While speaking in Page Auditorium Tuesday, Mariane Pearl spoke of violence and dialogue: how the latter can help combat the former. And in the hour she spoke, Pearl had far too many words for one printed article. So here is some more of what the journalist had to say about how she learned to value life.
When Pearl's husband Daniel Pearl was killed in Pakistan in 2002, Pearl was five months pregnant with their son, who she named Adam. In her speech, Pearl told the audience that she and Daniel knew their son would be a world citizen: her father was Dutch, her mother Cuban and Daniel's parents were originally from Israel. She also said she decided before Adam was born that she would need to be hopeful and optimistic about their future despite Daniel's death. Pearl said she knew how hopeless and cruel the world could be, and she refused to give birth to a baby without any hope in her heart.
In an interview with The Chronicle after the speech, Pearl said that although having a baby helped her find a reason to live after Daniel's death, she believed she had to live for herself. Pearl said it would have been unfair to put that pressure on her son: he could not be the only thing keeping her living.
In a question and answer session with the audience, Pearl talked about her book, A Mighty Heart, and its adaptation into a film starring Angelina Jolie. Pearl, who has known Jolie for some years, said she highly respects the actress, adding that working with her was amazing. When talking about her world travels to encourage embracing diversity and to promote dialogue, Pearl also mentioned the many women—often victims of violence—and the inspiring stories they have shared with her. She told audience members that there were far too many compelling stories for her to select just one to tell, so she encouraged people to go to Glamour Magazine's Web site where they can read the stories for themselves.
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