Translate

About David Hazen

Occasionally I get to preach to the choir, and these two videos (click on the image) are from two peacebuilder award ceremonies in 2011.






 Founder, Emerald Compassionate Action Network.  
Imagineer,  Eugene Peace Team
Advisor, International Cities of Peace
Oregon State Coordinator & Board member, The Peace Alliance, 2004 - 2009
Peacemaker of the Year 2011, Nobel Peace Laureate Project
PeaceBuilder Award 2011, Community Mediation Services
Certified Oregon Change Agent by governor John Kitzhaber
Notable Alumnus of Achievement, University of Minnesota
M.A., Systematic Design-planning, Ohio State University 1969
Author, "The Stripper's Guide to Canoebuilding" 1974
             "Love Always Wins, Hope for Healing the Epidemic of Violence"  2012
             "The Work of Love, Re-discovering Connection and Belonging" 2017
"I am a recovering violent person. The early years of my life conditioned me to expect abandonment, through many experiences of being a victim of verbal, physical and emotional abuse followed by me becoming a perpetrator of that very same abuse. When I was a teenager I suspected a similarity and correlation between the angry saber-rattling and death threats of the world super-powers and the punitive violence of which I was a victim in my own home. Why are human beings so incapable of peaceful relationships? 

 "I have been recovering from an addictive lifestyle of violent thoughts, words and deeds -- including self-destruction from drugs and alcohol -- since 1985. I look back at my story now with a radically different perception. I see that I am surrounded by a mostly hidden and powerful culture of violent assumptions about who we are, who we are with, and where we are going — assumptions that are destroying human lives and potential at a massive scale.

 "I never tire of hearing stories of struggle, redemption and recovery, of people who have committed themselves to a culture of freedom from violence. Not only do those stories provide hope, they inspire others to share similar stories. It is so very exciting when the story-tellers hear themselves share sudden, healing insight in the midst of their story.

 "This is my work, then, to provide the space and structure for healing stories. I have written two books. I write from my experience and my reflections. I am not a scholar or trained professional, I’m a bozo on this bus with everyone else. The first book, Love Always Wins, contains my own story and insights about the systemic nature of addiction and recovery. The second book, The Work of Love, is a workbook for you to tell your story in response to questions." 

In this video David describes moving from distrust to trust, a journey which prompted him to write Love Always Wins: Hope for Healing the Epidemic of Violence


Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)