I am very hopeful that there is a solution to the Israeli/Palestinian injustice.

It's okay to be scared, but fear is different. Fear is when we let being scared prevent us from doing what love requires of us.

We need now to build a culture of genuine nonviolence and real democracy.

I believe passionately in the power of people.

I was born into a Catholic family. I grew up in West Belfast. Faith was very important to us eight children and my mother and father. It was grounded in the Christian tradition of social involvement.

That will be my focus: building a culture that moves away from militarism.

I go to places and I see all these people working on peace education and on a culture of nonviolence and non-killing. You look at all these different movements going on: the environment movement, the interfaith movement, the human rights movement, the youth movement, and the arts movement.