JfJ Team
Rosalind Hackett
Coordinator
rhackett@utk.edu / rosalindhackett@knoxjazzforjustice.org
http://web.utk.edu/~rhackett
Motivated by the horrendous suffering of the people of northern Uganda, which she saw on her 2004 trip to the region,
Informed by more than eight years of research and teaching in West Africa
Blessed with a love of organizing and networking,
Convinced of the need to see a greater role for the creative arts, especially music, in the rebuilding of lives and societies in post-conflict situations,
Inspired by the spirit of jazz, especially the music and philosophy of South African jazz musician, Zim Ngqawana, as a force for personal and social liberation,
Aided by talented students, colleagues, and local musicians,
Rosalind conceived of the idea of holding a benefit concert in September 2006 to raise awareness of and support for war-torn northern Uganda. The rest, as they say, is history!
Lindsay McClain
Core Team
lindsaymcclain@knoxjazzforjustice.org
Lindsay McClain is a senior at the University of Tennessee majoring in an individualized program called College Scholars. Her concentration is focused on how the arts can enhance peace building and conflict resolution in Africa, and she intends to use the situation in northern Uganda as her primary case study for research. She traveled with Jazz for Justice to Uganda in summer 2007, spring 2008, and Christmas 2008. In addition to Uganda, Lindsay, with her incurable case of wanderlust, has also traveled to Botswana, South Africa, Costa Rica, Panama, Rwanda, Haiti, Mexico, Jamaica, the Netherlands, France, Great Britain, Canada, and across the United States. She returnined to Uganda for an internship with Minority Health International Research Training (MHIRT) in June through August of 2009 to participate in an ongoing clinical study to measure the effectiveness of art therapy with former child soldiers. Her favorite quote, by the late Dan Eldon, embodies her outlook on life. The journey is the destination.
Dustyn Winder
Core Team
dustynwinder@knoxjazzforjustice.org
Follow on Twitter
dswinder.com
Dustyn Winder is a student at the University of Tennessee, majoring in Global Studies: Politics and Economy and minoring in Political Science. His academic interests lie in NGO/aid management and accountability, sustainable international development, peace building strategies and analyzing how they are affected by policy. Dustyn’s love for Uganda has led to a stint in the summer of 2008 working with MUMYO, a grassroots development NGO based in Naggalama, Uganda, and a return trip to Uganda in December 2008 - January 2009 with Jazz for Justice.
He spent June and July 2009 in Uganda continuing his work with MUMYO and researching methods for determining disposable income for the sustainability of a new program being implemented by Educate!, a Ugandan education empowerment NGO that aims to mentor and equip a new generation of socially responsible leaders in Uganda.
His personal research this summer was focused on analyzing the effectiveness of NGO’s in relation to their size and management structure. He’s also working to develop a plan for a future incarnation of the Jazz for Justice Project, based in Gulu, Uganda.
In addition to Uganda, Dustyn’s travels have taken him to Rwanda, Kenya, Belize, Honduras, England, Italy, Belgium, Jamaica, Mexico, and the Cayman Islands just to name a few. While a permanent favorite quote continually eludes him, one by Robert Louis Stevenson seems particularly relevant. “Every heart that has beat strongly and cheerfully has left a hopeful impulse behind it in the world, and bettered the tradition of mankind.”
Erin Cagney
Core Team
erincagney@knoxjazzforjustice.org
Erin Cagney is a junior at the University of Tennessee, majoring in Anthropology with a minor in French. She is a member of the Chancellor’s Honors Program and a core member of the Jazz for Justice Project. Erin first traveled to Uganda in December 2008 under the auspices of the Jazz for Justice Project, along with 10 other UT students. Erin returned to Uganda for the Summer of 2010 where she worked with Educate!, an organization that teaches leadership skills and social entrepreneurship to secondary school students. She then worked with Bishop Ochola, a retired Anglican Bishop who is famous for his efforts in the peace building process. While staying with Bishop Ochola and his family, Erin assisted with a project involving making traditional Acholi folktales into cartoons for children. In addition to Uganda, Erin has traveled to neighboring Rwanda and Kenya, as well as Guatemala, France, and England. She plans to return to Uganda for Spring semester 2010, where she will carry out independent research and work on other Jazz for Justice projects.
Erin Bernstein
Former Co-President (Fall 2007 - Spring 2009)
erinbernstein@knoxjazzforjustice.org
Erin Bernstein received her Bachelor’s of Arts from the University of Tennessee in 2009 in an individualized program on development, humanitarianism, and peace and conflict studies in Africa. Her thesis–”Social Suffering in Northern Uganda: Analytical Reflections on Psychosocial Healing in the Aftermath of War”–combines the theory of social suffering with an analysis of historical events and present-day policies in northern Uganda. It also integrates her own experiences from her three trips to northern Uganda (summer 2007, spring 2008, Christmas 2008). Her passion for people and travel has also brought her to Hungary, Romania, England, Canada, Botswana, Rwanda, and South Africa. She will spend fall 2009 in France on a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship before returning to Uganda to work for a period of time. Erin values human relationships and human friendships and finds inspiration in a quote by Brian Andreas: “I promise not a moment will be lost as long as I have heart and voice to speak. And I will walk together with a thousand others and a thousand more and on and on until there is no one among us who does not know the truth: there is no future without love.” Peace. Kuc. Emirembe.
Joshua Russell
Former Music Manager / Founding Member
Jrussellsound@hotmail.com
Joshua Russell is a multi-instrumentalist musician and chef currently in the Peace Corps, living in Ghana. He is a former student of Cultural Anthropology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. After graduating in the Spring of 2005, he went on to pursue Culinary Arts and became the Executive Chef of two local restaurants, Pasta Trio and Thailand Express. Joshua has been with the Jazz for Justice team since its inception during the Spring of 2006.
It has long been Joshua’s dream to investigate the role of music in the peace building/healing process. A series of events, the JfJ 2006 Benefit Concert and the Summer 2007 JfJ Musicians for Peace Initiative, has brought his vision of music as a peace-building/healing process into reality. As part of the JfJ team, he helped produce the Knoxville Jazz for Justice Benefit Concert 2006. Joshua was also a member of the JfJ envoy to Uganda during the Summer of 2007. He has documented the aforementioned events on several forms of media, and plans to use this data for the creation of a multimedia presentation that will exhibit the peace building process being developed through the use of music. Also, this presentation will help raise cross-cultural awareness between the music communities of Knoxville, Tennessee, and Gulu, Uganda.
Patricia Lynes-Tway
Fundraiser
pjlynes@juno.com
The Reverend Patricia Lynes-Tway with the Diocese of East Tennessee has traveled to Uganda and is writing a manual for teachers to aid them in helping students suffering from emotional and spiritual needs caused by war experiences. She also researches and writes grants to benefit JfJ partners.