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PRZOOM - /newswire/ -
Venice, CA, United States, 2014/06/20 - On June 11, PeaceNow.com held Expressions of Peace in Santa Monica, Calif., an inspiring and entertaining event that combined film, art, music, dance & conversations about peace, which sold out and was attended by 300 people - PeaceNow.com.
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“Before peace can take flight in our world, it must first take flight from within,” said Scott Bruer, Founder of PeaceNow.com (a fiscally sponsored project of Inquiring Systems, Inc. a 501-c-3 not for profit) at the organization’s Expressions of Peace event in Santa Monica, Calif. on Wednesday, June 11, which was attended by 300 people. “In the past we have relied simply on emotion without practically, hope without solutions. Now is the time to put inspiration, enthusiasm, vision, and the most innovative solutions together, to co-create global peace.”
PeaceNow’s Expressions of Peace event brought together film, art, music, dance and conversations about creating peace. The evening began with a VIP reception catered by Along Came Mary that took place from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. and continued with the free main event, which took place from 7:30 to 9:30 pm., at The Herb Alpert Educational Village at New Roads School in the Capshaw-Spielberg Center for the Arts and Educational Justice in the Ann and Jerry Moss Theater in Santa Monica, Calif.
The main event began with a screening of the award-winning, 20-minute film for peace,“Admissions”, which stars Academy Award® nominee James Cromwell, and included a live performance from international Nigerian/American R&B and pop music star Meaku and an appearance from his friend Yung (of the hit group Cali Swag District); a dance for peace from Omalicha Nwa Entertainment, American-born dancers embracing their Nigerian heritage and culture through modernized traditional dances; and drumming for peace from Punya Das. Producer and Founder of INtense Entertainment, Terry Taylor, coordinated these performances, and he and Meaku continue to support PeaceNow.
After the screening of “Admissions,” there was a Q-and-A panel featuring the film’s creator, John Viscount, and Lekha Singh, Executive Producer, Producer and Co-Director of the documentary film,“Beyond Right & Wrong: Stories of Justice and Forgiveness”, whose film’s trailer was shown at the event.
A second Q-and-A panel on forgiveness featured Viscount and Singh, along with Bruer; Jess Larsen, Director of Corporate Partnerships, Arbinger and Founder of ChildRescue.org; and Kathy Eldon, Founder and Chairman, Creative Visions Foundation, which was inspired by the life of her son, Dan Eldon, an artist, adventurer and activist, who was killed in 1993 while on assignment for Reuters News Agency in Somalia.
The musical performance being donated by Meaku, who collaborated with Yung to create the song,“Nucleus”, produced by Grammy Award-Winning Producer David 'GX' Kirkwood, was very timely. This song was created to bring more awareness to the situation still ongoing in Nigeria, concerning the lost girls.
At the Expressions of Peace event, Bruer introduced “The PeaceNow Three Pillars to Create Peace”, which will achieve peace by addressing the needs and behaviors of the individual, business and economic systems, and government. He provided details on the programs that PeaceNow is creating, including a Peace Business Certification Program, and a Peace Practitioner Course, and the already underway “One Billion Signatures for Peace” petition drive. The organization is also planning the first Peace as an Economic Engine Symposium, scheduled for April 2015, as well as more events in Los Angeles and elsewhere in the future.
Before and after the event, guests gathered for a VIP reception catered by Along Came Mary, viewed peace murals from Art Miles Mural Project, and recorded video messages of peace.
Gold Sponsors included Coalition for Engaged Education and New Roads School, which donated the use of the school and theater for the event; film maker Alireza Soroush and the team that helped the Expressions of Peace event to grow far beyond what was initially planned: DSJ Printing of Santa Monica; Konica Minolta, with offices throughout California and the world; and Trident Communications, also of Santa Monica. This team utilized their relationships to bring recognition of the event from the Art Miles Mural and Peace Project, and from local non-profit fundraiser, Bead Relief, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural (UNESCO). This international organization that recognizes and promotes peace throughout the world has acknowledged PeaceNow as a contributing organization to world peace and supports its mission.
To learn how to get involved with PeaceNow and stay updated on future events, visit PeaceNow.com/.
Media contact: Elia Erickson Consulting
P: 310-479-0217
E: lisa[.]eliaerickson.com.
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scotty[.]peacenow.com 
