Film Source: Grasshopper Film
The remarkable story of the Peace Corps and what it means to be a global citizen. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy gave young Americans the opportunity to serve their country in a new way by forming the Peace Corps. Since then, more than 200,000 of them have traveled to more than 60 countries to carry out the organization’s mission of international cooperation. Americans—young and old alike—still want to serve their country; current volunteers work at the forefront of some of the most pressing issues facing the global community. Yet the agency has struggled to remain relevant amid sociopolitical change. More than once it had to fight for its very existence, and now—between COVID, a rise in nationalist sentiment and deep cuts to governmental-agency budgets—the Peace Corps is again confronting a crisis of identity: What role should it play around the world?
“The film is enlightening for being in large part the portrait of a period when America was outward looking and uncynical and generous…it shows the roots of such idealism,
which is why it is so enlightening and uplifting.” ~Paul Theroux, Travel Writer & Novelist
To watch the special Q&A with Nancy Bercaw and Karen Jean (KJ) Hunt click HERE.
