Category Archives: Authors I-Q

ADR Authors by last name I-Q

Civil Rights: A Most Righteous Hangover – by Ashok Panikkar

How Outrageous Successes of the Civil Rights Movement Weakened Minorities
and Destroyed Liberal Society  

The Nineteen Sixties promised a new chapter in US history, with the election of a young charismatic President, John F. Kennedy. However, the perfect storm of the Vietnam War, multiple assassinations (JFK, RFK, MLK, MX), the Cuban missile crisis, and continued segregation in the South, turned it into an extremely turbulent decade. Taken together, the failures of the Reconstruction (1865–77), Brown v Board of Education (1954), and President Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society, shattered America’s self-image as “The City Upon A Hill”, destroyed faith in the political system, and forced the nation to question its foundational assumptions.  

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Peacebuilding: Growing Strawberries on Coconut Trees – by Ashok Panikkar  

The Nature of Peace and Peacebuilding in a Collectivist and Illiberal World

This article was originally published in Beyond Intractability 

The only reasonable prediction we can make about the 21st century is that we don’t know what’s coming our way — except that it will be bad.

While triggered by the Israel/Palestine situation, this article is a critical reflection on the role of ‘peacebuilding’ (my umbrella term for all non-adversarial dispute resolution processes) in the 21st century.

To understand why the peacebuilding field has failed to live up to its lofty ambitions, we have to unpack the world we inhabit today. After the heady optimism at the end of the Cold War, the conflicts of the new century have forced Westerners to rethink their short-lived assumptions about abolishing war, making the world safe for democracy and capitalism, and world peace. Hence, I won’t give you a two-point off-ramp for Russia, a five-point plan for the Syrian embroglio, or a seven-point approach for the Israel-Palestine mess. Of course, we should try to make the world safer. However, our attempts should be rooted in hard-nosed realities, not skewered by wishful thinking.

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New Climate Inflection Point in our Axial Age – by The Rev. Dr. John Pawlikowski

In my contribution to American Diversity Report at the beginning of 2023, I argued that we are living in an axial era where fundamental structures of human society are undergoing profound change. As we enter 2024, I would maintain with others such as former Senator John Kerry, now the U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Issues, that the final communique from the recent COP 28 conference in Dubai may represent an axial moment.

Special Envoy Kerry believes the Dubai decision to commit to a movement to eliminate the reliance on fossil fuels by the global community (as well as methane gas) signals a  fundamental shift in the way we provide power for the human community. Such a wholesale shift in the generation of necessary power throughout the world, if successful, would represent a fundamental reordering of our life together as a global community. It would insure the sustainability of our planet and firmly implant the right to a the right to a healthy environment for all living creatures proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 2023.    

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New Trends in Social Awareness: Audiobooks – by Rose Joneson

Listening Impact: How Audiobooks Drive Social Awareness 

Technology has become an integral part of society, driving innovation and empowerment in many ways, including social awareness. Information and resources on social issues from various perspectives and cultures are now easily accessible to many, and one way such knowledge is spreading is through audiobooks. Audiobooks, once perceived as mere entertainment, are increasingly recognized for their unique potential to cultivate social awareness. This medium has great potential, as audiobooks have been increasing in popularity; Statista reports that audiobook publishing and consumption have increased tenfold in recent years, meaning more people are willing to listen and learn something new through these books. This immersive format offers distinct advantages in fostering empathy, understanding, and engagement with diverse perspectives and challenging issues. Here’s how audiobooks can drive social awareness:

Empathy and emotional connection

Audiobooks excel at conveying the emotional depth and complexity of characters and situations. The narrator’s voice can breathe life into diverse characters, allowing listeners to step into their shoes and experience the world through their eyes. This fosters empathy and understanding towards marginalized groups or individuals facing different challenges. For example, listening to a first-hand account of racial discrimination through an audiobook narrated by the author can be far more impactful than reading the same account on paper.

A writer’s account of listening to Michelle Zauner’s Crying In H Mart allowed her to more deeply appreciate the retelling of the author’s experiences with culture, identity, and relationship with her immigrant mother by listening to the sadness, humor, and longing in her voice. This prompted her to share the audiobook with her immigrant mother, fostering a deeper connection and awareness of each other’s social realities. Audiobooks allow for a more immersive listening experience and a greater emotional connection, making social awareness feel like a more real and tangible concept and practice rather than mere theory.

Diverse topics and perspectives

Audiobooks offer a platform for amplifying marginalized voices and perspectives that might otherwise be unheard. Listening to diverse authors narrate their own stories or experienced narrators portraying characters from different backgrounds can challenge listeners’ biases and expose them to new viewpoints.

Digital libraries also allow easy access to these diverse topics and perspectives, with millions of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, and more available on one platform. The audiobook selection on Everand showcases a vast array of social awareness resources for various contexts, such as Rohit Bhargava and Jennifer Brown’s Beyond Diversity: 12 Non-Obvious Ways To Build A More Inclusive World or the platform-original Writing into the Wound: Understanding trauma, truth, and language by Roxanne Gay. This exposure can be instrumental in breaking down stereotypes and fostering a more inclusive and understanding society.

Accessibility and convenience

Other than conveying messages and topics on social awareness, audiobooks play an essential role in making literacy more equitable and accessible. Audiobooks break down barriers to knowledge and understanding. Unlike traditional reading, they can be easily enjoyed during commutes, chores, or even exercise.

feature on audiobooks on NBC News notes that this convenience makes books more accessible to those with visual impairments, people with processing issues or learning disabilities, or readers who are on a busy schedule. Audiobooks can overcome challenges to literacy and make learning about social awareness less daunting or challenging, encouraging more curiosity and connection. This broader reach allows social awareness messages to reach a wider audience, potentially sparking conversations and action beyond the pages of a book.

Audiobooks are a prime example of how tech is instrumental in innovation and empowerment. By making topics on diversity, inclusion, culture, and more widely accessible and immersive, audiobooks prompt the growth of social awareness and how it can be set into motion in reality. The “Embracing Diversity in The Workplace” post highlights how diversity is crucial for innovation in the modern world, bringing together many experiences, thoughts, and ideas that can offer more solutions and approaches to problems. In turn, innovations from this diversity can create more avenues to accessibility and social awareness, such as audiobooks.

Why Diversity Improves Project Management – by Michelle LaBrosse

The human capacity for self-delusion is nearly bottomless. We think we’re smarter than we are, more capable than we are and tougher than we are. For example, in one survey, 9% of men actually believed they could win a fight against an elephant!

That unwarranted confidence certainly extends to project management. According to a Project Management Institute survey, 85% of executive leaders said they believe their organizations are effective in delivering projects to achieve strategic results.

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William Whispers In My Ear by John C. Mannone

William Whispers In My Ear

Maybe this month, the good tomorrow, perhaps this day,
or even at the last minute, a simple joy will come. Already
I’ve made it through the night. At this stage of my life,

I’ll reserve judgment as to whether it is fate or a predestined
purpose for my suffering. Yet there are many others who suffer
more. Who am I to complain or doubt the value of my existence?

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Asset from Another World by R. Nikolas Macioci

Asset from Another World

A star sticks to the nape of his neck
like an interplanetary kiss. His first
day in Farmersville, suspicion rises
like hair on a cat’s back. Folks do not
notice transparent, green eyes or
the odor of outer space he emits, but
talk of the star spreads fast as a missile.
Drunks at the Mahogany Bar want
to aim guns at the stranger who entered
town as if on a wisp of cosmic magic.
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African American History Month – by Eva Jo (Saddler) Johnson

African American History (AAH) Celebrations for decades have been designated to the month of February, mostly. I remember when invited the very few African American Educators’ staff members and our high school’s English Department Chairperson this was two years after I was hired in the state of Connecticut and after my college graduation.   

 We staff members were well aware that no knowledge or acknowledgement of African American History lessons were being incorporated or extra-curriculum programs into our school’s educational classroom goals and activities. 

“Negro History week” designation began in the year of 1926 and reported because of the lack of our history being included and presented in various and many national activities.  Carter G. Woodson, who earned his Ph.D. from Harvard U. along with the NAACP (National Association of Colored People) W.E.B. DuBois, founder in 1909 both were given much credit in most cases.  

 As part of our inspiration and In February of 1977, our formed committee planned an after school assembly program consisting of celebrating students from various grades, organizations also including the high school’s orchestra, and speakers from community civic and religious leadership positions. Afterwards, effort progressed at our town’s high school as annual celebrations with activity and shortly afterwards, students from our school’s student council organization were invited to joined our planning committees.  We, also became proud of their attentive and intensive participation and recommendations. 

After about two more years, these students requested that we entitle our AAH month’s high school celebration each February, “Brotherhood/Sisterhood Month Celebration.” We faculty members did and also included the sub-title as “African American History and Contributions Month” later returning to the first selected topic for our extended activities. The school board of directors, and schools’ systems’ central office staff mandated and incorporated into our entire system’s K-12 curriculum the inclusion of African American History and Contributions.  Some business, civic, and social ethnic group members began to assist and combine with us in some of our planning along with their own students and parents’ projects.

I personally never forget when a newly “rap songs” artist attended and spoke at a high school assembly program, and also when a student group ask me if they could do “break dancing” on stage at our middle school annual assembly program.   My approval brought me much praises and personal gratitude as a result of how much our students appreciated it, from our school ‘s systems and school administrators.  When we invited an “inner-school’s” middle school students’ group to attend this same year and invited them for lunch, afterwards, we all were happy. 

During the month of February, I’ve found throughout the USA that churches began incorporating  African American History and Contributions with informational objectives as well as motivational recommendations.

Our question today in the future decades is, “Will those projects suffice in the improvement of our near and far unity, equality, fairness, class diversity, and inclusion?” Are African American history celebrations provisions are and have been one of our great assets and has it contributed both personal, positive and progressive relationships and some economic growth. In addition, “How fair and intentional are we in the arena of “proportionality”?  Do we quickly judge without knowledge and to categorize the tangible and intangible? 

Personally, I have found “Collaboration and Connections” seriously are key words when we are evaluating and recommending. Visual?  Are we losing the utilization of comprehension with just quick visualization?  How obedient are we toward promotions with affirmations with representations in ethnic locations?  We do not have to be only in a classroom, office or on stage to become role models and mentors.

Fortunately, before my becoming a school’s supervisor and also while being a classroom teacher with summer breaks, I had many global experiences.  One example is when I became a volunteer international missionary in the country of Panama along with me grandson, Kory. (He knew more Spanish words that I did at that time.)  I had volunteered at what was considered and called an “English as a second and language School.”    

This school had the goal and theme known as “Constructionism.”  It soon became my understanding constructionism referred to there were no endings to ideas, conclusions, suggestions to also examples.  I saw this “focus “personally as, “Conclusions were prerequisites.”  When searching Checking the word via Google, the meaning was given “The result is interaction was summaries derived from their knowledge of ‘ISAP” which is defined as Italian in Specific Academic Purposes. 

I now acknowledge obtaining many ethnic similarities and desires sought, enhances closer and acknowledged relationships toward more understandings.  Political divisions require more attention and required and sought the goals toward democracy, both national and international. Those of us in or were especially in administration and leadership positions desperately must reinforce with pride obtained potentiality.

Yes, our elders and ancestors have” opened the door” to almost and many beginnings inspiring our concerns on how we utilize our knowledge and of our results, in other words, “What do we want to do with the knowledge?”  Are we equalized in our results?  “Are the doors open, now for all?

Personally, my career in the area of education, sociology, urbanization as well as my experiences in America and abroad (Internationally) has clarified my energy and interactions to go hand in hand.  Up from age of 18 and only attended segregated Chattanooga, I lived and served and work in the state of Connecticut for about sixty years.  I also raised four children and as you can guess, I was considered always “very active”.

Therefore,  this year and as we highlight African American History during the month of February, 2023. Let us intensify the opportunity to open our hearts as well as our feet and hands to integrate activities also ethnicity emphasizing, economic progress utilizing visualizing our pride, goals, character, spirituality, determination, empathy and inclusion as well as our legacies.

Let us intensify (…hold hands) while intensifying the provided and received opportunities to open our hearts, too along with our feet and hands integrating local and international activities while emphasizing our pride, goals, character, spirituality, sometimes empathy and inclusion also our legacies of both African Americans and others and remember expansive actions speak louder than words as we seek improvement and growth would be my request.

African Americans and others.  GOD MADE US ALL.  

Footprints In Time: Generation Reflections – by Martin Kimeldorf

As my parents exited middle age, they began receiving flyers and seeing ads about retirement living communities. It was as if they had entered a momentary pause in their lifeline. My father, Don, began talking with my mother about the items they should keep and things to get rid of. Then one day my mom, Fay, showed up with a brown paper bag of books by Dr. Spock on child raising. 

After her first vodka gimlet, she told me she was giving me the bag of books she had been saving for me. Then after her second vodka cocktail, she confessed she just couldn’t part with them. 

There was a pause. It was awfully long. We averted our eyes and scanned the room.

Then she quipped, “This was silly. I should be going.” Without comment, she rose and headed for the door. My wife and I were struck mute and motionless. Then my mom got up and wordlessly left. It was so unlike Fay.

I had been having this dream for several days as winter drew to a close in 2023. It turned out this early morning would be the last night I dreamt this story…It has now reached its conclusion…and so I write. 

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