Inner Michael

His music, certainly, and the man himself was enchanting. But his spirit is relentless. The research project I began six months ago has led me into some interesting and delightful places but it has also led me into the darkest regions that I have ever encountered. Those regions are in the human psyche.

The research project began, after his passing, with a cursory look into the life of a megastar. It began with a gesture of homage for the many gifts of music and dance given to us by a little boy everyone loved—Michael Jackson.

While I admired his work, I couldn’t call myself a fan and I certainly did not mark the milestones of my life with Michael’s music although that was how my children remember their youth. I was sad for his passing because it’s hard to lose an icon but it was a singular event and after learning some details I of course, moved on.

Until, that is, I went to see the movie “This Is It.” During the film released after his death and about the comeback concert tour he was planning in London, something happened. Call it curiosity, call it enchantment, call it enticement- it doesn’t matter but I was called somehow to look more closely at the man’s life and work.

That peek into genius has led me on a journey that was as unexpected as it is unlikely. But here I am and this moment, at a crossroad on the journey, has become the most important thing to me. Had you told me I would be placed at the feet of the Dalai Lama to learn about love in the world, I would have celebrated. Had you said that Sri Sri Ravi Shankar or Ganga Ji would become my spiritual teacher, I would have been surprised but pleased. Had you told me that I would find myself at the feet of someone wearing socks that sparkle from shoes standing on their toes, I would have laughed and dismissed it. Had you mentioned however, that my new teacher would be Michael Jackson, I would have run for my life!

But here I am on this journey with Michael, having traveled some of the darkest paths my life has presented so far. I have walked among “enemies” in Russia as an activist and citizen diplomat, been in the presence of stockpiled weapons of mass destruction and worked toward the decommissioning of such dark and destructive objects of doom. But there is an even scarier place and it is as effective and complete in its destruction as any chemical weapon I may have encountered and we are all downwind of it. My work with Sister Cites was an introduction to the real work of, as an artist and with words, painting the real picture and making the world a better place.

Of course, that is exactly what Michael Jackson sang about and worked for all of his life—to change the world, to heal the world for our children and make it a better place. But he was such a controversial and polarizing figure that I leaned in other directions to work toward accomplishing peace on this planet. A peacemaker for as long as I can remember, I worked toward humanity’s redemption from itself, having recognized that humans had developed the means to destroy the entire planet. Little did I know that was also Michael’s realization and it is showcased in his body of work with its abridged version especially glaring in his “Man in the Mirror” anthem.

As I began to research the man and his music, I discovered a completely different person than the one painted for us by the tabloid and medialoid journalists. It took a bit of digging past the sensationalism and into court records and interviews, but after scraping away all of the darkness, I found who Michael Jackson really was. And I was heartbroken. I felt cheated.

But most of all, I was devastated by how I unwittingly had contributed to enlarging the shadow side of humanity on this planet by my complacency and how it ended up taking someone’s life. With my naiveté and by not questioning or thinking critically, I also helped to deprive the future of a consummate genius, humanitarian and global cheerleader. I never questioned the tabloid portrayal of Michael or his trial. The transcripts and information portray an innocent man who was the victim of extortion by a family who had a history of shakedown lawsuits. The media did not tell me this. His innocence was being proven throughout the trial but that is not what the media reported. I don’t know what trial they were reporting on but it wasn’t Michael’s.

In uncovering the damage and utter destruction wielded by an industry out of control, I could not remain complacent for I am a minister with a conscience and a human with a desire to be more of the solution than I am a problem. I could no longer lurch headlong toward the tipping point where humanity’s shadow overtakes its brilliance.

What is most important to me now, is that my work as a writer has been featured by a global and humanitarian peacemaking organization and many have awakened to the WMD (weapon of mass destruction) unleashed by an industry in need of looking in its own mirror and one that either does not care about, or feels no obligation in featuring the brilliance inherent in humanity. Because of the whatever-it-was that pulled me into the research, I have been awarded the humbling but awesome privilege and opportunity to make a difference in the world, to make it a better place, to contribute to the realized brilliance of the children of the future who will build the improved version of this world and its humanity.

The project has been initiated and the work has begun to develop a comprehensive curriculum for educators called “Violence and Words” which will examine the violence that humans do to one another when they use words as weapons and the violence done to a person and the world when a gifted human being is targeted by tabloid weaponry for profit. It’s a deadly weapon and a deadly game. It kills. It kills people like Lady Diana and Michael Jackson, those who are global treasures of humanitarianism. It paints them as distorted and sensationalized caricatures of who they really are. It kills the brilliance of humans. Yes, that means us– you and me! It kills the brilliance because it cloaks us in the shadow side of human nature.

And it kills the future enlightened human who might have evolved and emerged because generous human beings made a commitment daring to leverage their fame to encourage a more humane race and planet for the future. For you and for me.

© B. Kaufmann 2010

Here is how you can get involved:

Note: Anyone who would like to join the project to develop the curriculum is welcome. You do not have to be a teacher or educator nor in the education system to work with us or contribute to this project.

Voices Education Project and I invite all Michael and Diana admirers as well as interested persons to join the team. If you are weary of the media highlighting the shadow of humanity instead of its brilliance or you watch the news or Tv programs and find programming devoid of hope and filled with despair, we need your voice!

If you want to honor Michael Jackson, Lady Diana and their legacies, here is the place to do it. Help us to give the world a mirror and to make that change to heal the world and make it a better place.

We invite you, if you want to be a part of a team that means to change the world and make it a better place with the awareness of how words used violently can hurt, cause harm and even kill.

Have you ever been hurt by the power of words? We are calling for case studies. Case studies are stories from you about how words have harmed or hurt you, have prevented you from finding or expressing your brilliance, or have had an impact on your life or the life of someone you know and love.

We also welcome case studies that highlight how people in the public eye have been targeted or harmed with words.

Writing your case study can be the most empowering thing you have ever done. It reclaims the power that was lost when the words impacted you. I encourage you to try it. There are volunteers who will help you construct your story. If you have questions write me or write Marilyn at Voices Education Project.

There is an outline for writing a case study on this website under “Making that Change” Resources tab.

Visit the links below for the whole story– articles and links to the project

Curriculum Initiative sponsors:

Voices Education Project

WMD: New Weapon of Mass Destruction

Michael Jackson: Spiritual Messenger Hiding in Plain Sight

Join us on the Curriculum Project
We are the first group listed: Violence and Words