Participants in GSN events share the sentiment found amongst those who first met in 2008 and are anxious to do more, to speak out and to take forward the incredible energy generated at the UN Symposium. The voices and stories of victims in Asia, the European Union and around the globe provide their neighbors, friends or acquaintances susceptible to a terrorist’s message a reason not to act or give support. Quite frankly, our voices could be one of the most effective and credible channels for counter-terrorism communications.

In an effort to broaden the reach of our voices, we began making movies. The first one, called ‘Killing in the Name’ features Ashraf and others engaging with former terrorists, recruiters and others in Jordan and Indonesia. It won an award for Best Documentary at the LA Shorts Fest 2010 and was nominated for a 2011 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. Being invited to walk the red carpet together, Ashraf and I were honored to allow survivors of terror a chance to be heard by millions watching the awards ceremony.

Our latest series of videos, ‘Five’ highlights the compelling stories of five Pakistani man, each a survivor of a different terrorist attack in Pakistan, and each speaking out to make sure what happened to them never happens again. ‘Five’ was featured at the Cannes Film Festival in France in May 2011.

We hope to collect and share more victims and survivors’ stories and share those online, so the emotion conveyed in voices like Aleta’s can move not just a room but rather the entire world. We hope the peace-loving conscientious people to join us.

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