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'If you do good, you'll feel good': Ann Curry explains origins of #26Acts of Kindness
A massive, unexpected wave of goodwill began online with a simple idea: "Imagine if we all committed 20 acts of kindness to honor the lost children of Newtown." NBC News National and International Correspondent Ann Curry sent the message on Twitter and Facebook. The idea has evolved into a viral effort known as "26 Acts of Kindness," in honor of the students and faculty who died at Sandy Hook Elementary.
After being in Newtown, I woke up the next morning and thought about what could be done. What is the answer to this kind of national suffering? And I remembered a moment on the edge of Darfur, when I came upon a woman who was elderly and in the hospital, recovering from burns after an attack by Janjaweed militias. She was surrounded in the hospital, by younger women carrying babies, and I asked her to tell the story of how she had suffered these terrible burns all over her body. I learned that she had tried to rescue her invalid husband when her village was attacked and her house was set on fire. She tried to carry her husband out of her house and stayed so long that the thatched roof of her house came down, the hot embers giving her 3rd degree burns. But she was unable to save her husband. Her husband died.
Antoine Sanfuentes
Ann Curry's inspiration for #26Acts of Kindness dates back to an experience she had while reporting on the genocide in Darfur in 2007, and the joy that giving Polaroid pictures of children brought to mothers who had never held a photograph of their kids.
I remember walking out of that hospital, and the producer saw the look on my face. He said, “Are you okay?” And I said, “No.” And without even thinking, I remember going to our team van and pulling out a Polaroid camera I had brought on that trip. And then I went to all of these women with their children who were in the courtyard of the hospital, knowing that they had never owned a photograph – ever – of their child. I went around from woman to woman, and I took pictures of them, I took pictures of them with their child, or just of their child alone – without even thinking, just snapping pictures. The first time I did it, I remember giving a photograph to a woman, and she looked at this black square with this quizzed look on her face, and I said, “Just wait one minute! Just wait one minute,” holding up one finger. And then I watched her face melt as she watched her child’s face slowly appear on that Polaroid.
It made me feel better. So I went from mother to mother to mother until I ran out of film.
After the experience in Newtown. I thought, “What if? Imagine if everyone could commit to doing one act of kindness for every one of those children killed in Newtown.” So that’s what I tweeted. And guess what? People committed. I said in my tweet, “I’m in. RT if you’re in.” Not only did they commit to 20 acts of kindness, they wanted to up it to 26 acts of kindness for every child and adult who was lost at the school. Some even debated maybe we should include the mother, who died, at 27 acts. Some debated maybe we should include the killer as well as he was struggling and in pain.What’s really remarkable to me is how many people responded. They are the ones who carried the ball. They are the ones who chose what to do. People would tweet back, “I’ve done two!” “I bought coffee for a guy in line!” “I bought toys for homeless children!” “I’ve got 18 more to go!” or “24 more to go!” – whatever number they were trying to reach.
I was inspired by them. So I started tweeting about what people were doing. Some people thought it was boasting when they would say “I’ve done this” or “I’ve done that.” I don’t think so. I think that whenever you show by example an act of kindness – big or small – something that spends a lot of money, or because you don’t have the money, something that doesn’t, all of it is welcome.
There is no judgment. I think that’s the key. If people want to do it, great. But I think that if they do it, something great happens to you.
When I was tweeting, I noticed that the number one trending topic was something like "ThingsIlikeaboutmyself." I thought, “Well, if you do act of kindness, I bet you’ll like even more about yourself.” So that’s what I tweeted.
I know the truth: if you do good, you feel good. It’s the most selfish thing you can do. Right now, this country wants to heal. I think the only thing comforting in the face of a tragedy like this is to do something good with it if you can. Be a part of that wave.Here are some ideas to get you started:
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Recovery and loss on Staten Island
Those who lost their homes during Hurricane Sandy are salvaging what they can from the wreckage, and trying to stay afloat financially as they cope with the aftermath of the storm. NBC's Ann Curry reports.
In case you missed it, last night on "NBC Nightly News" Ann Curry visited residents of Staten Island who are still suffering in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. If you would like to help any of the families mentioned in the report, please click on the links below to learn more.
Help Jen and Pedro Correa rebuild
How to help the Wright family
Donate to the Puglias
Suu Kyi: 'I just didn't know how to give up'
Aung San Suu Kyi shares her message for people around the world struggling for freedom and democracy. NBC's Ann Curry reports.
Ann Curry, NBC News Special Correspondent
NEW YORK – Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was one of the world's most famous political prisoners until her release two years ago.
After 15 years under house arrest, NBC News’ Ann Curry asked her Friday what her message is to other people all over the world struggling for freedom?
“It's the same struggle for everybody everywhere; because unless we are free we can't really realize our own potential. And if we can't realize our own potential we are like a crippled tree. It would be a stunted growth,” Suu Kyi replied.
Now on a 17-day coast-to-coast tour of the United States, earlier this week Suu Kyi met President Barack Obama at the White House and received the Congressional Gold Medal for her long fight for democracy in a country ruled by army generals since 1962.
She sat down with Curry on Friday morning and discussed her emergence from house arrest, her new political role in Myanmar and what kept her going all those years.
'I just didn't know how to give up'
During her years under house arrest in the country also known as Burma, Suu Kyi was separated from her family, and unable to see her husband, British academic Michael Aris, before his death from cancer in 1999. Suu Kyi was released in late 2010 and has since joined hands with members of the former ruling junta that detained her to push ahead with political reform.Myanmar opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has been presented with Congress' highest award, the Congressional Gold Medal in honor of her leadership and commitment to human rights in Burma.
Curry asked her what sustained her over all those years?
“Well, I just didn't know how to give up,” Suu Kyi said with a smile. “I never thought of needing anything to sustain me. It never occurred to me that I should give up.”
Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi calls for release of Russian punk band Pussy Riot
She also credited the perseverance she learned as a child from her mother and father, Aung San, a Burmese independence hero and founder of the modern Burmese army.
“I was brought up by my mother very strictly,” she said. “She always spoke about the importance of a sense of duty and if you take up something you just don't drop it.”
She said she also felt an obligation to see her father’s dream of an independent country come true.
“My mother always brought me up to understand that my father loved his country and of course I always knew that he didn't live to see his dream come true. He died just before we regained independence. And I suppose always I wanted to realize his dream for him.”
Suu Kyi honored with Congress' highest award
MSNBC host Alex Wagner moderates a town hall with Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and Amnesty International live from the Newseum in Washington, D.C.
Possible presidential run?
Suu Kyi won the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize for championing democracy in opposition to the military junta that held her under house arrest for years.Suu Kyi's election to parliament in April helped to transform the pariah image of Myanmar and persuade the West to begin rolling back sanctions after a year of dramatic reforms, including the release of about 700 political prisoners.
As for her house arrest, she said she learned at least one important skill during that time: how to listen.
“I learned to listen very well because I listened to the radio about five, six hours a day. And this ability to listen has stayed me- has stood me in very good stead,” she said. “It helps you to understand how people's minds work. How other people think. What their point of view is.”
Ease sanctions on Myanmar, Suu Kyi says on U.S. tour
She is confident in her country’s future – but did not rule out the possibility of ever running for president of Myanmar.
“No, if you're a politician you never rule out such a possibility,” she said.
Suu Kyi is currently in New York, where 40 years ago she worked for the United Nations. She'll then travel to Kentucky, Indiana and California to speak on campuses and meet Burmese expatriates.
See the full invterview with Ann Curry here.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Corporate America's Military Opportunity
A version of this opinion article appeared Mar. 27, 2012, on page A13 in some U.S. editions of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Corporate America's Military Opportunity. It is being re-posted here with permission.
By Ann Curry
NBC NewsIn his State of the Union address this January, President Obama rang a bell that is still sounding 10 years after our wars began in Afghanistan and Iraq. "At a time when too many of our institutions have let us down, they exceed all expectations," he said about our men and women in uniform. "They're not consumed with personal ambition. They don't obsess over their differences. They focus on the mission at hand. They work together. Imagine what we could accomplish if we followed their example."
We can do better than imagine. We can remember.
As World War II drew to a close, many Americans worried about how to assimilate returning veterans. Some feared the economic boom of the war would quickly fall back to the hard times of the Great Depression as millions in uniform arrived home looking for work. But these military veterans—the Greatest Generation, in Tom Brokaw's phrase—had the resilience and leadership skills to become not a weight but an engine driving the economy and the American Century.
Whether today's military men and women—the best-trained and most experienced military force in the history of our nation—can similarly drive our economy largely depends on whether we remember our history.
After World War II, veterans were rewarded with the G.I. bill and favorable housing loans. Perhaps as important, they came to be seen as a boon to any business that wanted to recruit disciplined, mission-oriented and motivated workers. Veterans then even wore military veteran pins on their lapels because it singled them out as worthy of special consideration as potential employees.
Today's veterans, many of whom enlisted after America was attacked on 9/11, are as deserving as their World War II predecessors. And putting them to work may well be the most selfish thing our nation can do right now. Where else might any business find better, more "can-do" men and women?
When a person has been repeatedly willing to run toward battle under orders despite the risk of death, imagine what he or she might do to inspire a company to find the grit to succeed. How do you say "no" to working overtime when your colleague is a former war veteran who is willing to say "yes?"
About veterans whose skills have been honed in hostile environments, Harvard Business School historian Nancy Koehn notes that, "Whether they're part of a factory floor team, whether they're part of an executive group trying to steer a company in a certain direction, cohesion, coherence, the ability to follow others and work with others toward a common goal is incredibly important in generating those widgets and the clothes and the computers and the smartphones of GDP."
The good news is that corporate America is beginning to wake up to the benefits of bringing a fighting spirit into their companies. Executives are learning that despite misconceptions, the vast majority of veterans—82%-90% of men and 80% of women returning from Afghanistan and Iraq, according to the RAND Corporation—do not have a post-traumatic stress syndrome that could affect their readiness to work.
Prudential, FedEx, Gamestop, JetBlue, J.P. Morgan Chase, Coca-Cola, Sears, AT&T, NBC Universal and its parent company Comcast are among an increasing number of companies that are now seeking to hire veterans.
Gary Taylor, a top executive at power company Entergy (and a retired captain in the Air Force), puts it this way: "The skills that they bring back are a real competitive advantage, whether they're electricians, mechanics, computer scientists, engineers—that skill seems to fit well."
And even when a skill does not fit exactly, why would anyone doubt whether former Apache helicopter pilots or company master sergeants would be trainable? The sooner more American businesses realize the value of this sudden wealth of returning military veterans, the sooner we can stop worrying about our economy.
Our military veterans have exceeded all expectations. What could our businesses, our economy and our nation accomplish if we put their talents and courage to work here at home?
Ms. Curry, an NBC News anchor and correspondent, has traveled six times to Iraq and Afghanistan and is a daughter of a war veteran. On March 28 on NBC's "Today" show, she will help broadcast "Hiring Our Heroes Today," a nationwide hiring fair put on by NBC News and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, hosted at the USS Intrepid museum.
Health debate coming to the end?
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
In for Brian Williams tonight, and the Nightly team is scrambling.That's because in just a matter of days we should know where the long, roaring battle over health care will finally lead us.
Today President Obama postponed his schedueled trip to Indonesia and Australia because it looks like the House vote will be this coming Sunday, and he wants to be in Washington to see what happens.Speaker Pelosi reacted, saying about the President, "This is historical. I'm sure he wants to be here for the history."
Actually, after all these months of political wrangling in Washington, it's still unclear as to whether the bill will pass, how we'll pay for it, and what exactly would change. But we're beginning to get a good idea. oday the House posted the entire bill on line. Here's the link if you have a lot of time on your hands.
http://docs.house.gov/rules/hr4872/111_hr4872_amndsub.pdf
Otherwise you can see what our crack reporters Kelly O'Donnell and Savannah Guthrie have gleaned, in their reports tonight.
Nancy Snyderman reports from Haiti, Bob Bazell has a story about how text messages are being used to fight childhood obesity, and Mike Taibbi reports on 77-year-old Sister Rose Ann Fleming, who is behind Xavier's winning NCAA basketball team.
But our executive producer Bob Epstein is also thinking a lot about today's news that Fess Parker has died at 85. Remember, Parker was the actor who played the brave Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone in the 60s and 70s. Bob, like a lot of boys, was inspired to wear a coon skin hat then, because they too wanted to be kings of the wild frontier. Fess Parker, we will be sure to tip our caps for that tonight.
Overnight in Haiti
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti-- All hotels are down, so we are sleeping on the tarmac... Brian in a tent, me in a Canadian Air luggage container, many others on metal grates. In all cases, the ground is hard, so we are using blankets, pieces of foam, some of us even suitcases to sleep on top of. We are worried about rats, which are numerous. There are lots of mosquitoes.
Hard to sleep because the planes are so loud, especially the c130s. We have to negotiate for bathrooms in nearby buildings, and are currently without one.
We brought in water, but are running out of food, which now consists of MREs. We hope for more supplies tomorrow.
Tonight we have a luxury... the crew of one plane gave us all airline pillows. We are definitely not comfortable, but we are also in the lap of luxury compared to so many here in Haiti.
How are we successful? There are no whiners amongst us. We are all focused on getting the story out that must be told.
Sebelius steps back
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said today the independent panel that made the new breast cancer screening recommendations "do not set federal policy" and that "our policies remain unchanged...my message to women is simple. Mammograms have always been an important life-saving tool..keep doing what you have been doing for years."Her statement appeared to fly in the face of the panel's dramatic recommendations this week delaying when women are advised to start getting regular mammograms to 50, and questioning the usefulness of self-exams.
Just a few moments ago, I asked Secretary Sebelius to explain why she's stepping back from the recommendations and sending a mixed message to the American people--and whether, because of the fallout, this was a case of politics trumping science.
Nancy Snyderman also helps sort through the mixed messages, which understandably have a lot of women confused today.
We'll also hear from President Obama, who talked to Chief White House Correspondent Chuck Todd, and Anne Thompson has a pretty darn cool story—from my hometown, it turns out. Dear old Ashland, Oregon gives us a surprise about what can go green.
On a personal note, all this running around has caused a run in my stockings. Bet Brian never has this problem.
Covering a changing war
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
Brian Williams and I both anchor tonight's broadcast--he from Afghanistan, me in New York -- and this as the number of U.S. troop deaths in Afghanistan reached 55 for the month of October, the highest in one month since the war began eight years ago. That's because today, bombs killed eight more troops.And, just as alarming, is another reason why the toll is up: Experts say the Taliban now has bigger bombs and more powerful IEDs--more evidence the war is changing as the enemy becomes more radicalized.
Also tonight, we make sense of the confusion over where people can get H1N1 flu shots, the anger that boiled over in Chicago at banks lobbying against financial reforms, and get this: there is now a Broadway stage production of 101 Dalmatians--with real dogs.
The chuckling around Nightly News is over the fact that the correspondent who will bring us this story is Kevin Tibbles -- so do not be surprised if you see a graphic long desired by some among our ranks: "Tibbles 'n Bits."
Oh help!
See you tonight.
David Rohde: Moderates do exist in Afghanistan
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
Yours truly in for Brian Williams tonight on this very tough day for Americans in Afghanistan. Fourteen people died, including some civilians, in two separate helicopter crashes--the worst during a raid on drug traffickers. Remember, the Taliban is funding their war with drug money. A firefight is reported, but the military says its preliminary investigation finds the helicopter was not shot down. As our NBC News team just happened to videotape the troops on the mission earlier, our challenge now is to make sure these images are used informatively, and yet respectfully, given the loss of life. This is the kind of ethical dilemma that happens behind the scenes that can rip your heart out.
We have the first interview with New York Times reporter David Rohde on the broadcast tonight, in which he describes his recent, daring escape from the Taliban after seven months of captivity in the tribal areas, where presumably Osama Bin Laden is holed up. Scary place for Americans, and Rohde's story is something out of a movie. The crazy thing is, Google Earth can zero in on the exact area where he was held hostage.
Rohde also said something quite interesting as we think about the way forward in Afghanistan.
DAVID ROHDE: "I saw the contradiction that exists in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. You know, one Afghan lied to me and kidnapped me. Another Afghan, you know, helped me escape. So, it's--it's really a question of sorting through the complexities. And backing the right Afghans. But there are courageous Afghans and Pakistanis who--who are fighting the Taliban. And want to help us fight the Taliban.
NBC News: So, it is on them, then, that the U.S. would have to rely to win?
DAVID ROHDE: Yes. It's finding more effective ways to back moderate Afghans and Pakistanis. They exist. And we have to find better ways to help them.
This, it would seem, hits the administration's dilemma square on the head, as it weighs the war strategy there.
On that point, President Obama talked about the crash and said he "will never rush" choosing whether to send US troops to war, referring to his upcoming decision about whether to send additional troops to Afghanistan.
There is other news, including new information about what those two Northwest Airlines pilots say they were doing in the cockpit that caused them to miss landing at the Minneapolis airport; what's taking so long for the swine flu vaccine to become more widely available; and a cool story about a dentist working to organize free dental care for children around the country.
As a girl raised poor enough to not always get to go to the dentist when she had a toothache, I am pretty glad about that.
See you tonight.
The debate over Afghanistan
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
In tonight for Brian Williams, and can offer you an interview with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, conducted over the weekend in Zurich, during which she gives NBC News a rare glimpse into the intensity of the administration's internal debate over Afghanistan."What is going on in this analysis, is the kind of deep, stripped down investigation of assumptions," Secretary Clinton said, adding, "This process has certainly clarified for me, some of what we're up against. Kind of cleared away some of the mythology. And the presumptions."
She gave our news team the impression, that this war review is both intellectually challenging and emotionally intense, and that the wrangling was over the consequences of options that have not yet been made public.
Just Friday, White house spokesman Robert Gibbs said the President's final decision is still "weeks away."
We asked Secretary Clinton, given that in the weeks the President has already taken to conduct this review at least 10 US troops have died in Afghanistan, what is taking so long.
"Well, first of all, every one of those deaths...weighs heavily on all of us who are sitting around the table in the situation room.. When we make the decision and when we recommend to the President what we believe he should do, we're going to be all in," the Secretary said.
Ahmadinejad: 'This is not nice'
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
Editor's note: The following are notes from today's press conference with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran. AC: President Obama said, "The size and configuration of this facility is inconsistent with a peace program." How do you explain the size and configuration of this facility?
Ahmadinejad: "I don't think Mr. Obama is a nuclear expert. We have to leave it to the IAEA."
AC: In terms of the size of the U.S. facility, how about the size of that?
Ahmadinejad: "I haven't hear Mr. Obama say this. I have to take a look and think about it."
On Obama's promise of change:
Ahmadinejad:"Previous administrations did not respect other governments...but I think..if change is made, things will become much better...Good relations are in everyone's best interest."
Asked to respond to Israel's Netanyahu's showing of a map of Auchwitz before the UN General Assembly:
Ahmadinejad: "We principally don't recognize them."
Asked if Iran has any other nuclear facilities that it has not revealed.
Ahmadinejad: (Pause) "We are operating.. within the framework of the IAEA. There are rules and regulations. We follow the law...We did something well beyond what was required....This is a very ordinary facility and is only in its beginning stages. It is not a secret facility."
Ahmadinejad: (Directing his comments to Obama) "What business of it for you to tell us what do do? You are just another member state like any other state."
"This is a mistake (referring to comments from Obama, Sarkozy, Brown). They will be sorry."
Ahmadinejad also said, this is not how you enter negotiations, "this is not nice."
Ahmadinejad says he is "surprised" by President Obama's statements today.
He said under IAEA rules, you must notify the world six months before you intend to begin using the facility. He said he notified IAEA ahead of time, adding "We still have another year left.""What we did was completely legal," he said. "The IAEA will come and take a look, this is nothing new."
