USC SHOAH HONORS GEORGE CLOONEY WITH AMBASSADOR FOR HUMANITY AWARD
ByStaff
– Posted on October 12, 2013Posted in: Appo Jabarian
By Appo Jabarian
Executive Publisher / Managing Editor
USA Armenian Life Magazine
October 12, 2013
George Clooney was honored by film director and USC Shoah Foundation’s
founder Steven Spielberg, his co-star in the new movie “Gravity,”
Sandra Bullock, and Jon Stewart of “The Daily Show” in New York city
last week.
Clooney’s humanitarian work around the globe, especially in the Darfur
region of Sudan brought the Hollywood heavyweights together at a
major fundraising gala in the expansive “Whale Room” at New York’s
Museum of Natural History.
Clooney was presented with Ambassador for Humanity Award by USC
Shoah Foundation.
Spielberg who gave Clooney his big break on the TV show “ER,” said:
“George is the best kind of humanitarian … The humble humanitarian,”
calling Clooney “an unparalleled example of action over apathy.”
Clooney told the audience members that “Our job is to make it hard
for the bad guys to do what they’re doing, and for the good guys
to ignore it. … We have to be able to keep a record of what the
powerful can do to the powerless”
The actor also praised Spielberg for his foundation’s work in creating
and preserving video testimonies of Holocaust victims for future
generations to learn from.
The gala marked the 20th anniversary of Spielberg’s Oscar Award-winning
Holocaust movie “Schindler’s List,” that according to Spielberg,
gave him the idea to start a foundation that would record interviews
with Holocaust survivors. To date, the foundation, founded in 1994
and based since 2006 at the University of Southern California, has
collected nearly 52,000 eyewitness testimonies on video – reportedly
the largest digital collection of its kind in the world.
In an Associated Press interview before the gala, Spielberg explained
that a new, broader phase of the foundation’s work, begun recently,
involves collecting video testimonies from survivors of genocide
in places like Rwanda, Cambodia, and Armenia. “The origins of hatred
haven’t gone away,” the director said. The foundation has already begun
its work with testimony from Rwanda. The other countries will follow.
Spielberg said the only obstacle to further broadening the foundation’s
work is funding. It was announced during the event of around 800
guests that nearly $3.7 million were raised.
He noted that Holocaust survivors are fast dying out, an even more
important reason to preserve their life stories on video – video that
can be catalogued and indexed for easy access, which now makes up for
much of the foundation’s work. “The survivor community is vanishing,”
he said. “Soon, it will only exist in cyberspace. But it’s a powerful
community. We hope that through these testimonies, the survivors can
live forever,” reported AP.
As for the survivors of Armenian Genocide, they have all but vanished.
But thanks to few dedicated filmmakers their testimonies have been
recorded. 400 of those were successfully and single-handedly done by
Armenian Film Foundation’s founder J. Michael Hagopian.
In April 2010, Dr. Hagopian and his wife, Antoinette, entered into an
agreement with the USC Shoah Foundation to license the 400 testimonies
to Shoah’s Visual History Archive. Next month, Shoah will receive the
digitized interviews from The Armenian Film Foundation. Upon delivery,
these eyewitness accounts will be incorporated into the USC Shoah
Foundation’s Visual History Archive.
In accepting the award, Clooney said the USC Shoah Foundation is
doing an important job in keeping global atrocities in the spotlight.
“Our job is to try to make it hard for the bad guys to deny they
are doing what they’re doing. … It’s really hard for bad things
to happen in bright light. … “It would be nice to make what we’re
doing here obsolete,” he said.
During a private pre-event conversation with Clooney and Spielberg I
said: “Mr. Clooney, I’m a lifelong fan of your artistic achievements
but most importantly, as an anti-genocide activist, I’m eternally
grateful for and empowered by your contributions to the cause of all
genocide victims.”
Turning to Spielberg, I said: “Mr. Spielberg, I applaud your
groundbreaking work on behalf of survivors through USC Shoah
Foundation; and as an Armenian American, I would like to thank you
for the unique opportunity for cooperation between the USC Shoah
Foundation and Armenian Film Foundation.”
“Thank you, Mr. Jabarian,” kindly answered Spielberg.
In his remarks to the audience, Clooney stressed that while the work
Shoah does is important, the world would be a better place if such
organizations didn’t need to exist.
Sadly humanity still hasn’t eliminated the scourge of genocide. Even
though 98 years have passed since the 1915 Armenian Genocide at the
hands of Turkey; another 69 years since the Jewish Holocaust; another
38 years since the 1975 Genocide in Cambodia; another 19 since the
Rwanda Genocide, the international community still witnesses crimes
against humanity – Genocide in Darfur.
Spielberg also talked about the need to fight against the lull that
can occur when time passes. “We’ve all heard the expression, ‘Time
heals all wounds,'” he said. “I don’t like that expression. Time
can sometimes let us forget that some people are slower to heal,
they have sadness, still grieve and still have incredible loss.”
Sadness, grief and incredible loss, the survivors have – generation
after generation.
During several public appearances as a speaker or a panelist, I have
asked members of second, third and even fourth (millennial) generation
survivors of the genocide: “Who amongst you remembers the fact of
being a child of victim people without experiencing grief and anger?
Please raise your hands.” Nobody does!
I know firsthand that among Armenian Americans, the pain and suffering
of being a child, a grandchild or a great grandchild of genocide
survivors is omnipresent.
Shoah is actively engaged in an international fund-raising campaign
to ensure completion of the integration of the Armenian testimonies so
that they can be presented to the world in time for the commemoration
of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, in April 2015.
“It’s crucial that we take the vital and precious words of those
who went through the Armenian Genocide and make their testimonies
available for students, educators and scholars so that they can learn
directly from these eyewitnesses of history,” said Stephen Smith,
executive director of the USC Shoah Foundation who this week was
named the inaugural holder of the UNESCO Chair on Genocide Education.
USC President C. L. Max Nikias noted that “[The testimonies] teach
us that when vigilance fades, intolerance follows … My university
will forever safeguard the precious, life-affirming testimonies of
the Visual History Archive. We shall not fail. We shall not falter. We
shall not forget.”
During my conversation with Clooney and Spielberg, I added: “By the
way, I’m a third generation survivor of the Armenian Genocide.”
Clooney responded: “So you know exactly what’s going on!”
“Absolutely!” was my answer.
Of course my response could not be any different than literally
millions of my Armenian peers worldwide – and for that matter, any
peoples that have been struck by the calamity of genocide.
http://www.armenianlife.com/2013/10/12/usc-shoah-honors-george-clooney-with-ambassador-for-humanity-award/