Linda Biehl
Linda Biehl | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1943 |
| Occupation | Philanthropist |
| Spouse | Peter Biehl |
| Children | 4 |
Linda Biehl (born 1943) is an American philanthropist and mother of Amy Biehl, an activist who was murdered in 1993 in South Africa. She is the co-founder and director of the United States-based Amy Biehl Foundation (with husband Peter Biehl) and the South African-based Amy Biehl Foundation Trust.
Early life
[edit]Biehl was born in 1943 in Chicago.[1] She met her late husband Peter at Whittier College in California and they had four children together.[1] Before the death of her daughter Amy, she ran an American Indian art gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico.[2]
Philanthropy
[edit]After the 1993 death of her daughter Amy in South Africa, the Biehl's supported the amnesty appeal, to South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, by those convicted of Amy's murder.[3] After a tour of the Cape Town townships, the couple started developing projects to continue their daughter's work.[4] They followed in 1994 by creating the Amy Biehl Foundation.[5] Linda continued her work after Peter passed away from colon cancer in 2002.[6]
In 2008, Biehl was awarded the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo in Bronze in South Africa, an award from the President.[7] The same year she was announced as the first Greely Scholar at University of Massachusetts Lowell.[8][9] She, along with husband Peter, was awarded the Aline and Norman Felton Humanitarian Award in 1999.[10]
In 2016 Biehl was hired as a consultant with Tyler Perry's Atlanta based production company to work on a movie about Amy's life and the relationship the family has with the two men convicted of her murder.[11] The movie, The Year of the Great Storm, was still in production as of January 2019.[12][13]
Citations
[edit]- ^ a b "Linda Biehl (1943 - ) | The Presidency". www.thepresidency.gov.za. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ Vergnani, Linda (2001-01-19). "Parents of Slain Fulbright Scholar Embrace Her Cause in South Africa". The Chronicle of Higher Education. ISSN 0009-5982. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Linda Biehl and Easy Nofemela". The Forgiveness Project. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Forgiving the Unforgivable: Mom Worked With Daughter's Killers to Bring Hope to a Desperate Community". Good News Network. 2018-08-26. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "South African killers now work on behalf of their victim". Los Angeles Times. 2008-10-21. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Amy Biehl legacy: Reconciliation that spans generations". Orange County Register. 2013-08-27. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Linda Biehl (1943 - ) | The Presidency". www.thepresidency.gov.za. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "2008 Greeley Peace Scholar | Greeley Scholar for Peace Studies | PACSI | UMass Lowell". www.uml.edu. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Linda Biehl to speak on restorative justice, Nelson Mandela and her daughter's death in Feb. 4 presentation | Kansas State University | News and Communications Services". www.k-state.edu. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Death Penalty Focus: Annual Awards Dinner". 2008-02-28. Archived from the original on 2008-02-28. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Telling Amy Biehl's story nearly 23 years after her death, thanks to Tyler Perry". Orange County Register. 2016-05-03. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ "Tyler Perry to Produce Apartheid Murder Drama 'The Year of the Great Storm'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (2019-03-05). "Media Farm Pictures Makes Three Picture Deal With Karzan Kader". Deadline. Retrieved 2019-11-15.