"We want to raise global awareness and bring together community that says, 'We are not afraid of (terrorism), we will not respond to terror and aggression in kind, that's not how we will live our lives.'"

Date:   8/2/2005 2:31:42 AM ( 19 y ago)

The images would be right at home on a refrigerator or a dorm-room wall: smiling babies, surburban families posing in bathing suits, friendly dogs. But these pictures, some taken with cellphones, some bearing slogans asserting their fearlessness, have a serious aim: to tell the world that their makers are not intimidated by the terrorist attacks in London, Egypt, New York City and elsewhere.

The images come from a website whose title-- http://www.werenotafraid.com --makes its point pretty clearly. With 7,500 images posted and more than 20,000 being processed, the site has become a sensation: Last week, it topped 5 million visitors.

"The message is simple, but it's also powerful," says Amanda Timpson, a Los Angeles-based staffer for Werenotafraid.com, which is run by volunteers living all over the world. "We want to raise global awareness and bring together community that says, 'We are not afraid of this, we will not respond to terror and aggression in kind, that's not how we will live our lives.'"

The site started when 29-year old Alfie Dennen received a photo through his cellphone from a friend who was evacuating an Underground tunnel after the July 7 bombings, and wanted to reassure friends and family that he was safe.

Dennen put that image, and others he received, onto a website. As they were seen by more and more people, other images began streaming in: Some were from the New York area, from people who had lived through the Sept 11 attacks; eventually, others began to come from around the world.

"About three hours after Alfie put up the first photo," Timpson says, "it was already about the rest of the world, and about a much larger message."

The site now has volunteers in Europe, the States and Australia, and contributions have come from places as far-flung as Korea, South Africa and Norway.

Timpson says the Werenotafraid images have gotten more elaborate. "Originally it was just pictures, but now people are composing music for us, writing poems, creating videos," which range from light and playful to emotionally haunting.

"Everyone has their own way to say, 'I'm not afraid and here's how I'm going to tell the world.'"

Timpson says the site isn't about people shaking their fists, but rather summoning the strength and courage to fight off fear. "... being fearless is about saying, 'I'm not going to change the way I live my life.'"

She also thinks that the site's defiant spirit will continue, even if attacks like those in London and Egypt fall off. "I think there's been a subtle shift in the world community because of the escalation of these attacks," she says.

"And I think people are tired of it and ready to come together to find a solution. I hope there are no more public attacks in the next six months, year, ever. But I don't think that will affect the momentum of this movement."

http://www.werenotafraid.com

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Excerpt from the Los Angeles Times, Monday, August 1, 2005, "Online, images of defiance to terrorism".
To read the whole article: http://www.calendarlive.com/galleriesandmuseums/cl-et-afraid1aug01,0,203784.s...

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