Worlds Apart:
9-11 First Responders Against War
Many stories have been told about the heroes of 9-11. Over 300 first responders gave their lives in attempts to save lives at Ground Zero in New York City. For many who survived, the horror of 9-11 and the days after continue to effect them every single day.
In NYC, there is a small group of first responders called Ground Zero for Peace who have called for nonviolent responses to the attacks.
It is their belief that violence will only breed more violence. If we hope to eradicate terrorism, violence is not a solution. Reaction to their stance has been mixed, but never mild. Worlds Apart focuses on these heroes of 9-11, and their lives since that tragic day.
The documentary features footage from a peacemaking delegation that brought 9-11 EMT Megan Bartlett and Joe Public Films producer Tom Jackson to Afghanistan in May 2004.
They met with Afghan first responders in an attempt to establish ties of friendship, and to see if Afghan rescue workers were really much different than those in NYC.
Joe Public Films has received exclusive Afghan battle & rescue footage from award winning cameraman M. Yousuf Jonnesar. The documentary features traditional Afghan music and songs from David Rovics, Emma's Revolution and others.
Below are a few sample clips of the film. These are fairly large files and may take a while to download but are worth the wait. The clips will open in a new window when you click on the thumbnail image. You will need the QuickTime plug-in to view them. You can get it for free here:
Note: If a new window does not open with a clip loading in it when you click on a thumbnail below then you probably have Javascript disabled or a non-Javascript browser. In either case you can go here to download the clips.
Megan Bartlett talks about her thoughts on military recruiting just after 9/11.
(2.2 MB)
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John Keenan talks about some co-workers reactions to 9/11.
(2.5 MB)
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A member of RAWA (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan) talks about women's lives in Afghanistan.
Maggie Dubris talks about the 100,000 casualties in Iraq since the invasion.
(2.5 MB)
There is an interview about the making of this documentary at the New Hampshire Public Radio webite.
There is also a review of the film in the September 2005 PeaceWork magazine.
Contacts for scheduling:
Megan Bartlett:
groundzeroforpeace@hotmail.com
Tom Jackson:
joepublicfilms@yahoo.com
To order a DVD copy of Worlds Apart
Send $20 plus $2 for postage and handling, in check or money order
payable to "Joe Public Films" to:
Joe Public Films
163 Court Street
Portsmouth, NH 03801
For more information about the current situation in Afghanistan see "In Afghanistan, Selling War As Peace" by Marc W. Herold in Cursor. The article also contains a still frame from the JPF footage in Afghanistan.