, one rematch in NYC and the other at the Los Angeles Staples Center with the LA Clippers facing the Maccabis.
Migdal Ohr Executive Director Robert Katz had heard about ASR's work with the NBA players and offered ASR an invitation to participate. Proceeds went to Migdal Ohr, with a percentage of sales going to help the work of other NGO's such as ASR and LA's Best, in addition to area synagogues.
Over 26,000 people total attended the two games. Andrea and Hunter sat in the midst of a lively group of male middle-schoolers, who could barely stay in their seats. When they weren't hooting and hollering, the young men were texting the latest scoop. Founder and president Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman, alos the 2009 Caring Institute International Humanitarian of the Year, addressed the crowd at half-time. A delicious post-game feast was held for VIPs and the athletes. In addition to meeting basketball legend Rick Barry, Andrea was espcially happy to meet up with her old friend, talented marketer, Lauren Becker.
This West Coast game went off without a hitch, though the same could not be said about the game at the Garden, where Maccabi coach, Pini Gershon, had to be removed from the game over a heated disagreement with a referee. We were glad to see him more at ease here in LA!
After seeing Dirt! The Movie, you will never think of the ground beneath you in quite the same way.
Sometimes red, sometimes chocolaty brown, sometimes black, sometimes beige, we usually think of dirt as something we want to clean up and get rid of. However, Dirt! The Movie was an eye-opener for the Paynes. ASR thanks producers Bill and Laurie Benenson and Gene Rusow for getting the word out...and for making the film a lot of fun as well as informative and inspiring.
Dirt! The Movie has been chosen as PBS's 2010 Earth Day special. The DVD is now available for purchase at dirtthemovie.org/buydirttoday.
Watch the trailer here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8_dN5YWnyc&feature=player_embedded
This year's Bioneers Conference, held in Marin County from October 16-18th, was Aid Still Required's fourth year in attendance, in conjunction with Andrea and Hunter's wedding anniversary. The Paynes were fortunate enough to be joined by Board member Maureen Charles, who found the conference equally inspiring, a gathering of amazing people focusing on visionary solutions to preserve and revitalize the planet in addition to restoring social justice to a broken world.
One of their favorite workshop presenters was Dr. John Todd of Todd Ecological Design and Engineering - the 2008 winner of the Buckminster Fuller Challenge. He spoke about his revolutionary approach to coal mining mountain top restoration in Appalachia. After hearing Dr. Todd and seeing Diane Sawyer's Children of the Mountains television special on malnutrition in Appalachia, the beautiful land and forgotten people of Appalachia are now on ASR's radar where we hope to make a difference.
The Paynes first heard Dr. Todd and his wife, Mary Jack Todd, speak at a local Los Angeles Bioneers meeting regarding their visionary simulated ecosystems that purify sewage and waste water. He has created a method that changes human waste into drinkable water through the practical use of plant filter systems as eco-machines. Who knew that waste management could be so fascinating?!?! For more about Dr. Todd's work, check out his site at http://toddecological.com.
Mari Margil, the associate director of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELD) was one of the standout plenary speakers with her presentation "Who Speaks for the Trees?: Driving Nature's Rights into Law." The focus was Ecuador's Constituent Assembly's landmark decision to enshrine the rights of three cities in the US who are drawing up city ordinances to strip corporations of their rights constitutionally, even as the cities grant nature rights under the law.
Creating a parallel between how we treat nature and slavery, Ms. Margil made the point that most laws govern the use of nature as property, but do not grant it rights or protection, just as laws regarding slavery addressed slaves as property without granting them rights or protection.
CELD promotes affordable legal services to grassroot groups and municipal governments for democratic control of environmental rights. Their Democracy School is a series of weekend seminars that helps groups and communities create organizing strategies to resist corporate rights that impose on the rights of those communities. For more information, please check out their website: www.celdf.org.
Please consider joining ASR for next year's Bioneers Conference. Only four can fit comfortably in the Prius, but the Paynes are not adverse to finding a bus that runs on biodiesel to increase the Los Angeles constituency!
ASR Board Member / Secretary Maureen Charles with Andrea and Hunter
[Photos of Dr. Todd and Ms. Margil are accredited to results from a Google image search.]
When CODEPINK Co-Founder Jodie Evans told the Paynes about an upcoming screening of The Most Dangerous Man in America, they changed their schedule and showed up for the Thursday night screening and Q&A session with film subject Daniel Ellsberg and his wife, Patricia.
For those of you who might not know this important piece of history, the film documents Ellsberg's transformation from Defense Department analyst to whistleblower concerning the government cover-ups about the Vietnam War and finally to anti-war and anti-nuclear activist. Ellsberg is specifically known for releasing what became known as the Pentagon Papers, detailing the United States' involvement in the escalation of the war, which had been denied by the government. The New York Times was the first to release the story and begin publication of the documents and when the Nixon White House shut down the presses, The Washington Post took over. After the White House took actions to shut down The Post, 15 other newspapers took up publishing sections of the Pentagon Papers until the Supreme Court ruled in favor of freedom of the press and the Nixon White House had to withdraw. Ellsberg was jailed but finally acquitted. Now in his late seventies, he and Patricia have continued to speak out against war and in favor of social justice.
September 22nd marked the LA premiere and Academy Awards qualifying screening of the documentary, The Third Wave. Made by ASR friend, Alison Thompson and her producing partner Oscar Gubernati, The Third Wave chronicles their experiences volunteering in Sri Lanka after the tsunami.
"June 20th" quickly became an ASR household buzzword with weeks of tireless preparation, culminating into A Night of Culture for a Cause. Actress and ASR friend Barbara Bosson hosted the fete at her stunning Pacific Palisades home. Thanks to Marble Arch Fine Afts and the Cracking Art Group, guests were greeted by eco-friendly, larger-than-life animal sculptures made out of recycled plastic, highlighting ASR's commitment to environmental issues. Animals included giant bulldogs and terriers, oversized sneaker-wearing chihuahuas, goats, giraffes, and alligators.
Giant terrier with goat friends guarding the premises.
Colorful chihuahuas enjoying the poolside with N. African art hanging in the back.
ASR's various projects in the tsunami region in Southeast Asia, Sudan, and New Orleans were featured on displays in the living room while silent auction items were lined up on tables on the poolside veranda.
With close to a hundred people in attendance, Whole Foods and Taste of Hope Catering provided a topical spread for dinner - authentic Northeast African food from Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Sudan were prepared and served by chefs from those countries in their traditional apparel. There was also Ethiopian coffee, ground directly by these women in the idyllic backyard of Ms. Bosson's home.
Saba and Mbraty putting together a wonderful meal!
Coffee-making Station
Tracks from ASR's upcoming All-Star Tsunami Relief CD played quietly in the background as guests perused the North African art on display. Representing the ASR project area of New Orleans, whiskey-voiced rollicking pianist Bob Malone played smokin' Nawlins style jazz keyboards, as shown below.
Renowned interior designer, animal activist, and philanthropist Bobi Leonard, as seen below, was a lively auctioneer, whipping up excitement for items including a getaway trip to Tuscany, an ASR shirt worn and signed by Kobe Bryant, "Holding Onto" sculpture by Iranian American artist Rebecca Setareh, gift certificates to local spas and neighborhood restaurant legends like Michael's, Amici's, Cafe Delfini's, Giorgio's, and Rustic Canyon, photographs by award-winning conflict photographer Ron Haviv and the irrepressible Cat Gwynn, and custom-made stone jewelry made by Benita Pautz, also hairdresser extraordinaire, whose jewelry will soon to be made available for sale on ASR's online store.
After a night of discussion, bidding, and winning, the guests left with their minds, stomachs, and hands full of cultural experiences. On their way home, guests received party favors of original photographs taken by Andrea and Hunter themselves of Sudan's landscape and beautiful people as well as Sumbody salt scrub samples, scented with the Indonesian and Sudanese tropical flowers, herbs, and fruits. It was a wonderful night to say the very least, and we thank all of our attendees, supports, and volunteers for making it a success!
Andrea with sculpture artist Rebecca Setareh and actress, philanthropist, designer, model, ASR volunteer Sulinh LaFontaine.
[All photographs were taken by Barry Schwartz.]
ASR thanks METal [Media Entertainment Technology Alliance] for showcasing their VRAI video at A Taste of METal Media Festival on June 11th at the Los Angeles Center Studios. For more about the wonderfully things being done by this group, check out their site at www.tasteofmetal.com.
On June 3rd, in conjunction with hiving.net, philanthropist Sarah Nicole Dolgen hosted a Cocktails for a Cause Karaoke Night in honor of Aid Still Required at her lovely apartment off of Sunset Strip. It was a night of great Thai food from Sarah's favorite neighborhood Thai joint, great drinks, and vivid discussion, with many young socialites in attendance, engaging Andrea and Hunter with incisive questions. We hear the singing went on until the wee hours. Thank you to Sarah and all the attendees!
Sarah Nicole Dolgen introducing the Paynes
Andrea with attendee, Jessica Reid
ASR was invited to participate in HOPE Artist's Vice for Nice Poker Invitational at Fred Segal Conveyor in Santa Monica, CA. The store was transformed after hours into a mini-Las Vegas with players crowded around gambling tables, gambling for good! Hope Artist Founder, Andi Scull Steidle is shown below with Hunter.
Andi's husband, Marine Capt. Brian Steidle, was one of the key influences who inspired Andrea and Hunter's work on behalf of the people of Darfur. They met Brian at a 2006 traveling art exhibit, "Darfur, Darfur," where Brian shared some of his experiences working as a photojournalist in Southern Sudan and Darfur for the African Union. Brian's experiences were made into a riveting, heart-wrenching documentary produced by Global Grassroots, "The Devil Came on Horseback."
Good Charlotte vocalist, DJ, actor, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and philanthropist Joel Madden co-hosted the event. Here he is, strategizing his next move against fellow players, including ASR founder, Hunter Payne.
Thanks to Andi and Joel for a wonderful night of awareness and fun!
Andrea and Hunter attended the ceremony for the Feminist Majority Foundation Global Women's Rights Award at the Beverly Hills Hotel on April 29th.
They had the pleasure of seeing Jay and his wife Mavis there. They first met Jay and Mavis in a parking lot a couple of years ago to talk about what happening in Darfur. Two days later, Jay had George Clooney on the Tonight Show and and they discussed the history of the conflict, giving Darfur its due air time.
Also at the April 29th event, Andrea and Hunter had a run-in with Christiane Amanpour, who was one of the honorees that night. She did a CNN special on genocides called "Scream Bloody Murder," in which a clip from ASR's public service announcement with Kobe Bryant was shown [http://www.aidstillrequired.org/media.html]. Check out the link for more on her special:http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/scream.bloody.murder/.
A gorgeous, live, acoustic version of their hit “She Will Be Loved,” which will fit beautifully with the other live tracks on the record.
Thank you to Adam, Jesse, James, Mickey, Matt and their manager Jordan Feldstein!
Three minute video and description on why we need to do this.
Christiane Amanpour’s documentary on genocide featuring Kobe’s Aid Still Required PSA aired tonight.
Just visited our project village for The Village Reforestation & Advancement Initiative and saw why 40% of the villagers have had to leave. The center of the village is now one large sand drift. Some of the houses have been crushed by the sheer weight of the sand. Other houses have added a second story which now serves as the ground floor.
There is one area of the village which looks normal. It’s the area on the north end where a break of trees has been planted.
The solution is so simple!
We drove through the desert today in Sudan – and I mean “drove through the desert!” Seven hours ago we left Khartoum and have been traveling over flat, hot, relentless desert ever since. Just sand, sand, sand – forever. How the people survive here is beyond me. There’s barely a bush in sight, and no shade from the blasting sun.
Just a few minutes ago, one of our hosts told us that much of this desert was forest just a decade or so ago. The 40-year drought has really taken a toll.
Along with Derek Fisher, Don Cheadle, and Participant Media, ASR hosted a roundtable discussion for 87 invited celebrities, athletes, and dignitaries.
We have left these people behind. New Orleans is a very depressed city today and has a vacant feeling to it. I haven’t been here in years, but this town used to be teeming with life.
The Lower Ninth Ward, once a fully populated neighborhood, is now a large field of weeds mixed with rubble from old foundations. There’s barely a building standing and only a few new homes started or completed. 90% of its population has stayed away. Frankly, we’ve given them little or no reason to come back.
Aid Still Required is featured in today’s Reuters story “NBA will not gag players competing at Beijing Games”. Check out NBA Commissioner David Stern voicing his support of the players’ right to free speech.
This AP story was picked up around the world by USA Today, Chicago Tribune, Sports Illustrated, International Herald Tribune, CBC, and others.
This morning ESPN’s Outside The Lines aired an news segment on athletes and activism. LeBron James, who last spring (2007) had declined to sign former Cavalier teammate Ira Newble’s letter from NBA players to the government of China about their policies in Sudan, has come out voicing strong support for human rights and an intention to mobilize the NBA Olympic team to speak out regarding Darfur and other issues.
Kobe’s Darfur PSA streaming around the world – AOL, Yahoo, and, of course YouTube too…!