You Can't Call Yourself a Progressive Until You've Seen Pete Seeger and Majora Carter

Posted by Robert Greenwald, Brave New Films at 6:26 AM on June 23, 2008.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." -- Margaret Mead

The latest episode of This Brave Nation featuring Pete Seeger and Majora Carter epitomizes that sentiment. Pete Seeger has played an active role in every social movement in modern history, from early union battles to Civil Rights to the anti-war movement. At 89, Pete is not only a reminder of our nation's history of turbulence and triumph, he is also an inspiration for our vibrant future.

Perhaps that's what gave him an instant connection with Majora Carter. The Executive Director and Founder of Sustainable South Bronx, Majora has worked tirelessly to reshape the neighborhood of her youth by encouraging sustainability, alternative transportation, and a national green-collar job agenda. These two committed individuals are definitely taking action to change our world, and their conversation is not to be missed.

And speaking of taking action, it's time to PARTY! July 13th we will bring you LIVE the final episode of This Brave Nation, featuring 2 very special guests. How can we share this with all of you live? House parties, that's how. Sign up now to host a house party featuring the This Brave Nation episode of your choice, followed by a LIVE episode of This Brave Nation.

In the meantime, don't forget to make a donation today to This Brave Nation -- 2 DVDs of the first five episodes for just $15. We're going to start shipping these DVDs tomorrow, June 23, so get 'em while they're hot!

Lastly, we've extended our contest deadline for The Brave Nation Young Activist Award to June 27. That gives you an extra week to nominate your local unsung hero!

* Julia Dann worked as a community development organizer in rural Costa Rica.

* At 27, Kyle Serrette became a lead organizer for AFSCME's United Nurses Associations of California.

* In 1999 as a high school student, Charity Ryerson she was responsible for persuading the Indianapolis City-County Council to adopt a resolution condemning China's occupation of Tibet and the treatment of the Tibetan people.

What young activist do you know that's making the world a better place? Let us know -- soon!

Who's buzzing about This Brave Nation?

Permit me a personal moment. Like you, I often wonder why I do what I do. And because I've done it for so long, I sometimes wonder whether it all was worth it. Well, make no mistake. It was and is. Especially when the reasons are so graphically and emotionally recorded on film. Let me explain. Last night I watched -- online -- the second episode in a remarkable series co-produced by The Nation magazine and Brave New Foundation. ...Print married with film. Film and print married with the internet. Internet married with text, audio and video. Text, audio and video married with ACTION. You don't need a user's manual to get the beauty of all this integration.

It truly is one of the best things you guys have ever done -- the discussions are amazing. Truly. And, quite frankly, a whole lot of folks need some inspiration to get up off their asses right now.

-- Christy at Firedoglake (via email)

Tagged as: activism, new york city, bronx, this brave nation, majora carter, pete seeger, ssbx

ZP Heller is the editorial director of Brave New Films. He has written for The American Prospect, AlterNet, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and The Huffington Post, covering everything from politics to pop culture.

Robert Greenwald is the director/producer of "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price" and "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism."