Give Peace a Chance - Brian Rusch, Executive Director of the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation, wants "Peace Makers" to spread the word!

“Can’t we all get along?” First heard in 1992, the words uttered by Rodney King during the LA Riots seem to have transitioned from historical significance into the ranks of misquoted pop culture trivia.

The fact is, Mr. King’s words were poignant then, and should still be poignant now. Whether it’s an issue of police brutality, mass shootings, immigration, or governmental abuse of power, the fact is, society as a whole has hardly learned how to get along and live in peaceful existence.

In the United States alone, in 2012, there were over 1 million violent crimes recorded, the leading culprit being aggravated assault, but murder and rape make a respectable appearance. There's clearly a problem.

The Global Peace Film Festival, a Winter Park, Florida non-profit organization, aims at bringing awareness to peace issues not only in the United States, but around the world, to audiences that can take action and make a difference in the matter. As part of their initiatives, they also present educational panels with individuals who are active in their communities and can speak from experience on the issue of peace.

One such panel, whose subject was aptly entitled “What is Peace?” took place on Thursday, October 1^st, at Rollins College SunTrust Auditorium. The invited panelists consisted of Andrea Eliscu, president of Medical Maketing Inc., Dr. Yasmeen Quadri, professor and Education Coordinator at Valencia Community College, and Brian Rusch, Executive Director of the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation in the United States.

“The Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation helps promote peace by teaching young people to take inspiration from Tutu and other peace leaders, and then put it into practice” said Rusch, who was appointed director on June 24^th, 2015, and is excited to use his previous experience to make an impact, particularly with the Foundation’s Peace3 program.

Ironically, Rusch did not set out to make his career in the activism business; he started out in the Entertainment industry, “dressing up Rock stars.” However, after his grandfather died he was compelled to do more with his life. He contacted Project Happiness, a non-profit whose mission is to empower people with the resources to create greater happiness within themselves and the world.

Through his connection with Project Happiness, Rusch was given the opportunity to work on a film project with the Dalai Lama. This eventually led to his current work with Reverend Tutu, with whom Rusch has “a deep connection.” Project Happiness’ mission is very similar to Peace3’s: the concept that in order to achieve peace without, one must first achieve it within. Essentially, people at peace with themselves make peace with the world.

During the panel, Moderator Chris Williams asked Rusch what Tutu’s prescription for inner peace was, and how one could spread it. “For Tutu, it’s prayer, for me, it’s meditation. It’s different for everyone.” First, the key is discovering what each one’s personal concoction is; then, the Foundation’s role is to bring the message to peace Luminaries like Deepak Chopra, Glenn Beck, and even Kerry Washington, so that people will be inclined to listen.

So what happens when someone has listened and decides to act? That was the question audience member Kathy Hettinger asked the experts. Kathy had felt in her attempts to stand up for injustice in the name of peace, she was being held back by the local police force.  “What gives?” Kathy asked. Brian’s response was sobering. He asked her to entertain the notion that law is not the same as justice. Protesting is important because one has to stand up for what is right. And he reminded the audience that when Reverend Tutu stood up to Apartheid, that was the law! “If there’s a reason to protest, get out there!”

Rusch has his work cut out for him. According to the foundation's website, the goal of Peace3 is to recruit one million peace makers by 2020. How will they do it? Rusch conceded that is a tall order, but believes that “through a combination of digital assets and campus tours” the organization can achieve this. “Focus on what’s important for the community. In Orlando, it’s race. In California, it’s more faith based.”

It’s an optimistic view, but then again, that may be exactly what is needed: optimism.

The issue, many times, is making peace and activism appealing to people. Michelle Ngo, who was in attendance and has done some activism work in India, wanted to know how Rusch planned to make activism and peace “sexy.” While this elicited a chuckle from the audience, it was a fair question. How does Brian plan to make peace as attractive as the more dramatic news stories out there?

“Kerry Washington!” joked Rusch. Ok...fair point there, but the true answer is that he recognizes this has to be a packaging issue. It’s understanding that everyone has the capacity to be a broadcaster and that they take this opportunity. “Facebook is huge! What I am trying to do is get awareness out there.”

Turns out, perhaps achieving peace is a simple matter of changing one’s attitude. Rusch touched on the concept of “Ubuntu,” which is an ancient African word meaning humanity to others, or, as he put it, “I am because we are.” If everyone understood empathy, and that all people are part of the same whole, conflicts and wars would be a thing of the past.

Ubuntu teaches that the “we” is much stronger than the “I.” “Everyone needs to do this together! The key is to not have division between people.” There’s too much focus on the “they,” but it’s much more than that,” said Rusch.

As a nation, we certainly have a long way to go, but with people like Brian Rusch looking to inspire the new generations, perhaps the world has a chance at peace after all.