Myth
and Reality: The United Nations in “The New American Century”
Wednesday, October 22 ~ Sunday, October 26
In collaboration
with the United Nations Association of Greater Philadelphia,
Myth and Reality celebrates the power of international documentaries
dealing with UN related issues such as human rights, environmental
survival, protection of refugees, globalization, proliferation
of arms, war and peace. At its center, the series seeks to explore
the way in which the United Nations intends to facilitate relief
and promote progressive change in the face of the New American
Century. Each screening will be supplemented by related short
films and followed by an open panel discussion moderated by
a guest speaker.
Please visit www.unagp.org
for more information about the United Nations Association of
Greater Philadelphia.
Wednesday,
October 22 at 7:00 PM
Water:
The Drop of Life
dir. Swynk Productions, The Netherlands, 2001, Beta SP,
55 mins, color
While many take it for granted, millions
struggle everyday with an ever more urgent need for fresh water.
Water: The Drop of Life examines what may well be one
of the most important crises of the 21st century - the availability
of drinking water, a resource basic to our survival and growth.
Mankind has always been on a quest for water and the challenge
has been particularly intensive for people living in arid areas.
Through stunning footage and interviews with world leaders and
thinkers, Water: The Drop of Life explores the complex
global issues of water use and conservation.
Preceded by:
How to Save the Earth, Taking the Waters
Pollution, water shortages--every
year these problems grow worse. The video demonstrates what
is being done to alleviate these situations at a giant dam in
Czechoslovakia or a wetland in Tunisia.
Panel: Richard Whiteford, Executive member
of the local Sierra Club, and Susan Curry,
President of Alliance for a Sustainable Future, Earth Charter
Reception
and Wine Tasting: 7 to 8 pm
Thursday,
October 23 at 7:00 PM
Palestine
is Still the Issue
dir. Anthony Stark, UK, 2002, Beta SP, 53 mins, color, English,
Arabic and Hebrew w/ English subtitles
In a series of extraordinary interviews
with both Palestinians and Israelis, award-winning journalist
John Pilger travels to the West Bank to ask why the Palestinians,
whose right of return was affirmed by the United Nations more
than half a century ago, are still caught in a terrible limbo
-- refugees in their own land under the longest military occupation
in modern times.
Human
Weapon
dir. Ilan Ziv, France/Israel/USA, 2002, Beta SP, 54 mins,
color, English, Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew and Tamil w/ English subtitles
Human Weapon
provides the first sober, in-depth examination
of the complexities
of the suicide bombing phenomenon. Filmed in Iran, Lebanon,
Sri Lanka, Israel, Europe and the United States, the film weaves
powerful human stories with interviews of key militants whose
organizations use suicide bombing as part of their strategy.
Preceded by:
UN Year in Review: A new approach to Peacekeeping
Efforts throughout
the world to fight terrorism, include contributions from George
Bush, Kofi Annan about responsibilities facing the UN Security
Council.
Moderator:
Craig Eisendrath, International scholar and author
Panel: Larry Davidson,
Professor of Middle Eastern Studies and Janet Amighi,
Professor of Anthropology at West Chester University
Friday,
October 24 at 7:00 PM
Introduced by Joseph Cirincione
Arms
for the Poor
Anne Masoud, John Akele, Lawrence M. Rich, Maryknoll, USA,
video, 25 mins, color
A dramatic case against
taxpayer-financed U.S. weapon-export business to developing
countries where the poor cry out for food, housing, schools
and medical care.
Armed
to the Teeth
dir. Niels von Kohn, USA, 2000, Beta SP, 55 mins, color
There are hundreds of millions of
small arms in the world today, light enough to be carried and
operated by an individual or a small crew. Presently, there
are enough of these weapons around to arm every twelfth person
on earth. Niels von Kohn’s documentary focuses on the
widespread illicit trade of small arms and the use of these
armaments by children all over the world.
Preceded by:
Disarmament in the Congo
The tragedy of ethnic
strife and abject poverty in the midst of plenty, as the war
weary give up their arms.
Followed by
a performance by folk artists, The Red Hot Peaceniks and a reception
from the World Federalists.
Joseph Cirincione
is the author of Deadly Arsenals: Tracking Weapons of Mass Destruction
(Carnegie Endowment, 2002) and a Senior Associate and Director
of the Non-Proliferation Project at the Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace in Washington DC. He is a frequent commentator
on proliferation and security issues in the media, and teaches
at the Georgetown University Graduate School of Foreign Service.
Saturday, October 25 at 7:00 PM
The
Philadelphia Story
dir. Steve Bradshaw, USA, 2001, Beta SP, 24 mins, color
Cheri Honkala's been
homeless, unemployed and -- like 44 million of her fellow citizens
-- doesn't have health care. She's one of the workers left behind
by the globalized economy. Yet Cheri is a citizen of the United
States. Now the executive director of the Kensington Welfare
Rights Union, she tells the story of what's happened in her
hometown, Philadelphia, and warns that the economic boom in
the US could yet prove a disturbing model for the rest of the
world.
Cry
For Argentina
dir. Angus McQueen, UK/Argentina, 2002, Beta SP, 50 mins,
color, Spanish and English w/ English subtitles
 Cry
for Argentina explores what happens when confidence in
the capitalist system collapses in a country which was once
among the richest in the world. Documentary filmmaker Angus
McQueen reveals the human stories behind the financial disaster
that is Argentina in 2002 - when the government defaulted on
$141 billion of debt and a country that saw itself as firmly
in the first world finds itself teetering on the brink of the
third.
Preceded by:
World Bank Supports Fight Against Corruption in Argentina
Looks at the roots
of Argentina’s fiscal collapse. Did international law
matter; does the international community help or hinder?
Speaker: Jeffrey Huffines, Co-chair of Faith-based
Caucus, Coalition for ICC
Sunday,
October 26 at 7:00 PM
Nuba
Conversations
dir. Arthur Howes, UK/Sudan, 2001, 55 mins, Beta SP, color,
Nuba, Arabic and English w/ English subtitles
For decades, the Nuba have been trapped
in the middle of a vicious civil war between the Sudanese Arab
Muslim fundamentalist government in the north, and the mainly
Christian and Black opposition in the South. Nuba Conversations
is a follow up to the prize-winning Kafi's Story (1989)
by Arthur Howes and Amy Hardie. Howes' clandestine journey in
search of the people he knew and filmed ten years ago takes
him to the shanty towns of Khartoum, to the Nuba Mountains where
Nuban resistance holds out, and to Kakuma Refugee Camp on the
Kenya border.
Preceded by:
UNICEF Works to Reunite Children of War in Southern Sudan
What happens to a
teenager kidnapped and handed a gun at the age of nine, who
with no family to return to, is mustered out of the army?
Panel: Filmon Mebrahtu,
filmmaker of upcoming documentary on Southern Sudanese men in
Philadelphia, and its participants, Joseph Deng, Mike
Kuch and Abraham Kuol
With a special
performance by Charlotte Blake Alston on vocals with Mandingo
instruments.
We wish to thank the
Pennsylvania Humanities Council and WYBE for support of this
program.
Tickets are $6.00
for general admission, $5.00 for I House members, students and
seniors. Available in advance, on line at www.tlavideo.com/ihouse
or one hour before showtime at the International House box office.
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