Charlotte Viewpoint - Archive No. 18 - July 13 2024 - War & Peace

Letter from the Founder The year 2024 will be in the history books. Alarms are screaming on climate change, AI is emerging in unanticipated ways, one of the most consequential elections in American history will be held, and war in Ukraine and in Gaza is reshaping world geopolitics.  The stakes are profound as we contemplate how history can turn to very dark forces. In 2007, we published "In the Footsteps by Elie Wiesel" by Gabby Reed, then a sixteen-year-old sophomore at East Mecklenburg High School, who traveled to Europe with twelve other student ambassadors chosen by The Echo Foundation. Reed reported on her visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau. She writes, "Even now, the camps seem to mock us, for there is no way to express the emotion of such a place through words...My only choice was to walk, to put one foot in front of another, until I was far enough away from everyone that I could cry uncontrollably, for the lives that were lost and the lives that were ruined, for those who died as well as those who had to face the fact that they lived." In 2012, we published "Conflict, Death, and Closure: My Personal Journey" by Sam Wazan. The essay is a moving reflection of a childhood friend who died from a stray bullet during the 1975 Lebanese civil war triggered by Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Wazan writes, "How many more mothers should suffer the loss of their children and future generations will live with sorrow before the peace-challenged leaders get it?"   We include a 2016 review of an abstract expressionism exhibit at the Mint Museum by Phillip Larrimore, a poem by Foster Cameron Hunter about oracles and memory, and an artist gallery by Hagit Barkai.  You'll also see links to two of our PDF magazines, one with a lead column from Jeannette Sims in 2010 about how leadership in corporations and in communities differ, and one by Charlie Elberson in 2005 about branding Charlotte (once again).  To the peacemakers,  Mark Peres Charlotte Viewpoint Founder The Charlotte Center Founder & Executive Director From the Archive In the Footsteps of Elie Wiesel December 30, 2007 by Gabby Reed Growing up, my Jewish father and Catholic mother never lost the chance to impress upon me and my siblings the importance of tolerance, and of speaking up in situations where we witnessed discrimination or injustice. When I first heard about the Holocaust, I was horrified, and that feeling only increased every time I heard the emotion in my parents’ voices as they spoke of the six million Jewish deaths. But even for a self described compassionate and sensitive teenager, it took traveling over the Atlantic Ocean to Europe for me to finally understand what it means to leave six million stories untold. Keep Reading City Life From 2012: Conflict, Death, and Closure: My Personal Journey by Sam Wazan I was ten years old when I last saw Muhammad, my best friend in the fifth grade. Smart, but not nerdy, he had a magnetic presence, friendly disposition, and an endearing personality. During recess, I orbited around him while he read books. I found myself copying him. Muhammad was a youth destined for big things in life. The circumstances surrounding Muhammad’s death haunted me then and haunt me now, some 37 years later. Read the Story Arts & Culture From 2016: Mint Highlights Women of Abstract Expressionism by Phillip Larrimore The elephant—or Guerrilla Girl—in the room as far as the two fine shows now up at the Mint Museum is concerned is that an entire gender is still treated as a minority. Both shows, Fired Up: Contemporary Glass by Women Artists from the Toledo Museum of Art” (through Feb. 26, 2017) and Women of Abstract Expressionism (through Jan. 22, 2017, and sponsored by Wells Fargo), are part of the museum's 80th Anniversary "Year of the Woman" celebration, and both underscore how far we have come and how much farther we need to go in regards to the work of women artists. Read the Story Fiction & Poetry From 2013: Speaking by Foster Cameron Hunter My physicality, a fading memory— faintly, I feel my body’s vibration, as revelation rebukes fear. I’m seeing the forest because of the trees. A black hummingbird, I hover over discoveries, Read the Poem Artist Gallery From 2012: Hagit Barkai by Hagit Barkai Hagit Barkai has been teaching college-level art since 2006, and in Aug. 2011 she accepted a position as painting professor at Davidson College. She holds a BA in Philosophy from Hebrew University of Jerusalem and in 2008 earned an MFA in painting and drawing from Penn State University. View the Gallery Read Past Issues January 2010 Issue March 2005 Issue About Charlotte Viewpoint Charlotte Viewpoint is a magazine about the city and culture of the Charlotte region that ran from 2003-2016. Charlotte Viewpoint published civic and cultural commentary and programmed events about Charlotte for engaged citizens to nurture creative capital, elevate civic discourse and promote intellectual and artistic excellence in the Charlotte region. charlotteviewpoint.org Read More brought to you by: View Past Archive Newsletters You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for the The Charlotte Center newsletter. Thanks for reading. Let us know your thoughts about today’s edition. We invite you to share this newsletter with a friend. Sign up for this newsletter here. Design by Maddy Stevens Charlotte Viewpoint has been archived by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library Robinson-Spangler Carolina Room for its historical significance.