Saturday, November 03, 2007 - Keith Mattingly, Socal.com Writer
Calista Flockhart Dave Annable
This Friday, November 9th, Peace Over Violence will hold its 36th Annual Humanitarian Awards Dinner, presented by Verizon Wireless. Calista Flockhart ("Ally McBeal") and Dave Annable, castmates on "Brothers & Sisters," will co-host the event which will honor six outstanding citizens and organizations, and take place at the posh Beverly Hills Hotel.
This year's honorees are Amy Berg, Rosario Dawson, Constance L. Rice, Esta Soler, the Honorable Antonio Villaraigosa, Mayor of Los Angeles, and Kaiser Permanente. Each recipient will be honored with an award specific to their line of work and leadership.
Writer-director Amy Berg, who won Emmy Awards in 2003 and 2004 for her work at CBS News, is this year's winner of the Media Award for her documentary Deliver Us from Evil, tackling the topic of sexual assault by clergy members of the Catholic Church and their ensuing efforts to hide the atrocities. Berg has already won the Writer's Guide of America Documentary Award, and is nominated for an Academy Award for her shocking and enlightening research.
Actress Rosario Dawson will be honored with the Empowerment Award for her involvement in organizations such as the Lower East Side Girls Club of Los Angeles and Voto Latino, a nationwide organization which she founded to help create a unified voice for young Latinos. Dawson is proactive in recognizing and remedying violence in every form and location; she in an active participant in Global Darfur Awareness Day, and played the lead role in the 2007 film Descent as a young rape victim struggling to survive on her own.
Constance L. Rice focuses on the problems facing disadvantaged Angelenos, and is the co-director of Advancement Project Los Angeles. She has taken it upon herself to fight legal battles for the community, such as million dollar class-action lawsuits, policy-changing civil rights cases, and local policy which discriminates by sex, race, and class. She has recently formulated a plan for reducing the ever-excessive gang violence in LA, which the City is currently considering. She is this year's recipient of the Advocacy Award.
Esta Soler focuses specifically on violence against women and children, and is the founder and president of the Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF). She has spent the past 26 years dedicated to addressing and solving domestic violence, and is one of the world's most accomplished experts on the subject and its prevention. Her work with the FVPF was instrumental in the passing of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, which augmented funding for investigation by $1.6 billion, provided civil redress in unprosecuted cases, increased pre-trial detention of the indicted, and was called "the greatest breakthrough in civil rights for women in nearly two decades" by the National Organization of Women. Soler is this year's Violence Prevention Award recipient.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has long played an active and philanthropic role in the cause of violence prevention. Addressing issues of domestic violence as well as the danger and gang activity on the streets, his commitment shows the ability of a male to be influential in women's
The Honorable Antonio Villaraigosa
issues as well. A strong proponent of safe community legislation and locally-based initiatives to improve neighborhoods and communities throughout LA, Villaraigosa will be recognized for his work with this year's Public Service Award, in honor of his mother, Natalia Delgado.
Kaiser Permanente is this year's winner of the Verizon Wireless Hopeline® Corporate Award for their large-scale leadership in the prevention of violence and promotion of health. Kaiser's corporately sponsored initiatives, such as the Family Violence Prevention Program and P.E.A.C.E. Signs Program, are only part of the healthcare company's comprehensive quest to end domestic violence across the country.
Peace Over Violence is a non-profit, volunteer organization dedicated to "building healthy relationships, families, and communities free from sexual, domestic, and interpersonal violence." The organization was founded in 1971 as the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women (LACAAW), and changed their name last year to mark the expanding range of focus and services offered.
With these six well-deserving recipients, along with a lavish setting, festive cocktail reception, silent auction, and a gourmet dinner, this year's 36th Annual Humanitarian Awards Dinner promises to be a great time for a great cause.
For tickets to this year's event, contact Blue Room Events at (310) 491-1401. Individual tickets are $300 each, with ticket and sponsorship packages available as well. All proceeds will benefit Peace Over Violence and their humanitarian efforts.
Photos Courtesy of Wikipedia, daveannable.com, and Yahoo!'s Web Celeb (see links below).
LINKS:
http://www.peaceoverviolence.org
http://www.socal.com/