War is never a good idea. by Lena Kathleen. Taylor-Norman

Today I am going to step out of the medical articles because I want to share with you what has been said by my friend Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, and an internationally acclaimed activist who works closely with “Women for Women International” (womenforwomen.org) a charity that helps women in war-torn countries rebuild their lives. Alice Walker is a well known teacher who has also taught in prestigious universities: Wellesley, Yale, Branders, Berkeley and University of Massachusetts, Boston.  I also want my friend Mehdi to know that America is not just Bush and his USA Patriot Act (uniting and strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act). Patriotism is an extremely motivating and uniting force, but unfortunately this new kind of patriotism is settling for tragedy. Do you know that there are millions of Americans wondering why is it patriotic to engage in the colossal waste that characterizes so many defense contracts?  Why is it patriotic to draw our country into a mistaken war and then keep extending the involvement, with untold casualties to soldiers and not telling Americans the truth? Why isn't the deplorable treatment of returning veterans by government evaluated by the same standards as is their dispatch to war? There is no reason why patriotism has to be associated, in the minds of the young as well as adults, with military exploits, jets and missiles. Citizenship must include the duty to advance our ideals actively into practice for a better community, country and world, if peace is to prevail over war. Our country and its ideals are something for us to uphold as individuals and together, not something to drape, as a deceptive cloak, around activities that mar or destroy these ideals. Patriotism can be a great asset for any organized society, but it can also be a controlled tool in the hands of unscrupulous or cowardly leaders. Patriotism manipulated by the government can be converted into an epidemic of collective madness. If patriotism has no rule for deliberation, for acknowledging an individual's sense of justice and his religious principles, it will continue to close minds, stifle the dissent that has made us strong, and deter the participation of Americans who challenge in order to correct, and who question in order to have answers. Americans who consider themselves patriotic in the traditional sense do not usually hesitate to heap criticism in domestic and international matters. They usually criticize what they believe oppressive or wasteful or unresponsive government handling of rights and dignity. If patriotism is to have any “manifest destiny” it is in building a world where all mankind is our bond in peace. And this obligation stems not just from a secular concern for humanity but from a belief in the brotherhood of man that is common to all major religions.                                                                                                                                                                 

Alice Walker's message:

“As an elder in our society and of the planet, I care deeply about you, the young women of the world, because you carry the future. Your generation has grown up with war, so it may seem as though it's the only solution, but it is not. When a war happens anywhere on the planet, it endangers everyone because it poisons the earth itself. That air, that water, those fumes and carcinogens from the bombs and machinery go everywhere. As we attempt to harm others, we commit violence against ourselves and against our beautiful mother, the earth, which is so glorious, so bountiful and so very good to us. The idea that there are some “other” people somewhere that you can bomb and harm is an idea that is obsolete and wrong. We're the same, we're all part of one earth. The Iraqi people are mothers, fathers, infants, and grandparents, and they‘re all doing their daily thing, getting up in the morning like we do. Bombing and killing them isn't the answer. Instead, people need to communicate. We must learn about these people we're fighting, what they are about and how they see themselves.... In doing so, we'll find that there is nothing worth killing people for. The good news is that people have the ability to change. It's going to take more work than  people have ever imagined, but it's possible because we don't have an alternative. So how can you do your part? First learn from the people who have already been to war. Go to a veteran and really listen to his experience with all yourself. It will help you decide whether you want to support the war or do something else.  Then find a practice that will enable you to keep your little boat afloat. It may seem foreign to you at first, but I would suggest you pray, try meditation, do yoga, or learn tai chi. Many people get a lot of strength from their churches, synagogues, mosques or temples, just do anything that lets you take quiet time for yourself and your soul. This type of reflexion will help you focus on the kind of person you want to be and the way you want to behave. Because what Mahatma Gandhi said is actually true:”You must be the change you want to see in the world”. Remember most change happens from one person's actions. We think sweeping changes come from millions rising up, but it's often from a single person who steps forward”.  Most importantly, you must have a joyful life. Where we are as a planet is so perilous that not to have a good life is to cheat yourself of the time you have left. So dance! Have a hilarious time with your friends, with the people you love. Experience the wonder of the world in all its radiance, and do your part to make human beings worthy of this amazing place. In the end, you can only extend what you have, and if you have peace you can extend that simply by being alive. Carry in your heart the certainty that the children, the elders, the women and men, grandfathers, grandmothers, the animals, the trees, the rivers and beautiful hills, the mountains, the seas and oceans, many of them took millions of years in the making, are not your enemy. Your enemy, the earth's enemy, is war itself. You will have to be very strong to swim against this powerful tide, but the earth and all its beings are worth it”.

Awards and other recognition

In 1983, The Color purple won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction making Walker the first African-American woman to win.”Color purple was adapted into a movie by Steven Spielberg in 1985 and received 11 nominations for an Oscar.(This film has revealed to the public the actress Whoopie Goldberg, the TV hostess Oprah Winfrey acts in it)                                                                                                                                                                                                   The same year A. Walker received the National Book Award

Walker also won the 1986 O.Henry Award for her short story "Kindred Spirits", published in Esquire Magazine in August of  1985.                                                                                                                                                                                              

In 1997 she was honored by the American Humanist Association as "Humanist of the Year"                                                         

 She has also received a number of other awards for her body of work, including:   The Lillian Smith Award from the National Endowment for the Arts                                                                                  

The Rosenthal Award from the National Institute of Arts & Letters                                                                                        

The Radcliffe Institute Fellowship, the Merrill Fellowship, the Guggenheim Fellowship                                                                                                                     

The Front Page Award for Best Magazine Criticism from the Newswoman's Club of New York                                                                                                                                                       

En 1983 Alice Walker fut la première femme Afro-Américaine à recevoir le Prix Pulitzer, pour son livre « La couleur pourpre ». Il fut adapté au cinéma par Steven Spielberg en 1985 et nominé11 fois pour un oscar (film qui a révélé  au public Whoopie Goldberg, la célèbre animatrice de TV Oprah Winfrey y tient un rôle aussi).                                                                              

La même année A Walker reçut le Prix National du Livre.                                                                                                                           

  A. Walker fut récompensée en 1986 par le prix O. Henry pour sa nouvelle “Ames apparentées” publiée en Aout 1985 dans le magazine Esquire.                                                                                                                                                                                    

 En 1997 Elle fut honorée et déclarée “Humaniste de l'année” par The American Humanist Association.                                        

  Elle reçu également un grand nombre de récompenses pour l'ensemble de ses œuvres :                                                                                                     

  Le Prix Lilian Smith de la part du Fonds National de Dotations pour les Arts.                                                                                          

  Le Prix Rosenthal de la part de l'Institut National des Arts et des Lettres.                                                                                        

  Le Prix Radcliffe du Radcliffe Institute Fellowship. Le prix Merrill du Merrill Fellowship. Le prix Guggenheim du Guggenheim Fellowship                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Le Front Page Award for Best Magazine Criticism from the Newswoman's Club of New York