Thursday, October 6, 2011

Women, War & Peace, a new 5-part series, uncovers the untold stories of women’s strategic role in global conflict and peacemaking


WTVI to host two community outreach events for veterans

CHARLOTTE, NC (October 6, 2011) – What if you looked at war as though women mattered? What if you looked at peace as though women mattered? These two questions are at the heart of a five-hour series, Women, War & Peace, a comprehensive global media initiative on the changing roles of women in war and peace. Actors Matt Damon, Geena Davis, Tilda Swinton, and Alfre Woodard narrate.

Filmed in conflict zones in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Colombia, and Liberia, Women, War & Peace - airing Fridays, October 14, 21, 28 and November 4 and 11 at 10 pm. ET on WTVI -couldn’t be timelier. As the recent developments in Afghanistan make headlines around the world, Women, War & Peace places women at the center of an urgent dialogue about conflict and security.

Women, War & Peace challenges the conventional wisdom that war and peace are men’s domain. The series reveals how the post-Cold War proliferation of small arms has changed the landscape of war, with women becoming primary targets and suffering unprecedented casualties, yet simultaneously emerging as necessary partners in brokering lasting peace and as leaders in forging new international laws governing conflict. The series is a co-production of THIRTEEN and Fork Films.

“As a female veteran of peace and wartime service in the Army, I am excited that this new five-part PBS miniseries has been compiled to shed light on the important roles women have played during peace and conflict. It is of critical importance to our citizens. Thank you for this partnership,” says Twila Adams, board member, Southeastern Paralyzed Veterans of America, and owner of Holistic NailCare Services.

As part of WTVI’s community outreach, the station will host two, free sneak preview screenings:
• Monday, October 10, 2011, at 6 p.m., at Beacon Manor Independent Living Center, 3501 Independence Blvd., Charlotte. Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) members, disabled veterans, American Legion members, National Association of Black Veterans (NABVETS) members, and women’s auxiliary groups are invited as well as the general public.

• Tuesday, October 11, 2011, from 8 a.m. – 2 p.m. Operation Stand Down (hosted by the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans), a resource fair for veterans, at the Grady Cole Center, 310 North King Dr., Charlotte. This event is open to veterans.

“I’m excited that these community outreach screenings and dialogue will engage diverse women from the Charlotte community who have served in the military. These upcoming events will help increase awareness of the issues facing women serving in war zones,” says Reverend Yvonne McJetters, NABVETS, Women’s Auxiliary Group, executive director of Hope, Hands & Heart Ministries.

Attendees at both screenings will see clips from all five episodes in the series:

I Came to Testify is the moving story of how a group of 16 women who had been imprisoned and raped by Serb-led forces in the Bosnian town of Foca broke history’s great silence – and stepped forward to take the witness stand in an international court of law. Their remarkable courage resulted in a triumphant verdict that led to new international laws about sexual violence in war. Narrated by Matt Damon. Produced and Written by Pamela Hogan. Airs October 14, at 10 p.m. Hear Matt Damon at http://www.pbs.org/wnet/women-war-and-peace/features/why-should-men-care/

Pray the Devil Back to Hell is the astonishing story of the Liberian women who took on the warlords and regime of dictator Charles Taylor in the midst of a brutal civil war, and won a once unimaginable peace for their shattered country in 2003. Directed by Gini Reticker. Produced by Abigail E. Disney. Co-produced by Johanna Hamilton. Airs October 21, at 10 p.m.

Peace Unveiled follows three women in Afghanistan who are risking their lives to make sure that women’s rights don’t get traded away in U.S. peace talks with the Taliban. Narrated by Tilda Swinton. Directed by Gini Reticker. Produced by Claudia Rizzi. Written by Abigail E. Disney. Airs October 28, at 10 p.m.

The War We Are Living travels to Cauca, a mountainous region in Colombia’s Pacific southwest, where two extraordinary Afro-Colombian women are braving a violent struggle over their gold-rich lands. They are standing up for a generation of Colombians who have been terrorized and forcibly displaced as a deliberate strategy of war. Narrated by Alfre Woodard. Produced by Oriana Zill de Granados. Written by Pamela Hogan and Oriana Zill de Granados. Airs November 4, at 10 p.m.

War Redefined, the capstone of Women, War & Peace, challenges the conventional wisdom that war and peace are men’s domain through incisive interviews with leading thinkers, Secretaries of State and seasoned survivors of war and peace-making. Interviewees include Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee; Bosnian war crimes investigator Fadila Memisevic; and globalization expert Moisés Naím. Narrated by Geena Davis. Produced and Written by Peter Bull. Co-produced by Nina Chaudry. Airs November 11, at 10 p.m.

“I’m delighted that, through national partnerships, WTVI can provide such a timely perspective on culture and issues of war and peace that affect us all,” says Elsie Garner, WTVI’s president and CEO. “Both women and men will be educated and inspired by the stories in this series.”

Women, War & Peace airs Fridays at 10 p.m., beginning October 14, 2011.

Learn more about women’s changing roles in today’s wars at womenwarandpeace.org


About WTVI, Charlotte’s PBS station
WTVI is an essential community resource that connects people in the heart of the Carolinas. A public television station, WTVI offers a diverse mix of quality programs and services designed to inform, educate and entertain. From award-winning children’s programming to groundbreaking documentaries and original music performances, WTVI offers quality content viewers can trust. WTVI reaches more than 380,000 households in its 13-county area in both North and South Carolina: Mecklenburg, Gaston, Lincoln, Rowan, Iredell, Stanly, Union, Anson, Catawba, Cabarrus, Cleveland in North Carolina and York and Lancaster in South Carolina. www.wtvi.org

Contact:

WTVI
Jeff Vawter
704.371.8839
jvawter@wtvi.org

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