Could Meedan help me create an Ushahidi memorial of Chris

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Dear Meedan,

This is a time when Meedan.net is needed more than ever.  

I am here in the SF Bay area -- not far from Chris Stevens' home.   Could there be a way to use an Ushahidi Crowdmap to show a personal, neighbor-to-neighbor action to remember Chris and calm the riots in the Middle East?   A symbolic action, a candle in the window, was used to good effect in Poland in the '80s when Solidarity was placed under martial law, and again in the Czech Velvet Revolution.   When I used it to send a message to the people of Iraq in 1990, some 10,000 Americans joined me (pre twitter).

I can launch an ushahidi crowdmap in an hour or two.  Would your network help me by joining me in vetting reports and messages, and translating all English => Arabic and all Arabic => English?

What to name it?  The convention is http://__________.crowdmap.com.  

http://hecaredwecare.crowdmap.com ... seems a bit long.   Is there an arabic name that brings clarity, calm, love, and light?

Please let me know your thoughts and please suggest a name for this effort.
Sincerely,
Donna

Donna Baranski-Walker / Founder & Executive Director / Rebuilding Alliance
178 South Boulevard, San Mateo CA 94402  U.S.A.
Tel: +1 650 325-4663 .  US Cell:  +1 650 440 9667,  Fax:  +1 650 325-4667
www.RebuildingAlliance.org

“In order to do something big — to think globally and act globally — one starts with something small and one starts where it counts.”    – Oxford Prof. Nabeel Hamdi

Rebuilding Alliance is a U.S. 501(c)3 nonprofit, EIN 56-2392452.  Donations are welcome!

[mandi fahmy]

I will help. Let me know.

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Meedan Translations" group.
To post to this group, send an email to meedan-tr...@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to meedan-translat...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/meedan-translations?hl=en-GB.

--

Think before you click print - do you really need this e-mail on paper?

[Ed Bice]

Donna,  thanks for your words and your energy. 

We can certainly help to publicize the effort among Meedanis and can bring attention to it through Twitter, etc. 

These efforts do need leadership and I cannot provide that right now - the work we are doing to prepare to launch Checkdesk -  Meedan's platform to enable journalists to build context around social media (could use it right now) is consuming all of our time. 

Encourage those on this list to throw in their ideas for productive and compassionate response to the cycle of bigotry and violence.  

salam

-e. 

Ed Bice  |  CEO  Meedan  |  415 497 2900  |  @edbice  |  skype. edbice  

twitter  |  press  |  blog  |  news  |  videos  |  jobs

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Dear Mandi and Ed,
Thank you for your encouragement.  Is there a word in Arabic that would open hearts now? 

About a site name, could it be both Arabic and English?

http://salamchris.crowdmap.com

Or perhaps from the Koran?  sūrat l-nūr 
Or the bible?  light for my path
Or neither ... but showing respect for both

Meedan team, should we simply call it http://salamchris.crowdmap.com

Or
http://salamwecare.crowdmap.com

Please help me find the name so that we can begin.
Sincerely,
Donna

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

http://chrisalnur.crowdmap.com      ?

[Nourelhoda Adeel]

I will be happy to help.  What you are doing is great.  I am Muslim and I love people all around the world.  I am sure that you, me and all the human love to live in peace, we want the earth to be happy.  I believe that there are only few people who want war and hate to be part of the world.  If we work together we will let them know that they cannot succeed.  WE LOVE EACH OTHER, WHOEVER THIS OTHER IS.  WE ARE HUMAN.

Warm regards,

Nour

---

From: d...@RebuildingAlliance.org
Date: Thu, 13 Sep 2012 21:11:55 -0700
Subject: [Meedan-Translations] Could Meedan help me create an Ushahidi memorial of Chris
To: meedan-tr...@googlegroups.com

Dear Meedan,

This is a time when Meedan.net is needed more than ever.  

I am here in the SF Bay area -- not far from Chris Stevens' home.   Could there be a way to use an Ushahidi Crowdmap to show a personal, neighbor-to-neighbor action to remember Chris and calm the riots in the Middle East?   A symbolic action, a candle in the window, was used to good effect in Poland in the '80s when Solidarity was placed under martial law, and again in the Czech Velvet Revolution.   When I used it to send a message to the people of Iraq in 1990, some 10,000 Americans joined me (pre twitter).

I can launch an ushahidi crowdmap in an hour or two.  Would your network help me by joining me in vetting reports and messages, and translating all English => Arabic and all Arabic => English?

What to name it?  The convention is http://__________.crowdmap.com.  

http://hecaredwecare.crowdmap.com ... seems a bit long.   Is there an arabic name that brings clarity, calm, love, and light?

Please let me know your thoughts and please suggest a name for this effort.
Sincerely,
Donna

Donna Baranski-Walker / Founder & Executive Director / Rebuilding Alliance
178 South Boulevard, San Mateo CA 94402  U.S.A.

Tel: +1 650 325-4663 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            +1 650 325-4663      end_of_the_skype_highlighting .  US Cell:  +1 650 440 9667 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            +1 650 440 9667      end_of_the_skype_highlighting,  Fax:  +1 650 325-4667
www.RebuildingAlliance.org

ï؟½In order to do something big ï؟½ to think globally and act globally ï؟½ one starts with something small and one starts where it counts.ï؟½    ï؟½ Oxford Prof. Nabeel Hamdi

Rebuilding Alliance is a U.S. 501(c)3 nonprofit, EIN 56-2392452.  Donations are welcome!

[mandi fahmy]

Dear Donna, Nourelhoda, Ed, Meedanis
I am not sure about the name and the verse.
Let me say that I am Coptic (Egyptian Christian) and I feel the same as you and Nourelhoda. Actually, I enjoy very much God's diversity. There is a Qur'an verse that I like very much that says that God created us all as different peoples and tribes to get to know each other. It then says that God values the most pious. The verse starts: O people, if i remember correctly, not o Muslims or o Believers. I take it to address us all.
People don't know Chris. I'm not sure if the website has his name if it will make the impact we want. I think it should be something like getting to know and respect each other? What do you think? I can have a sort of a brainstorming session on the name with some Muslim friends here in Cairo.
Best,
Mandi

[Kate Goodin]

Hi all, just to jump in, I think there's room for more than one way of responding, if people have a desire to memorialize Steve that can be the focus of one project for those who knew him or were moved by his story, if others want to go with the broader anti-hate message, that could be something different. Or not. I just thought I'd post a link to a site a friend of mine just started and asked my assistance with that he's called La Akrah, basically going with the anti-hate message, so he's been aggregating both messages embracing Islam as a part of America and speaking out against the hate speech that the film represents, and lots of images from the Benghazi protest of the killing of the embassy workers and ambassador.

https://twitter.com/LaAkrah
http://laakrah.tumblr.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/La-Akrah/427870917248315

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Dear Mandi, Nourelhoda, Ed, Kate, Meedanis,

Mandi, I made some changes based on what you said.  Perhaps instead of quoting scripture, we can just explain why a candle message has validity.  See if this works for you.  The title is long now -- does it work for you?

I added a section called "Who We Are" and included a link to Meedan.  I signed my name -- Mandi, Nourelhoda, Kate would you join me in vetting Reports as part of the Advisory Board?  Please submit your report and then I'll change your status to Admin  if you would like to help.

Kate, you are right -- people will add their own messages, with their own focus.

Meedanis, please take a look and if you agree, please submit your report.
Sincerely,
Donna

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Hello All,
I'm thinking about the title ... does yet feel quite right.  We need a quick way to refer to this initiative so that it is easy to ask our friends and easy for press to join. 

I've renamed it as follows:
CandleVoice Initiative:  Light a Candle for Reason & Hope
In Memory of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, every night from now through Sep. 30th

In case you would like to read my 1990 NYTimes oo-ed, I am attaching it.  I look forward to your thoughts. 

Sincerely,
Donna

Donna Baranski-Walker / Founder & Executive Director / Rebuilding Alliance
178 South Boulevard, San Mateo CA 94402  U.S.A.
Tel: +1 650 325-4663 .  US Cell:  +1 650 440 9667,  Fax:  +1 650 325-4667
www.RebuildingAlliance.org

“In order to do something big — to think globally and act globally — one starts with something small and one starts where it counts.”    – Oxford Prof. Nabeel Hamdi

Rebuilding Alliance is a U.S. 501(c)3 nonprofit, EIN 56-2392452.  Donations are welcome!

[Kamal Fizazi]

I tried to find the group on Twitter and couldn't. Is it up yet?

Kamal 

Kamal T Fizazi |  

fizazi...@gmail.com | 

+1.646.307.2646 | 

facebook: kamalfizazi | 

twitter: @kamalfizazi

Sent from mobile device: please forgive brevity & typos.

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Hello Kamal,
It is public but not tweeting quite yet.  Here's the site  -- please click "Submit a Report" to add your candle message.  Do you think we can populate the more among us before we start tweeting?   Also, I need to alert the Ushahidi team -- they'll help move it forward too and then we'll enable the hash tag, #candlevoice + others.   I'll do that later tonight.

I wanted to reply to Mandi's message in more detail, and to ask the Meedanis' the question he is asking overall.  Mandi wrote:
Let me say that I am Coptic (Egyptian Christian) and I feel the same as you and Nourelhoda. Actually, I enjoy very much God's diversity. There is a Qur'an verse that I like very much that says that God created us all as different peoples and tribes to get to know each other. It then says that God values the most pious. The verse starts: O people, if i remember correctly, not o Muslims or o Believers. I take it to address us all.

People don't know Chris. I'm not sure if the website has his name if it will make the impact we want. I think it should be something like getting to know and respect each other? What do you think? I can have a sort of a brainstorming session on the name with some Muslim friends here in Cairo.

Mandi, please do have a brainstorming session on the name with Muslim friends in Cairo.  Please ask about the name and also whether we should include religious texts at all, and if so, which ones.  Meedanis, any thoughts about how to structure this to amplify understanding and care?

Lastly, Meedanis, is anyone up for translating messages titles, pages or messages?  

Sincere thanks,
Donna
cell:  1 650 440 9667

[mandi fahmy]

Hi Donna, meedanis,
I would say include religious text only if you usually use them, because we don't wanna give the impression we're too obliging or insincere. The main aim is to start a communication tradition or extend good will between different peoples, right?

Will ask my friends to brainstorm about the name and get back to you.

Best,
Mandi

[mandi fahmy]

Another thing, Donna and meeanis, before I forget: It seems people in Libya know chris, before I forget. They demonstrated in Benghazi against what happened. I have the pictures on my facebook page. A Libyan friend told me Chris used to go to people's homes and eat with them. I don't think people know him elsewhere in the Arab world, though. You wanna address everyone, right? or just Libyans?

[mandi fahmy]

This is a photo of a conference where the Eastern Libyan tribes held a conference calling upon their youth to abandon weapons and join the official army or police, saying that if their youth get hurt in any other action don't come to their tribes for help.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=434725949896680&set=a.190923724276905.36591.187731924596085&type=1&theater

[F Bux]

Hi Donna and others,

I admire what you're trying to achieve here, and really like the quiet strength in your Iraq co-ed piece too. Thank you for sharing it.

As its related to your goal, I just wanted to share with you the "Celebrate Mercy" initiative (it was initially started as a quiet and determined response to defamation of the Prophet Muhammad through an online celebration of his life, work and personality)- they have responded to this too and so far over 1,000 Muslims from around the globe have written letters of condolence to the ambassador Chris's family. It probably doesn't sound like a lot when there are so many Muslims on the planet! But I suppose it is a small gesture of reason, understanding and common humanity.

http://www.facebook.com/celebratemercy 

I'm not too sure about the name - not very good at that kind of thing! but something reflective of common humanity, global peace, or indeed mercy - all at the very foundation of the Abrahamic traditions, are probably apt. Nur is nice too, to have in the title as suggested.

Best of luck,

fadhila

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Hello Mandi,
I apologize for being quiet -- I was not sure if the alnur.crowdmap.com effort had resonance.
Thank you for your message -- this photo and news of the conference is a very important thing to post both in Arabic and  with translation.   Please take a moment to click on Submit Report at https://alnur.crowdmap.com.

When you submit a report, your contact information is optional.  The interface lets you post the photo.   In addition to the translation, I encourage you to also explain why this was an important conference.

Sincerely,
Donna

[Donna Baranski-Walker]

Hello Fadhila,

Thank you for your encouraging words.  Please take a moment to post a link to the CelebrateMercy site by clicking "Submit Report" on https://alnur.crowdmap.com.   Contact information is optional ... you'll just want to show what city you are writing from.

Tonight in San Francisco, there will be a candle vigil at UC Hastings, the law school Chris Stevens attended.  I asked the UC vigil organizing committee if they would like to use or join the AlNur Crowdmap. 

As for the wording, I know it is not right yet ... we do need some way to explore "something reflective of common humanity, global peace, or indeed mercy - all at the very foundation of the Abrahamic traditions."   For now, in this time of mourning from this side of the world it seemed a fitting start by focusing on a man who believed in respect and understanding.

If the initiative touches people, I can recruit student volunteers to help with it through the end of the month.  The Ushahidi tool absorbs twitter fields which then can be converted into reports too, and there is a lot of local press that can happen if neighborhoods begin to participate.

I know this stuff must seem so weird -- I also notice that few if any members of Meedan have joined in by Submitting a Report themselves.    Should I keep going or stop?

Sincerely,
Donna

[mandi fahmy]

Hi, Donna
Done. Let me know of other activities. I don't have time right now to get better acquainted with the site.
Best,
Mandi