9/11: The Peacemakers Speak

archive.The Community made its international debut in the weeks following 9/11, when the site exclusively published the statements of 19 Nobel Peace Prize laureates in response to the event. It was covered around the world, by AP, the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, NPR, all large Internet news outlets, the Malaysia New Straits Times, the Hong Kong Morning Post, and much more.

The site was selected the Number Two site in USA Today’s top ten sites for the year. It is currently in the Library of Congress archive for 9/11.

We still feature the laureates’ statements on the site as they are now part of the DNA of archive.The Community, and because now, more than fifteen years later, there is still much to be gained by their calls to address terrorism with sanity and global perspective. In many ways, they have only become more relevant since.

In the weeks that followed September 11, we received the statements of 19 of the living Nobel Peace Prize winners.

One month later, as we have moved from the shock of a terrorist event into watching military strikes, there are hard questions to be answered. People who normally consider themselves pacifistic have had to examine, how do you respond to the killing of 3000 innocent people and the injuring of 6000 more? People who support military action are also having to ask themselves, what about the civilians, and the fact that winter is moving in and the children are already hungry?

We see, as we receive new statements from the Laureates, that they are asking themselves the same types of questions we are asking. But these men and women, the people one of our readers aptly described as “our most precious of human resources”, bring a range of wisdom and experience to the discussion that is not available elsewhere.

As we have said before, the Nobel Peace Laureates do not speak in one voice. Do not expect their messages to be uniform. What they do have in common is that each of them has, by their actions, caused a shift in the way we think — in the way we view armed conflict, and the way we look at the world. By sharing their thoughts with us now, they may cause a shift in your thinking. They may cause you to ask other types of questions, or search, with the rest of us, for better solutions.

Jan Raczynski, Memorial, Russia

Jan Raczynski, Memorial, Russia

Oleksandra Matvichuk, Center for Civil Liberties, Ukraine

Oleksandra Matvichuk, Center for Civil Liberties, Ukraine

Nobel Peace Prize Laureates to President Marcos: Ensure Justice for Maria Ressa

Nobel Peace Prize Laureates to President Marcos: Ensure Justice for Maria Ressa

Nobel Peace Laureates Summit, 2019

Shirin Ebadi: The Power of Law vs. the Law of Power

Shirin Ebadi: The Power of Law vs. the Law of Power

Photos: About Us

Photos: About Us

Photos: Youth Ambassador in Rome

Photos: Youth Ambassador in Rome

George Clooney

George Clooney

Bono

Bono

Don Cheadle

Don Cheadle

Harrison Ford

Harrison Ford

Michael Douglas

Michael Douglas

Paul Simon

Paul Simon

Peter Gabriel

Peter Gabriel

Ron Howard

Ron Howard

Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro

Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney

José Ramos-Horta, Freedom Fighter and Democracy Builder, 1996 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

José Ramos-Horta, Freedom Fighter and Democracy Builder, 1996 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Nelson Mandela, Defeated Hatred in South Africa, 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Nelson Mandela, Defeated Hatred in South Africa, 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Mohammad ElBaradei, former head of the IAEA, Egyptian Political Leader, 2005 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Mohammad ElBaradei, former head of the IAEA, Egyptian Political Leader, 2005 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Nobel Laureates to Saudis: Stay the Executions

Nobel Laureates to Saudis: Stay the Executions

F.W. de Klerk, Helped to End Apartheid, 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

F.W. de Klerk, Helped to End Apartheid, 1993 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Indigenous Rights Leader, 1992 Nobel Peace Prize Laueate

Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Indigenous Rights Leader, 1992 Nobel Peace Prize Laueate

Mikhail Gorbachev, Presided Over the End of the Cold War, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laueate

Mikhail Gorbachev, Presided Over the End of the Cold War, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laueate

His Holiness the Dalai Lama, 1989 Nobel Peace Prize Laueate

His Holiness the Dalai Lama, 1989 Nobel Peace Prize Laueate

Elie Wiesel, Author, Humantarian, 1986 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Elie Wiesel, Author, Humantarian, 1986 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Nobel Laureates to Saudi Arabia: The Letter

Nobel Laureates to Saudi Arabia: The Letter

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Anti-Apartheid Hero, Voice of Conscience, 1984 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Anti-Apartheid Hero, Voice of Conscience, 1984 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Jimmy Carter, US President, International Peace Builder, 2002 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Jimmy Carter, US President, International Peace Builder, 2002 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Lech Walesa, Leader of Solidarity, 1983 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Lech Walesa, Leader of Solidarity, 1983 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Kailash Satyarthi, Anti-Slavery and Children’s Rights Leader, 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Kailash Satyarthi, Anti-Slavery and Children’s Rights Leader, 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Tawakkol Karman, Yemeni Activist, “Mother of the Revolution,” 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Lauerate

Tawakkol Karman, Yemeni Activist, “Mother of the Revolution,” 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Lauerate

Leymah Gbowee, Liberian Peace Activist, 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Leymah Gbowee, Liberian Peace Activist, 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Muhammad Yunus, Father of Microcredit, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Laurerate

Muhammad Yunus, Father of Microcredit, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Laurerate

Joseph Rotblat, Scientist for Nuclear Disarmament, 1995 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Joseph Rotblat, Scientist for Nuclear Disarmament, 1995 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Wangari Maathai, planted 30 Million Trees, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Wangari Maathai, planted 30 Million Trees, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Shirin Ebadi, Iranian Human Rights Attorney, 2003 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Shirin Ebadi, Iranian Human Rights Attorney, 2003 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Kim Dae Jung, Architect of the Korean Sunshine Policy, 2000 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Kim Dae Jung, Architect of the Korean Sunshine Policy, 2000 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

John Hume, Architect of the Good Friday Accords, 1998 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

John Hume, Architect of the Good Friday Accords, 1998 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

David Trimble, Northern Ireland Peacemaker, 1998 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

David Trimble, Northern Ireland Peacemaker, 1998 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Jody Williams, Fighting for Women and Children Worldwide, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Jody Williams, Fighting for Women and Children Worldwide, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Nobel Laureates Say No to Torture

Nobel Laureates Say No to Torture

Nobel Laureates Say No to Torture: The Letter

Nobel Laureates Say No to Torture: The Letter

Nobel Laureates Say No to Torture: The Response

Nobel Laureates Say No to Torture: The Response

Norman Bourlag, Grandfather of the Green Revolution, 1970 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Norman Bourlag, Grandfather of the Green Revolution, 1970 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Desmond Tutu Photo Shoot for UDHR

Desmond Tutu Photo Shoot for UDHR

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Photos: What’s so hard about Peace? series

Photos: What’s so hard about Peace? series

Trailers, Episodes 1 and 2: What’s so hard about Peace?

Trailers, Episodes 1 and 2: What’s so hard about Peace?

Photos: George Clooney Don Cheadle Peace Award

Photos: George Clooney Don Cheadle Peace Award