June 2009 marks the 30th anniversary of the pioneering Secret Policeman's Ball series of benefit shows staged to raise money for -- and awareness of -- Amnesty International. The involvement of stars ranging from Monty Python, Peter Cook, Dudley Moore and Eddie Izzard to Sting & The Police, Bono & U2, Bruce Springsteen, Peter Gabriel helped broaden public awareness of the Human Rights issue -- especially among young people. The anniversary is being saluted with a major film festival in Los Angeles and New York - June 11-July 31 - featuring 25 rarely seen films with over 100 leading comedians and rock musicians.
When I came to Amnesty International in 1976 I thought, "I'll just do this until I figure out what other radical, revolutionary thing I'm going to do with my life." What I discovered is that the work being done by Amnesty was the only truly revolutionary work I'd ever seen.
I had spent many years arguing and arguing about finding the correct ideological path to freedom and liberation. Amnesty International in its quiet way had actually found it -- they got people out of prison who were put there by the worst dictators imaginable, and in the process put in motion forces that transformed societies. Once you learn that it is possible to take action that can save a life and free another human being, how can you stop? What started as a temporary gig became a lifelong passion that has never let me go.
Fortunately for us, the power of so-called everyday people to do extraordinary things was not lost on some of the amazing talent that performed at an Amnesty International benefit called The Secret Policeman's Ball. Rock luminaries the likes of Sting became members of Amnesty International and joined forces with the creative genius of John Cleese and the whole 'Balls' gang to help put human rights on the map on a grand scale. This celebration of three decades of 'Mock 'n' Roll' not only brings back intense memories, it brings us back to our roots and to the spirit of our organization -- invigorating people around the country to get involved and make change.
That is why this anniversary celebration comes at a critical time. Far from being a human rights leader, the U.S. government continues to hide behind the war on terror to cover its own wrongdoing. The plight of prisoners of conscience, such as Aung San Suu Kyi, still exists.
Now the economic crisis is fueling the fire, giving countries around the world cover to perpetrate horrible abuses. As executive director of Amnesty International USA, I feel proud of the tens of thousands of prisoners of conscience we've helped free, of the bad laws we've helped change, of the exposure that we've brought to devastating and insidious human rights abuses. I also feel the weight of the work that's ahead of us in a world that has changed radically in the last 30 years.
What has not changed is the power of rock n' roll, humor and human rights to transform lives and make a new world.
FURTHER INFORMATION
• More on Huffington Post about the Film Festival -- including rare film clips