Aung San Suu Kyi and the power of unity
October 2, 2012
Burmese opposition
politician Aung San Suu Kyi was presented with a U.S. Congressional Gold
Medal at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, September 19. She is known
worldwide for her leadership and commitment to human rights in Myanmar,
formerly known as Burma. The opposition leader and pro-democracy
campaigner was kept under house arrest for years by the Asian country's
military rulers. Take a look back at her triumphs and struggles:
HIDE CAPTION
Suu Kyi through the years
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Burma's heroine and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi touring U.S.
- Suu Kyi is addressing ethnic divisions in Burma, challenging world leaders to be responsible
- Writers' online campaign for Suu Kyi united people from all political sides, famous and not
- They say in divisive times, it's worth noting power of unity in service of democratic ideals
Editor's note: Jack Healey is the director of the Human Rights Action Center and former director of Amnesty International USA. Dan Adler is a producer and new media entrepreneur.
(CNN) -- It may be one of the greatest victory laps of our time: Aung San Suu Kyi,
Burma's political heroine, is touring the United States, offering proof
everywhere she goes -- from the White House to the Capitol rotunda,
from Columbia University to Hollywood, from the U.N. to CNN -- that she
is indeed "the Lady."
In Oslo in June, she was
able to give her acceptance speech, overdue by 21 years, for the Nobel
Peace Prize she had been awarded when she was under house arrest in
Burma. In the U.S., she's been able to receive the Congressional Gold Medal --
our highest honor -- she'd been awarded years ago; she was able to meet
with the president, to sit with the U.N.'s secretary general and to
meet many of the people who fought so hard to tell the world what the
former military dictatorship was doing to her and to the Burmese people.
This week, she will visit
Los Angeles, meeting with local Burmese and sitting down to dinner with
members of the Hollywood community. And if one message rings through in
all of her appearances, it is the strength of nonviolent
reconciliation, the power of democratic ideals to triumph and what it
really means to be willing to stand up for what one believes, whatever
the cost.
Jack Healey
Dan Adler
It was Suu Kyi's
nonviolent campaign against one of the most oppressive, dictatorial
regimes of our times that gave hope to the oppressed Burmese people and
to thousands of Buddhist monks, as she inspired politicians and leaders
around the globe.
It was the strength of
her spirit, the patience of her approach and the profound beauty of her
soul. It was the message that one democratically elected ruler could
withstand nearly 20 years of house arrest, could live with the memory of
her father's assassination, could overcome the separation from her
cancer-stricken husband whom she was not allowed to visit on his
deathbed and could galvanize a movement of monks and a nation of people
to rise up and take back their country.
Now, Suu Kyi is using her
international visibility to address ethnic divisions in Burma and to
challenge the rest of the globe to behave more responsibly, even as she forgives the very military leaders
who kept her under house arrest for the better part of two decades. The
nation is also called Myanmar, but Suu Kyi refuses to use that name
because it was changed by the military junta.
So what does it mean for
us, in America, during a polarizing election that seems to be bringing
out the worst in all of us? Rhetoric, sound bites, culture wars and
catchphrases are replacing substance, thoughtfulness and informed
debate. And in the middle of it all, Hollywood, as usual, is manipulated
by each side to demonize the other.
It wasn't so long ago,
though, when our cultural leaders helped stand up and stand in for the
most important voices of their day, raising issues all of us need to
take more seriously. And, in fact, that's precisely what happened with
Burma.
Just a few years ago,
before most of us ever heard of Burma, before we could pronounce Aung
San Suu Kyi's name and before we watched in horror as Cyclone Nargis
ravaged its shores in 2008, a group of us from the creative and human
rights communities banded together to raise our voices around what was
happening to Suu Kyi and the Burmese.
Aung San Suu Kyi embarrassed by accolade
We were able to pull together, left and right, young and old,
Democrats and Republicans, Americans and foreigners, straights and
gays, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and atheists. All in a common
cause of celebrating the voice of the people, the power of democracy
and one remarkable woman. Called "Burma: It Can't Wait,"
it was an online video campaign featuring 38 spots to publicize what
was happening in Myanmar and happening to Suu Kyi. The campaign has
received about 25 million views.
What compelled nearly
100 of the industry's most creative and committed people -- in front of
and behind the camera -- to rally together to produce an award-winning
online video campaign? What led Shepard Fairey to create another of his iconic images,
inspired the likes of Jim Carrey and Anjelica Huston to speak out and
celebrities to travel to the Burmese border to show their support for
the refugees?
And, in another example
of what people united by a common cause can do, what inspired 27 of the
world's most popular musical artists to contribute tracks in 2004 to an album called "For the Lady"?
One remarkable person.
If you want to see why, read some of Suu Kyi's remarkable writings.
"Freedom from Fear," published by Penguin, provides a great collection
of them.
In these hyperpartisan
times, as approval ratings for Congress reach record lows, as our public
discourse focuses on name-calling and our media oversimplify the most
complex issues, it's refreshing to remember that many people were able
to come together, from across a broad spectrum, to support a woman who
had inspired Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, Laura Bush,
Bill Clinton and Tony Blair to rally to her defense.
In a nation seemingly
torn apart by divisiveness and conflict, on the eve of our presidential
election, all of us should join together to champion the democratic
traditions we cherish and to celebrate that much more that brings us
together than divides us. As we enjoy Suu Kyi's tour of the United
States, may we be reminded of the strength of her spirit and the power
of unity of purpose in service of our ideals.
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