Tag Archives: North America

USA: Marquette University Center for Peacemaking celebrates 10 years

… EDUCATION FOR PEACE …

An article by Donna Sarkar for the Marquette Wire

The Center for Peacemaking celebrated its 10-year anniversary Sept. 13 at the Haggerty Museum of Art, marking a decade of exploring the power of nonviolence.


Video of anniversary event

A reception featured speeches from founders of the center as well as members of the board of directors. A $1 million grant was announced during the ceremony to continue development work in the community. 

The Center for Peacemaking was founded in 2008 through the vision of Marquette alumni Terry and Sally Rynne. The center operates several programs for students that support research promoting peace and nonviolence. It is the only such center on a Catholic university campus in the United States, Terry Rynne said. 

Patrick Kennelly, director of the center and a Marquette University alumnus, said the center’s impact is clear. “Peace education has transformed the lives of Marquette students, and Marquette peacemaking initiatives have addressed indignities and communities locally and around the globe,” Kennelly said. 

Zoe Gunderson, a junior in the College of Communication said she recently started working at the Center for Peacemaking as a communications assistant.  She said she noticed the welcoming atmosphere right away.

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Questions for this article:

Where is peace education taking place?

University campus peace centers, What is happening on your campus?

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“The students involved seem to be really dedicated and passionate about nonviolence movements and other related issues, and I’m really glad I joined,” Gunderson said.

The center also works to recruit students and build curriculum for the peace studies major and minor offered in the College of Arts & Sciences.

“Undergraduate time is a place where students can change new things,” Terry said. “It’s our call as Christians to help serve students and the power of nonviolence is just so wonderful. The number of students involved grows exponentially each year.”

During the ceremony, the center recognized its partnership with Catholic Relief Services, the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States.  It gives students and faculty access to the agency’s international projects, experts and resources. 

Ellie Lyne, a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences and a research assistant on the Park Initiative project, which promotes reducing crime in the Near West Side neighborhoods, said learning about the power of nonviolence is beneficial and the center has taught her how to have tangible impacts on the community.

“I’ve also worked with professors over the summer to research how to solve domestic violence and eviction in Milwaukee, and we are close to reaching some answers,” she said.

Kennelly said he has witnessed graduates of the peace studies program working around the globe using skills of nonviolence learned at Marquette to address indignities and solve dense social issues.

“Our faith calls us to show love to one another and our enemies in times of crisis,” Kennelly said. “That is the mission I hope students (take away).”

EDUCATION FOR PEACE, North America

USA: Update on March For Our Lives

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

Exerpts from the websitre of March For Our Lives

This summer, the students of March For Our Lives made stops across America to get young people educated, registered, and motivated to vote. We called it March For Our Lives: Road to Change. We visited over 80 communities in 24 different states in 60 days.

We went to places where the NRA has strongholds — and visited a number of communities that have been affected by gun violence to meet fellow survivors. At each stop, we registered young people to vote and talk about how we can stand up to anyone that is a blockade to gun safety – including the NRA and corrupt leaders.


Map of communities visited this summer. For detailed list, click here.

When people across the country rallied at the March For Our Lives just over 2 months ago, we showed our politicians that we refuse to accept gun violence as an unsolvable issue. Now, we’re turning our energy into action.

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Question related to this article:

Do you think handguns should be banned?, Why or why not?

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Fall Tour dates!

11/3 Tempe, AZ – Vote For Our Lives homecoming block party with free food, games and giveaways, Arizona State University, Fulton Center, starts at 9am

11/4 Orange County, CA – Vote For Our Lives Rally at UC Irvine, free food, special guests, candidates, music & voting, Pacific Ballroom, 311 W Peltason Dr, Irvine, 4-6pm Bus to the Polls, UC Irvine, 2-4pm and 6-8pm – RSVP –

11/4 St. Augustine, FL – Vote For Our Lives tour stop, Plaza De La Constitucion, 23 Orange St., Saint Augustine, FL, 32084, 2pm

11/5 Tallahassee and Gainesville, FL – Message to the Young People of America, Press Conference at the Tallahassee Capitol historic front steps, 400 S Monroe St, Tallahassee, FL 32399, 1pm Vote For Our Lives dorm storm, FAMU and FSU, starting at 1:30pm Vote For Our Lives dorm storm, University of Florida, starting at 5:30pm

11/6 Parkland, FL – Phone Banking, 7am-7pm Vote For Our Lives celebration

For more information about the Road to Change, text CHANGE to 977-79.

[For background, see previous CPNN article on March For Our Lives]

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, North America

2018 “World Beyond War” Toronto Conference Included Workshop on Departments and Infrastructures for Peace

. . DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION . .

Special to CPNN by Anne Creter

I am a long-time advocate within the U.S. “Peace Alliance” Department of Peacebuilding Campaign for the current bill in Congress to establish a cabinet-level Department of Peacebuilding (H.R.1111).  Thus I am thrilled to report my favorite topic of Departments and Infrastructures for Peace (I4P) was featured at this September’s international “World Beyond War” (WBW) conference in a workshop my Canadian Department of Peace counterpart, Dr. Saul Arbess and I co-presented there.  It was a logical collaboration, in that for the last decade Saul and I have worked together promoting governmental I4P within an international organization known as the Global Alliance for Ministries and Infrastructures for Peace or GAMIP (currently in transition).  


Frame from the conference video: Karen Johnson gives report from workshop on Departments of Peace

The ambitious conference intent, as stated by its planners, was to “explore how to re-design systems to abolish the institution of war by examining existing and potential legal models, modes of governance and frameworks that can be used to curb and abolish war, such as treaties like the Kellogg-Briand Pact, Peoples’ Tribunals, peace tax funds, departments of peace, civil disobedience, the use of universal jurisdiction and the International Criminal Court.”

Our workshop was timely because it meshed with above and also with my UN NGO work whose focus this year has been on “seeking global solutions to global problems”  — per the UN 2030 “Sustainable Development Goals” (SDGs).  The UN Development Program, which oversees both the SDG’s and I4P, has conducted studies showing evidence that a viable solution to the global problem of “violence” is establishing governmental departments and other I4P worldwide.  This relatively new peacebuilding concept of “governmental I4P” is already operational in countries where violence has been shown to decrease (Journal of Peacebuilding & Development Special I4P Issue, volume 7, Number 3, 2012 ISSN: 1542-3166). 

Thus if I4P are a viable global solution to the global problem of “violence,” then establishing them in governments should be encouraged to provide the (missing) connective tissue links necessary to build the culture of peace.  That this topic was deemed relevant to the WBW’s provocative conference theme of Designing a World Beyond War:  Legalizing Peace was promising.  For it offered a unique international forum for how governmental I4P may be a viable alternative to war providing a “legal” institutional framework for peace that could be the “blueprint” for redesigning a world beyond war.  

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Question related to this article:

How can we develop the institutional framework for a culture of peace?

Is a U.S. Department of Peace a realistic political goal?

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The conference was held September 21-22 to coincide with the International Day of Peace celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, whose focus this year was “The Right to Peace.”  It was held outside the U.S. in Toronto, Canada to demonstrate WBW’s belief that for the global peace movement to succeed in redesigning a world beyond war, it must broaden its scope to build one unified coalition in solidarity worldwide with other peace groups.   

Most attendees were Canadian yet other countries were represented, as far away as New Zealand — home of my UN NGO, Peace Through Unity Charitable Trust — which as a founding member of the Global Alliance for Ministries and Infrastructures for Peace has long advocated for a New Zealand “Ministry for a Culture of Peace” and passage of a UN Resolution urging I4P in all member states (see PeaceNow.com).  To quote Gita Brooke, Peace Through Unity founder:  New instruments are in the planning for carrying out the guidelines contained in the UN Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace:  ministries and departments of peace will serve as meeting places for closer, more comprehensive and effective cooperation between peoples and governments; peace academies will teach and help develop communication, peacebuilding and peacemaking skills of individuals and groups within society; and the general public will hold themselves, their governments, as well as the UN, accountable for implementing promises that have been made. 

The U.S. Constitution preamble beautifully articulates the primary purpose of government – which in a nutshell is to ensure humanity’s basic Human Rights (ie. the Right to Peace). Because we live in an ever-escalating global culture of violence, government needs vital help meeting this essential purpose. My advocacy for governmental 14P stems from my conviction that I4P can greatly assist government fulfilling its fundamental “Peace” mandate.  Yet how I4P relate to the compelling WBW idea of “legalizing peace” needs further exploration.  While we only had time to scratch the surface there, our group began a lively interactive dialogue on I4P basics, such as the lack of political will for peace and on how the mere mention of I4P in some countries puts I4P advocates at risk of harm.

We are grateful to UN Ambassador Anwarul Chowdhury for his short video on the conference theme, with mention of how I4P promote the Culture of Peace; also to Congressional sponsor of H.R. 1111 Rep. Barbara Lee for her welcoming letter where she states: “Now is the time to put an end to needless wars and violence and to establish a Department of Peacebuilding in the U.S. and violence prevention infrastructures throughout the globe.”  Visit WBW website to see the Ambassador’s video and Congresswoman’s letter, plus our power point and other valuable conference details at https://worldbeyondwar.org/nowar2018 … and while there, be sure to access your copy of their scholarly publication – A GLOBAL SECURITY SYSTEM:  An Alternative to War.

In conclusion, I learned of other possible frameworks that could redesign a world beyond war which I found hopeful at this time of unprecedented global political upheaval.  They included such compelling models as: Kellogg-Briand Pact (WBW Director David Swanson), Divestment from War Profiteers (Medea Benjamin), Peace Education  Approaches (Tony Jenkins), World Citizenship & Global Rule of Law (David Gallup) to mention a few.  Participating gave the U.S. “Peace Alliance” National Department of Peacebuilding Campaign the opportunity to enlarge an important “peace education” dialogue alongside our Canadian Department of Peace brothers and sisters.  Hopefully it will continue so “Departments and I4P” may appear inside next year’s 2019-2020 edition of A Global Security System!

To continue this conversation, please write with comments or questions to Anne at annecrets@aol.com .

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, North America

USA: Planned Parenthood Strikes Back: Preparing for the Worst in the Wake of Kavanaugh’s Confirmation

. HUMAN RIGHTS .

A blog by Miranda Martin for MS Magazine

Planned Parenthood isn’t waiting to see if the worst has yet to come for Roe v. Wade in the wake of Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court. Instead, they’re planning to launch a multi-million dollar, nationwide campaign to ensure that abortion remains accessible—even if the landmark decision legalizing it nationwide is overturned.


Photo John Bright / Creative Commons

Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Court  tips the scales against Roe  for the first time since it was decided in 1973; he would likely cast the fifth vote necessary to overturn the decision  and give states the power, once again, to criminalize abortion providers and their patients. Kavanaugh’s record shows that he is hostile to reproductive freedoms. Should Roe be overturned, women in over 20 states across the country could lose access to safe and legal abortion overnight.

According to Planned Parenthood, overturning Roe would leave over 25 million women with access to safe, legal abortion in their own state, including over 4.3 million Latina women and almost 3.5 million Black women of reproductive age.

Planned Parenthood has been preparing for such a moment since President Trump’s election in 2016. Trump ran on a platform of outlawing abortion and talked about “punishing” women who elect to undergo the procedure on the campaign trail; his administration has consistently attacked women’s access to reproductive health care and undermined their bodily autonomy.

“We know that we’ll need an ironclad network of states and providers across the country where abortion will still be legal and accessible,” Planned Parenthood executive vice president Dawn Laguens told the New York Times,  “no matter what happens at the Supreme Court.”

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Questions related to this article:

The post-election fightback for human rights, is it gathering force in the USA?

Abortion: is it a human right?

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The “Care for All” campaign, at face value, is simple: In states where abortion access is at risk, Planned Parenthood will mobilize against legislation that further restricts or outlaws abortion. In states where abortion access will likely remain in place even with Roe, they’ll work to expand access, opening more clinics and hiring more staff in order to keep them open for longer hours in order to accommodate women crossing state lines in pursuit of care. They’ll offer women traveling long distances transportation assistance through a Regional Access Network and push to expand telemedicine abortion access, in place now in 14 states, for those who can’t make the trip. The organization’s efforts will manifest first in states where abortion policies fall short of those in place along both coasts, specifically Illinois.

“In 2018 alone, advocates introduced 869 positive measures expanding reproductive health care—the highest number of policies introduced to advance reproductive rights in a single legislative session ever,” the organization noted in a press release announcing the new multi-pronged effort. “In tandem, advocates and pro-women’s health legislators blocked or delayed 93 percent of the state-level abortion restrictions introduced in the 2018 legislative session. Now, Planned Parenthood Action Fund will kick off the 2019 legislative session by doubling down on this work.”

Abortion access remains at risk even if Roe remains in place as long as a majority of Justices sitting on the Supreme Court are opposed to reproductive freedoms. Rulings in smaller cases on abortion and contraception are now likely to result in outcomes which further inhibit access, allow for obstruction and increase the burdens imposed on women seeking care.

In order to proactively shift cultural perceptions around abortion—and thus provide a buffer against further attacks on women’s reproductive rights—the organization also plans to engage with media more effectively and more often in order to smash stigma and break the silence around what is a safe and common medical procedure with widespread public support. A recent NBC/Wall Street Journal poll showed that Planned Parenthood is popular even amongst conservative voters: 57 percent  of Trump voters oppose women being restricted from accessing birth control, healthcare and cancer screenings.

In advance of their 2019 campaign kick-off, Planned Parenthood is doing all they can to mobilize pro-choice voters with a 20 million dollar  effort in coalition with other like-minded organizations. In total, they predict that they will engage 2.5 million voters  before the midterm elections on November 6.

“We know this is a winnable fight,” the organization told the New York Times  in a statement. “Each of us deserves the right to control our own bodies, including the right to decide if and when to become a parent.”

HUMAN RIGHTS, North America, WOMEN'S EQUALITY

United States and Canada: International Day of Peace

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION

A survey by CPNN

Here are 233 events for the International Day of Peace located in all the United Staters except Alaska and South Dakota, as well as 12 events in Canada in seven provinces. In order to save space, one event is given in detail for each state and province and internet links are provided for the others.
The events were listed in Google during the week of September 21-28 under the key words “International Day of Peace” and “Journée Internationale de la Paix” or were listed on the following websites:
– Campaign Nonviolence
– International Cities of Peace Facebook
– UN event map for the International Day of Peace.

In addition to the above events, there were several hundred singing events listed on the websites of
– One Day One Choir.
– Montessori schools singing for peace


In Bass River , the International Day of Peace was marked with a ceremony that included large Peace Dove puppets being raised into the air by children from West Colchester Consolidated School. The doves played a part in a story told during the event, called ‘Peace is a Dream Unfolding,’

CANADA

PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA: The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued a statement on the International Day of Peace. In conclusion, he said, “As we mark the International Day of Peace, and celebrate the seventieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, I encourage Canadians to reflect on how we can all stand up for human rights, and build a better country and more peaceful world.”

ALBERTA

EDMONTON: The Edmonton Interfaith Centre for Education & Action has organized a program of music, reflections and short talks to celebrate the International Day of Peace. It will take place in the Homeless Memorial Park where the Community Flag Pole has been relocated.

BRITISH COLUMBIA

NANAIMO: Unity Spiritual Education Centre of Nanaimo’s minister is hoping people will pause, ponder and pray at a newly constructed multi-faith labyrinth as part of International Day of Peace celebrations. Rev. Patricia Zogar said this year it will be a two-day event, with a chance to walk the labyrinth at the centre on 2325 East Wellington Rd. on Saturday, Sept. 22. Labyrinths are found in many faith traditions, said Zogar, and it’s essentially a walking meditation and a place to become serene and reconnect.

VANCOUVER

MANITOBA

WINNEPEG PEACE DAYS: Peace Days will feature a screening of the 2016 film She Has a Name and the launch of World Vision’s Power of Her gender equality initiative. Following the film there will be a moderated expert panel with the film’s screenwriter Andrew Kooman, Diane Redsky – Executive Director of Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre Inc., Dr. Bob Chrismas – Staff Sergeant of the Winnipeg Police Service’s Community Support Division, Joy Smith – Joy Smith Foundation; and a representative of Beyond Borders/ECPAT Canada. When: September 11, 2018; 7:00-9:30 PM Where: Winnipeg Art Gallery, 300 Memorial Boulevard, Winnipeg

UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA, WINNEPEG

NOVA SCOTIA

BASS RIVER: International Day of Peace was marked in the Bass River park on September 21, with a ceremony that included large Peace Dove puppets being raised into the air by children from West Colchester Consolidated School. The doves played a part in a story told during the event, called ‘Peace is a Dream Unfolding,’ which tells story of a woman’s journey to find a mystical peace garden she remembers from her childhood. “On this International Day of Peace 2018, we remember it’s 100 years since the end of the First World War,’ said Dr. Karen Ewing, who wrote ‘Peace is a Dream Unfolding.’ “Many of us have family members who fought in this war; ‘the war to end all wars,’ yet today, 100 years later, war continues in many parts of our world.”

HALIFAX

ONTARIO

HAMILTON: Culture of Peace Hamilton invites you to join us in celebrating peace and embracing live-affirming pathways of living that help to build a local and global culture of peace. Join us for a Brown Bag Lunch in the Hamilton City Hall Peace Garden by the Peace Pole @ 1:00 It will be followed by a ceremony from 1:30 to 2:30 which includes:
– Drumming
– Welcome by Culture of Peace member Rev. Cynthia Vermillion-Foster
– Collective Reading of the UN Declaration of the Right of Peoples to Peace
– A Puppet Show directed by Melanie Skein
– Reading of 6 Pathways (by children)
– Moment of Silence
– Singing of Peace Is In Your Hands: an original song created by a Hamiltonian

TORONTO: (See CPNN article about the World BEYOND War annual global conference.)

QUEBEC

MONTREAL The International Day of Peace is an event where the citizens of Plateau Mont-Royal and the surrounding area are invited to come together in a festive and convivial setting to create links between them and their families. to express on the subject of peace. Music, hot dogs and free juice. Fri 21st September 2018. Laurel metro on the square at the exit Laurier.

SASKATHEWAN

SASKATON
Video for the International Day of Peace by the UNESCO Chair at the University of Saskathewan.

* * * * UNITED STATES * * * *

ALABAMA

TUSCALOOSA:Join University Programs for the 34th annual International Day of Peace holiday, or World Peace Day. Come to the Ferguson Student Center and take the “I am a Pathway to Peace” Pledge, painting Peace Rocks, and chalking peaceful messages and images for the Chalk4Peace activity. Register for free at upua.tix.com!

ARKANSAS

ARKANSAS PEACE WEEK: Arkansas Peace Week is a program of events planned in observance of the United Nation’s International Day of Peace in the third week of September. These activities educate and promote peacemaking in our society and raise awareness of organizations working to build a lasting peace in Arkansas. The lessons learned and relationships formed during Arkansas Peace Week create a foundation for continuing a sustainable peace in our society throughout the year. Arkansas Peace Week is conducted by a coalition of local, national and international organizations, faith groups and individuals, with a mission to promote peacemaking and justice. Numerous events are planned throughout our state, featuring education, service, dialogue and outreach activities promoting our mission. Arkansas Peace Week is planned in coordination with the nationwide Campaign Non-Violence Week of Actions.

RESERVOIR ROAD SCHOOL, LITTLE ROCK

ARIZONA

PHOENIX
Join Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest to celebrate International Peace Day at this multi-generation event and create a culture of peace in our community. Come for 30 minutes or for three hours. Families and community members will be able to engage in a variety of stations including:
– Participate in 30-minute Family Yoga sessions
– Engage in Peace Story Telling
– Assemble kindness cards for community members
– Create your own peace story
– Embellish rocks for our peace rock garden

SONORA
KINGMAN
FLAGSTAFF
PHOENIX
TUCSON
SEDONA

CALIFORNIA

LOS ANGELES, CA: Open house begins 11:30 at Peace Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens , “A Spiritual Oasis in the City”. 12:00 noon observation of the Worldwide Minute of Silence at the Labyrinth. 2:00 CONCERT of music by Merrill Collins, former Composer in Residence of Pathways to Peace. Merrill will perform on grand piano joined by Maksim Velichkin on cello and vocalists Elizabeth Matson and Harrison Crenshaw. Honoring the 70th Anniversary of the UDHR Merrill’s award winning composition Every Man, Woman, and Child will be presented inter-activelywith the attendees.

BUENA PARK
CASTRO VALLEY
ENCINITAS
ENCINO
EUREKA
FORT BRAGG
FREMONT
HAYWARD
LAKE CHABOT
LAZOO
MORRO BAY
NAPA
OAKLAND
OJAI
ORANGE
PACIFICA
PALM SPRINGS
REDDING
REDWOOD CITY
SAN DIEGO,
SAN RAFAEL
SANTA CRUZ
SANTA ANA
STOCKTON
THOUSAND OAKS
UKIAH
WILLITS

COLORADO

DENVER At the Centennial School for Expeditionary Learning there will be an elementary school-wide celebration all week, leading up to the International Day of Peace on Friday. Art projects, books, team-building games and activities will focus on peace.

GRAND JUNCTION

CONNECTICUT

NORWALK: The Career Club at Norwalk Community College will hold an event to address both the dangers to and the possibilities for protecting human security, education and human rights of refugees. They also will explain how refugee resettlement and “vetting” of asylum seekers actually works and has changed in the recent past.

NEW HAVEN
BRANFORD
HARTFORD

DELEWARE

WILMINGTON: Over 100 events are planned for the Campaign Nonviolence, including their 5th annual March for a Culture of Peace. Learn more at http://www.peaceweekdelaware.org. Also working with Pacem In Terris.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

WASHINGTON: Special Pop-up Museum on the history of human rights celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with artwork and exhibits demonstrating the Right to Peace. The event includes a luncheon from 12 pm and a presentation on How Human Rights Education brings about non-violent solutions in the community.

See CPNN article on CAMPAIGN NONVIOLENCE NATIONAL CONVERGENCE

FLORIDA

BOCA RATON, FL: Students in 3-5th grade created pinwheels and placed them around our school, the Coral Sunset Elementary. The entire school dressed in their native colors and countries today. We have over 64 countries represented in the Palm Beach School system. This effort was organized by Mary Cavaioli and Cynthia Gil, art teacher and guidance counselor. We plan to extend this day of peace throughout the year highlighting “peaceful” activities and love of country!!!!

PANAMA CITY
FORT MYERS
MINNEOLA
FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY, BOCA RATON
POMPANO BEACH:
OAKLAND PARK:
PEMBROKE PINES:
JUPITER:
VENICE:
TAMPA:
LAKE MARY:
ORLANDO
PENNEY FARMS
ST.AUGUSTINE

GEORGIA

WOODVILLE: Woodville Thompkins High School celebrated the International Day of Peace with a program planned by Woodville’s International Students of Excellence, a club that includes kids from a vaiety of ethnicities and cultures. It included a moment of silence and a call for togetherness at school, in the community and around the world. “We want everyone to be able to feel free as they do in school,” said Prya Patel, the President of the International Students of Excellence. “We don’t want to exclude anyone, we want to allow everyone in, allow everyone to be unique and represent their own cultures or heritage.” Students also had the opportunity to use a photo booth and share their message of Peace in their social networks using – #PeaceDay

SAVANNAH

HAWAII

HONOLULU: Wednesday, Sept 19, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm … Festival of Resistance at the University of Hawaii-Manoa Campus Center.   There will be a Campaign Nonviolence table.

HILO
KAHULUI, MAUI
HONOKA‘A

IOWA

CEDAR RAPIDS: On September 21st at 1:30 pm the Sisters of Mercy WMW, Mt. Mercy University and Regis Middle School will extend arms from one peace pole to another with moments of silence and a peace song.

DES MOINES
CEDAR RAPIDS
CORALVILLE
DUBUQUE
FAIRFIELD

IDAHO

BOISE: Peace Vigil. 9/21 11-12:30pm meet at the Borah Post Office

ILLINOIS

WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY, MACOMB, IL: We are filling our campus with art on the theme of peace. The student groups will be creating chalk art on the sidewalks around Western Illinois University’s campus.

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO
CAMPAIGN NONVIOLENCE, CHICAGO
CRESTWOOD, IL:
UNIVERSITY PARK
LOVES PARK
CARBONDALE
ROCK ISLAND
URBANA

INDIANA

NOTRE DAME: Celebrate the International Day of Peace with the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the following events co-sponsored by the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies and the Klau Center for Civil and Human Rights. Sept 20: Thania Paffenholz Lecture “Pathways to Inclusive Societies: Opportunities and Challenges for International and Local Peacemaking and Peacebuilding in a Turbulent World” and film screening of “In the Name of Peace” about John Hume’s contribution to peace in Northern Ireland; Sept 21: Panel discussion on The Status of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at 70

EVANSVILLE
BLOOMINGTON
FORT WAYNE
NEW CASTLE
ANDERSON
INDIANAPOLIS
GOSHEN

KANSAS

HESSTON COLLEGE, HESSTON: The Hesston College Music Department will present “Grant Us Peace,” featuring Ralph Vaughn Williams’ “Dona Nobis Pacem.” Featuring a mass choir of students, community members, and professional orchestra, the concert will take place at Hesston Mennonite Church on Saturday, September 22 at 7 pm. with a peace fair to follow. This capstone event is among four days of events happening on campus to celebrate International Peace Day. Visit hesston.edu/peaceday for a full schedule

WICHITA
CONCORDIA
PRAIRIE VILLAGE, KS:

KENTUCKY

UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE: Stations will be set-up focusing on the U.N Sustainability and Development Goals. Multiple NGOs, students, and experts will promote various forms of sustainability from clean water to life on earth.

NAZARETH
OWENSBORO

LOUISIANA

NEW ORLEANS: The New Orleans Job Corps hosted a parade down S. Jefferson Davis Parkway and peace festival in Comiskey Park Friday for the 2018 International Day of Peace. It’s the second day in a row that local students have rallied against violent crime in New Orleans. Friday’s event is focused on jobs. “Once a young person sees a light at the end of the tunnel, achieves a certification in medical or culinary or carpentry arts, then they know that they can have a career,” said Randy Savoie, who is the business and community liaison for New Orleans Job Corps. Their self-esteem rises.

MASSACHUSETTS

BOSTON, MA: Massachusetts Peace Action: The free celebration (our ninth annual) will be focused on the United Nations’ theme for this year – “The Right to Peace – The Universal Declaration of Human Rights at 70”. It will be on the Boston Common near the Park Street MBTA station from 2-4 pm. Similar to the 2013 World Council of Churches General Assembly in Busan, we expect to have program elements featuring Human Rights for the Earth, its peoples, the marketplace, and the community. The program will include brief presentations by peacemakers about their work, performances of music, dance, song, and poetry, and activities for children. It will conclude with the reading of a list of recent local victims of violence. We will then walk to the nearby Garden of Peace to pray for peace among stones engraved with the names of local victims of violence.

CAMBRIDGE
SPRINGFIELD

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Question for this article

What has happened this year (2018) for the International Day of Peace?

(Survey continued from left column)

MARYLAND

BOONSBORO: U.N. International Day of Peace: Global Feast for Peace AT St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Sunday, September 23rd, 2018 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm. International food, entertainment and interfaith understanding. Guest speaker is Tod Rutstein facilitating a conversation on interconnectedness and reflections on oneness. Drum circle.

GAITHERSBURG
SALISBURY

MAINE

FAIRFIELD: At exactly 11 a.m. Wednesday morning, students at the Kennebec Montessori School lined up in a semi-circle holding colorfully decorated handmade pinwheels and prepared to sing the familiar words of the song “Sing Peace Around the World.” In Montessori schools around the world, the tradition of singing “Sing Peace Around the World” is used annually to mark the International Day of Peace. “Peace is a big part of the Montessori curriculum,” said Kennebec Montessori School Principal Rebecca Green. “It’s the foundation for helping children figure out who they are in the world and how to treat others with respect.” Maria Montessori, the founder of the Montessori educational philosophy, was a three-time nominee for the Noble Peace Prize who encouraged teachers to cultivate peace and courtesy in their classrooms in addition to the idea that children learn best from their environment.

BANGOR
PORTLAND

MICHIGAN

STATE CAPITOL, LANSING, MI: “Stand Up for Peace” rally with many speakers, music, information tables. Part of a month long series of events and programs we call PeaceQuest 2018

HOLLAND
EAST GRAND RAPIDS
GRAND RAPIDS
DEARBORN HEIGHTS
VETERANS FOR PEACE, TRAVERSE CITY
CAMPAGIN NONVIOLENCE, TRAVERSE CITY

MINNESOTA

NORTHFIELD: Northfield will celebrate the 16th International Day of Peace with a program from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21 in Carleton’s Great Hall, with emcee Bill McGrath. Opening remarks will be provided by City Councilor Suzie Nakasian and the Human Rights Commission, followed by Carleton student Charlie Kilman’s short film “Who Are You Now.” This year’s celebration will include a focus on indigenous people. Dorothea Hrossowyc will give a presentation about the people that lived in the area before European settlement. Larry Johnson of Veterans for Peace will speak about the 100th anniversary of the 1918 Armistice that ended WWI. Daisy Leonard will read her award-winning peace essay, “Becoming Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable.” Clarita Kell will speak on the commitment to maintaining indigenous traditions and the creation of the Aztec Dancers Group. Carletton students of indigenous studies will also give presentations. Daisy, Coco and Sunny of DCS Academy will speak on the topic of youth as peacemakers. Music will be provided by traditional Irish performers, Bill McGrath and the Justice Choir.

CROOKSTON
DULUTH
SAINT PAUL
WEBSTER

MISSOURI

SPRINGFIELD: Peace Begins With Me: As a culminating event of two weeks of peace education Eugene Field Elementary students will participate in a Peace Walk through the neighborhood. The event will include a moment of silent reflection, singing for peace, poetry reading, cheering for peace and then the walk. At the end students will tie a blue ribbon on our fence symbolizing their wish for a more peaceful world. Students also decorated kindness rocks and will place their rock in our front garden

GRANDVIEW
KANSAS CITY
O’FALLON

MISSISSIPPI

JACKSON: Campaign Nonviolence teaching gradeschool students about nonviolence on the International Day of Peace

MONTANA

MISSOULA: I will be celebrating the International Day of Peace by joining hands across the border with our neighbors in Canada and the First Nation celebrating the goodwill between our nations. – Betsy Mulligan-Dague, Executive Director, The Jeannette Rankin Peace Center

NEBRASKA

WAYNE: In recognition of the enduring pursuit of peace and justice, Wayne State College faculty present a Celebration of International Day of Peace Concert. Dr. Kolbeck performs Eternal Garden: Four Songs for Clarinet and Piano by David Maslanka, a deeply meditative piece filled with creative expression. “This music is about the transformation of suffering,” said Maslanka. “There is not a path to world peace; peace is the path, and it begins inside each person.”

NORTH CAROLINA

WARRENTON,NC: This is a walking vigil for Peace Day. Come stay as long as you can. Music, poems, prayers, singing celebration. Free for all ages. Posters for display. Pinwheels and peace pins for all. Bring your lunch, lawn chairs and enjoy our new park. Frisby disc golf and other games. Rain or shine…

SANFORD, NC:
CHARLOTTE
COLOMBIA
RALEIGH

NORTH DAKOTA

FARGO: Campaign Nonviolence making a presentation on the meaning of Peace Day and on our Peace Pole to classrooms K – 5th grade at Nativity Catholic School in Fargo. Each group will then visit our Peace Pole, speak the words inscribed on our pole – “May peace prevail on earth”, in English, Spanish, Lakota and Arabic. Our students will give suggestions on how they can be peacemakers at school, at home, and in their activities. We will also link hands around the pole and pray for peace for the entire world, with special emphasis on the children who can’t be in school throughout the world.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

PETERBOROUGH: The Mariposa Museum and World Culture Center is thrilled to continue the community tradition of welcoming Tibetan Buddhist monks to the Monadnock Region by bringing the Sacred Arts of Tibet Tour from Gaden Shartse Monastery in South India to Peterborough September 15-22! The monks’ visit will include a lecture commemorating the International Day of Peace on Friday, September 21 at 7pm. The topic of the lecture will be Climate Change and the Six Delusions.

NEW JERSEY

LEONIA, NJ: Leonia United Methodist Church observance of UN International Day of Peace. Live jazz music, speeches, songs, prayers, candle-lighting, children’s activities, community tables

KINNELON, NJ:
HOPATCONG LAKE
WESTFIELD
LAURENCEVILLE
OAKLAND
FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP

NEW MEXICO

ALBUQUERQUE: We are planning two trainings (nonviolence and anti racism) plus a human peace sign, then a party with music, root beer floats and mural making, and a brief talk about the UN declaration on human rights and honoring the treaties the US has signed. We also will be asking the city of Albuquerque to declare sept 21 international day of peace.

ALBUQUERQUE PEACE DAY
ALBUQUERQUE PEACE CHOIR
SANTA FE
PLACITAS

NEVADA

LAS VEGAS: Weekly Peace Vigil Sept 20 from 9 to 10 am at the federal building (333 S Las Vegas Blvd).

NEW YORK

TIMES SQUARE, NEW YORK CITY: SEPTEMBER 21, 2018, 12:11 PM www.peacedayparty.org, live tv broadcast worldwide, creation of the largest human peace sign on Times Square, entertainment, art, proclamations, celebrities, premiere movie on major billboard, Woodstock Forever: Peace, Love & Hope, footage from 20th Anniversary in 1989 with Richie Havens and more.

BUFFALO, NY, USA:
ROCHESTER
LYNBROOK
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK CITY
CITY PARKS, NEW YORK CITY
UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK CITY
FOLEY SQUARE, NEW YORK CITY/a>
WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK, NEW YORK CITY
EAST HAMPTON

OHIO

DAYTON: The Salem Avenue Peace Corridor and First Baptist Church Dayton are sponsoring this International Day of Peace celebration on September 27, 2018 from 4:00 – 7:00 pm. We will be walking from First Baptist Church (4:00 pm), to the Salem Garden and making stops along the way to recognize & celebrate symbols of peace along the Salem Avenue Peace Corridor (see map). We will be ending our event at the Gem City Market Block Party! You can walk, bike or drive along this path to peace!

DAYTON INTERNATIONAL CITY OF PEACE
CAMPAIGN NONVIOLENCE, DAYTON
TOLEDO
MILLER FERRY
ASHTABULA
HUBER HEIGHTS
CINCINNATI
TIFFIN

OKLAHOMA

OKLAHOMA CITY: UNA-OKC’s 2018 International Day of Peace Celebration. we at UNA-OKC, believe in the the power of food as tool of peace. Peace begins with individual action and we believe nothing starts a conversation better than a good meal. We believe in the power of food in cultivating community knowledge and power that builds foundations, friendships, collaborations, and connections.With all of this in mind, we hope you can join us for a community culture potluck.

OREGON

ASHLAND: On September 21, 2018, the International Day of Peace, the World Peace Flame was lit in the Thalden Pavilion, Sustainability Center on the Southern Oregon University (SOU) campus. A delegation from the World Peace Flame Foundation came to Ashland for the lighting ceremony, together with our State and City dignitaries. This symbol of peace, unity, freedom and celebration aims to inspire people everywhere that the individual plays a crucial role in creating peace at every level. From a few feet to less than a mile from the World Peace Flame Monument reside Walker Elementary School, Ashland Middle School, Ashland High School, and Southern Oregon University. The World Peace Flame will provide hope and inspiration to our future leaders, and light the hearts of all who visit it.

GRESHAM
PORTLAND
TUALATIN
SHERWOOD
PACIFIC UNIVERSITY
HIGHLAND
BEAVERTON
NEWBERG

PENNSYLVANIA

PHILADELPHIA Full house for our Peace Day Philly Benefit Concert with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Friends and Immigrant/Former Refugee special guests. A wonderful concert with proceeds benefiting refugee resettlement services provided by HIAS PA.

LEBANON VALLEY COLLEGE, ANNVILLE
KEMBLESVILLE
PITTSBURGH
COLLEGEVILLE, PA:
PHOENIXVILLE, PA:
Williamsport, PA

RHODE ISLAND

UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND, KINGSTON URI students joined the world in the spirit of peace on Thursday as the campus celebrated the UN’s International Day of Peace. Thousands wore blue peace bands that read, “Think Peace – Live Peace,” put on peace stickers and pins, and saw the world through peace-sign sunglasses. They enjoyed hula hooping for peace, while others created life-sized peace bubbles, and students hungry for peace devoured Orange Leaf’s delicious Yogurt for peace. See our Facebook photos! The candlelight vigil included a circle of friends who honored all victims of violence by reading universal peace messages, meditating, and singing together. Afterwards, the Dance for Peace featured amazing dancers who rocked, shook and twirled for peace, involving all of us in learning how do break dancing, African dancing, Nepal dancing, and capoiera. It was an international experience of various world dances that filled our evening with fun and excitement. Thanks to all dancers who participated!

PROVIDENCE
WESTERLY MIDDLE SCHOOL, WESTERLY
WESTERLY AND PAWCATUCK

SOUTH CAROLINA

COLUMBIA: Join us for Peace Day at the Statehouse, a festival style event in celebration of the International Day of Peace featuring live music from Jahson & the Natty Vibez, the Columbia Community Drum Circle, Kevin McKinney, the Dances of Universal Peace, spoken word with Mama G, activities for all ages, and an organization fair of groups working for peace, justice and the environment. 3+ Hours of Peace, Love & Music. SATURDAY Sept 22nd 11AM-2:30PM

TENNESSEE

KNOXVILLE: At Nature’s Way Montessori School, we will dedicate another plaque for our Peace Pole. On this one, Let Peace Prevail on Earth will be written in the Cherokee Language to honor the native inhabitants of East Tennessee. We will hang banners with Let Peace Prevail on Earth in all the languages spoken in the homes of our families. We will have poems read, interpretive dance, and all 160 of us at Nature’s Way Montessori School will sing the song, Sing Peace Around the World.

WINCHESTER
MEMPHIS

TEXAS

AUSTIN: Nonviolent Austin will be tabling in front of the 3101 Guadalupe Wheatsville Food Co-op 2-6 Friday afternoon, September 21st, and at the 4001 S. Lamar Wheatsville 2-6 Saturday afternoon, September 22nd. We will have a Campaign Nonviolence banner across the front of our table and will hand out Campaign Nonviolence brochures and free “Nonviolent Futures Command” bumper stickers in four models: “Love Your Enemies and Pray for Them”; “Do As You Would Be Done To”; “Respect the Disrespected”; and “Learn From the Mahatma and Dr. King.”

TYLER
KATY
BELTON
HOUSTON
CYPRESS-FAIRBANKS HIGH SCHOOL, HOUSTON
WESLACO
EL PASO
SAN ANTONIO
SPRING

UTAH

SALT LAKE CITY: Pinwheel art display created by elementary students.

VIRGINIA

CHARLOTTESVILLE On the International Day of Peace, 9/21/18, we will gather with many others from our community to begin to address those questions in an interactive program. The title for our program is “Growing the Circles of Trust and Care”. From childhood through adulthood each of us lives within our circles of trust and care. We will explore those circles in Trust Circle discussions as we look for pathways to a nonviolent society. We ask everyone longing for peace with justice, everyone searching for a path to a nonviolent society to join us. Our program will take place at The Haven, 112 W. Market St., Charlottesville and will begin at 7:00 PM.”

ROANOKE/SALEM
WISE
ALEXANDRIA
RICE
DALE CITY
BLUEFIELD
LYNCHBURG

VERMONT

RUPERT Planning a 4 hour training in nonviolence for youth, plus eight other Vermont area events!

WINOOSKI
COLCHESTER
RUTLAND

WASHINGTON

BELLINGHAM: 9/21 at 6pm. Village Books and the Whatcom Peace & Justice Center present “Violent Pasts, Peaceful Futures,” the 15th annual International Day of Peace celebration in Bellingham.

SPOKANE
BELLEVUE
OLYMPIA

WISCONSIN

MILWAUKEE PEACE CENTER: World Peace Day at the Milwaukee Peace Center: Live-stream of World Beyond War 2018 Toronto Conference and discussion with the Greater Milwaukee Area United Nations Association on the effect of war on human rights.

MILWAUKEE 14 TODAY
MILWAUKEE END THE WARS COALITION
RIPON
STEVENS POINT
ELM GROVE
GREEN BAY
MADISON
STEVENS POINT

WEST VIRGINA

CHARLESTON: Students of the Charleston Job Corps Center and Capital High School students will be walking from Daniel Boone Park and walk to the Capital Building in celebration of Peace. Anyone in the community is welcome to attend!
UPPER NEW RIVER

WYOMING

CASPER: International Day of Peace & Autumn equinox Celebration. John May will again debut his new album All In riverside on the fall equinox with Casper Mountain on the horizon. Casper kids and young adults will share their thoughts on peace in between sets. And, some of the instructors from Yoga on The Labyrinth will lead a candle lit labyrinth walk as the sun sets on the river.

In addition to the above events, One Day One Choir lists participating choirs for the International Day of Peace in over 100 cities and towns in the United States and Canada.

And the map of Montessori schools singing for peace on the International Day of Peace includes several hundred schools in 48 states of the United States including ANCHORAGE and JUNEAU in Alaska and 6 provinces of Canada.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, North America

Jackson Browne honored in New Haven with Promoting Enduring Peace’s Gandhi Award

EDUCATION FOR PEACE .

An article by Mark Zaretsky from the New Haven Register

Musician Jackson Browne  was honored Friday night for a lifetime of activism by Promoting Enduring Peace, accepting the Gandhi Award, which previously went to Eleanor Roosevelt, Dr. Martin Luther King, Dr. Benjamin Spock, Linus Pauling and Cesar Chavez, among others.


Jackson Browne, scene from video of Gandhi Peace Award by Mark Zaretsky

Browne was the first performing artist to receive the award. Roosevelt was the first winner, back in 1960. Promoting Enduring Peace is based in New Haven.

“I’m happy to be here to accept this tremendous honor,” Browne told the crowd in the Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at Southern Connecticut State University. He added that he knew of a number of musicians he considered more deserving of the honor, but that so many of his heroes had received it in the past that he couldn’t say no.

He said that “with all in the world that needs fixing, I’ve always been drawn to those who try,” and that, as an musician who is also an activist, “my part of this has been to help bring people together. Music is good for that.”

Meanwhile, “my education has been advanced by the contact with all those committed activists, working on all those fronts,” he said.

Browne’s acceptance speech was political at times, with him saying, “the United States must rejoin the world and put the planet first.” He also suggested it’s time to move toward “enduring peace” rather than “enduring war,” saying that the U.S. hasn’t really been at peace since before World War II.

Browne was introduced by environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who said Browne “walks the walk” — right down to having a windmill on his farm in California.

“He understands that the environment is intertwined with democracy,” Kennedy said.

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Question for this article:

What place does music have in the peace movement?

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Browne did not perform for this gig — although he said he was a horrible speechwriter and would have preferred to sing.

That honor went to Ben Grosscup and Luci Murphy of the People’s Music Network, described as “a group of people who follow in Jackson’s footprints” in terms of using music to promote activism.
“We are so happy to be part of this event, honoring Jackson” for the work he has done, said Grosscup, the group’s executive director.

The award, named after Indian anti-imperialist and nonviolence advocate Mohandas Gandhi, comes with a $5,000 cash prize as well as a medallion forged from metals salvaged from the control systems of U.S. nuclear missiles.

Promoting Enduring Peace President Paul Hodel said Browne employs “an essential idea of Gandhi’s actions … satyagraha,” or “holding onto peace.”

Other speakers included SCSU President Joe Bertolino, city Director of Arts, Culture & Tourism Andrew Wolf — who read a proclamation from Mayor Toni Harp declaring it “Jackson Browne Day” in New Haven — Frida Berrigan, Chris George of Iris, PEP Administrator Stanley Heller and PEP’s James C. Van Pelt.

“Like so many of you — and so many people around the world — we were raised on the words of Jackson Browne,” said Wolf.

In its news release announcing Browne’s choice for the award, Promoting Enduring Peace cited Browne’s songs that have “directly challenged imperialist foreign policy, environmental short-sightedness and corporate greed.”

Browne, in response to the Three Mile Island nuclear plant malfunction in 1979, co-founded Musicians United for Safe Energy, MUSE. The group had a series of benefit concerts in New York City that year and a movie of those shows, “No Nukes,” followed.

In the late 1970s, Browne also joined the protests and occupation at the Seabrook nuclear plant site in New Hampshire. Browne also was active in the Central America solidarity movement, co-organizing shows in Nicaragua, Cuba and elsewhere.

He is a member of the group Ocean Elders who more recently has focused on the environmental crisis in the seas, where plastics threaten wildlife.

Browne last December released the song “The Dreamer” about the new deportation threat under the Trump administration for those who had been protected temporarily under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

“The measure of a good song is that it doesn’t need explaining,” Browne said.

EDUCATION FOR PEACE, North America

USA: Campaign Nonviolence

. .DISARMAMENT & SECURITY. .

An article from Common Dreams

On Saturday, Sept. 22 at 9 a.m., hundreds will rally and march [in Washington] from the Dr. King Statue (on the Southside of the Lincoln Memorial), to the White House for a vigil and nonviolent direct action. Speakers will call for an end to U.S. wars and nuclear weapons, racist policies, rampant greed and growing poverty, and ongoing environmental destruction, and for a new direction toward justice, disarmament and environmental protection. Some will engage in nonviolent direct action.


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Question for this article:

The peace movement in the United States, What are its strengths and weaknesses?

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At 10 a.m., everyone will walk in silence with signs from the Dr. King statue in procession past the Lincoln Memorial to Lafayette Park across from the White House, where they will gather for a legal vigil, to continue their call for an end to racism, greed, war and environmental destruction, and for new leadership and a new culture of nonviolence, with respect, dignity, rights for everyone and for the earth. Some people will then engage in nonviolent direct action at the White House.

This will be the first ever march from the Dr. King Statue to the White House.
The Sept. 22 rally and march to the White House culminates the fifth annual Campaign Nonviolence national week of action, from Sept. 15-22, when a hundred thousand people across the US will speak out publicly against war, poverty, racism, and environmental destruction, and for the coming of a new culture of peace and nonviolence in over 2600 events and march. For a list of events and contact information, see: www.campaignnonviolence.org.

“This week, the president said that protests should be illegal. The right to protest peacefully is at the heart of our country. In that spirit of peaceful dissent, we gather at the Dr. King statue to reclaim Dr. King’s peaceful vision of a new culture of justice and nonviolence, to denounce the violence, greed, racism, wars, and environmental destruction which the United States government is relentlessly pursuing, and to call for a new direction, where our country seeks to make justice and peace for every human being and environmental protection its first priority,” said Rev. John Dear, long time activist and co-founder of Campaign Nonviolence.

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, North America

Peoples Climate Movement Launches Rise for Climate, Jobs, and Justice September 8th

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

A press release from 350.org

On September 8th, four days before the start of the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, California, and two months before the U.S. midterm elections, people from across the country and around the world will take to the streets to demand bold action on climate change. Globally the mobilization is called “Rise for Climate,” where advocates plan to send a clear message to governments through distributed actions in towns, institutions, cities to push forward real climate action. 

 At GCAS, mayors, governors, and CEOs from the US and beyond are expected to announce plans to make further emissions cuts a part of global efforts to combat climate change. Communities are calling on these leaders to ramp up their ambitions.

The Rise for Climate, Jobs, and Justice September 8th mobilization builds upon a year of strategic movement building in a set of states that will energize local, state, and national efforts and lay the foundation for a long-lasting, sustainable climate movement.

Last year, as the Trump Administration rolled back climate and health policies, along with many others, more than 200,000 people marched in the streets of Washington D.C. in resistance. At the same time, we saw hundreds of local and global elected officials make verbal commitments to climate action. This year, the Peoples Climate Movement aims to transform the energy of resistance into action by calling on leaders and elected officials to invest in real solutions to the climate crisis that prioritize the most impacted and vulnerable of our communities, like a massive, just transition to a 100% renewable economy that ensures safe and healthy communities, the right to organize for all workers, and millions of family-sustaining jobs.

Speaking towards the global day of action, Estrella Sainburg, Circle Organizer, GreenFaith said, “September 8th marks a global day of action because simply put, stopping the climate crisis is going to take all of us. Across the world, communities will rise up to demand that elected officials raise the bar and step up their commitments. “Real climate action” doesn’t mean hollow words. It means a fast, fair, and just transition away from fossil fuels to a 100% renewable energy economy, that protects the most vulnerable communities already impacted by climate change and creates good paying jobs and opportunities for all. These are some of the real solutions that our communities need and deserve. We will use the Global Climate Action Summit as a key moment to put ourselves on the right path of action and implementation. This is the moral obligation at hand for our leaders and we are calling on them to step up to the plate.”

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Question for this article:

Despite the vested interests of companies and governments, Can we make progress toward sustainable development?

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Paul Getsos, National Director, Peoples Climate Movement said, “PCM’s work to lift up Climate, Jobs, and Justice now, prior to GCAS, and in November is not only critical in this political moment, but supports our overall goal of building out a climate movement that is long lasting and sustainable. We are creating the space for our partners to amplify, and be led by, the often overlooked voices of their constituents. Rise for Climate, Jobs, and Justice September 8th is a mobilization of these voices across the country and around the world, building power to bring about a new, clean energy economy.”

Branden Snyder, Executive Director, Good Jobs Now! said, “The role of Good Jobs Now in Detroit is to raise the issue of environmental racism, educate on the impact Climate Change is having in our city and connect it to the everyday economic justice issues that Detroiters know very well to this fight. The effects of oil and gas pollution are disproportionately afflicting African-Americans, particularly with higher cancer and respiratory issues affecting Detroiters who live near incinerators and refineries. We see environmental racism in the rising heating cost and the damage that occurs after heavy rains because of our old and “grey” infrastructural system. Our work with the PCM is to build a people powered movement to fight against it.”

Miya Yoshitani, Executive Director, Asian Pacific Environmental Network said,  Leaders around the world should be looking at solutions through the lens of people that have been most impacted and who will be most impacted by climate change. This means going beyond increasing temperatures, droughts, and rising sea levels; and recognizing that climate change is a threat multiplier for working families everywhere. For families facing housing insecurity and rising food and energy costs, people who need jobs where you don’t have to trade your health for a living wage. Our communities are at the forefront of creating solutions to the climate crisis. And elected officials should follow their lead.”

Lenore Friedlaender, Assistant to the President of SEIU Local 32BJ said, “Working people are being devastated by climate change.  Extreme weather, rising sea levels, chronic diseases like asthma that are made worse by pollution, the lack of clean drinking water in our schools and communities all take a toll on working class, people of color and poor communities.  Climate change at a time of increasing economic inequality is a toxic combination for the majority of americans. We have the opportunity to create good jobs in wind, solar and the renewable energy sector that move us to a healthier future and a more just society. The time to act is now.”

Reverend Leo Woodberry, Pastor of Kingdom Living Temple and Executive Director of New Alpha Community Development Corporation said, “Only when we put Justice First, Can we ensure that we have a just transition that addresses Climate Change, Jobs with a living wage, and to improve the lives of the least among us.”

For more information please go to:

www.riseforclimate.org

www.peoplesclimate.org

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

North America, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

David Swanson Awarded 2018 Peace Prize of the US Peace Memorial Foundation

EDUCATION FOR PEACE .

Report from the US Peace Memorial Foundation

The Board of Directors of the US Peace Memorial Foundation  has voted unanimously to award its 2018 Peace Prize to The Honorable David Swanson “whose inspiring antiwar leadership, writings, strategies, and organizations help to create a culture of peace.”


Video of presentation

Michael Knox, Chair of the Foundation, presented the award on August 26 at the Veterans For Peace 33rd Annual Convention held in St. Paul, MN.

In his remarks, Knox said, “Thank you, David, for dedicating your life to ending wars.  You are one of the most prolific writers, speakers, activists, and organizers for peace.  The breadth of your work is staggering.  You have enlightened us with books that are in the forefront of modern antiwar thought; and with speeches, debates, conferences, blogs, billboards, radio shows, online courses, videos, websites, and more innovative ideas than we can name.  We want you to know that your efforts are greatly appreciated, here and around the world.”

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Questions for this article:

Where in the world can we find good leadership today?

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Upon learning of the award, David said, “This wonderful honor is definitely having the impact on me that I imagine is intended, namely it is inspiring me to keep at it and work harder to advance the abolition of war and the development of peaceful behaviors and institutions.  Thank you for the pat on the back but also for the kick in the rear.  We have a long ways yet to go.”

In addition to receiving the 2018 Peace Prize, our highest honor, Swanson has been designated a  Founding Member  of the US Peace Memorial Foundation.  He joins previous Peace Prize  recipients Ann Wright, Veterans For Peace, Kathy Kelly, CODEPINK Women for Peace, Chelsea Manning, Medea Benjamin, Noam Chomsky, Dennis Kucinich, and Cindy Sheehan.  Nominees considered by the Board in 2018 included Daniel Ellsberg, Nancy Mancias, Colman McCarthy, Sharon Tennison, Sally-Alice Thompson, and S. Brian Willson.  You can read about the antiwar/peace activities of all recipients and nominees in our publication, the US Peace Registry.


The US Peace Memorial Foundation directs a nationwide effort to honor Americans who stand for peace by publishing the US Peace Registry, awarding an annual Peace Prize  , and planning for the US Peace Memorial  in Washington, DC.  These projects help move the United States toward a culture of peace by honoring the millions of thoughtful and courageous Americans and U.S. organizations that have taken a public stand against one or more U.S. wars or who have devoted their time, energy, and other resources to finding peaceful solutions to international conflicts.  We celebrate these role models to inspire other Americans to speak out against war and to work for peace.

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, North America

World BEYOND War annual global conference, Toronto, September 21-22

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An announcement from World Beyond War

Join World BEYOND War for our annual global conference in Toronto on September 21 and 22, 2018, at OCAD University (Ontario College of Art and Design University), 100 McCaul St, Toronto, ON M5T 1W1, Canada.

At #NoWar2018 we will explore how the rule of law has been used both to restrain war and to legitimize it — and how we can re-design systems to abolish the institution of war and uphold human and ecological justice.


Video for the conference

The conference will take place on Friday September 21 (5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., doors open at 4:00 p.m.) and Saturday September 22. (9:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., doors open at 8:00 a.m.).

BEFORE THE CONFERENCE:

Thursday, September 20, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. in the Lambert Lounge, on the first floor of the main building at OCAD University: Inside Iran: Exclusive Book Talk with CODEPINK Co-Founder Medea Benjamin. RSVP.

Friday, September 21, 1:00 p.m. — 3:00 p.m. Canadian Voice of Women for Peace (VOW)’s Annual General Meeting at 519 Church St, Room 301 in Toronto. Open to the public.

AFTER THE CONFERENCE:

Sunday, September 23 at 10:00 a.m. — 12:00 p.m. “Inspirational Women Brunch: Shaping Peace Through Feminism” hosted by Canadian Voice of Women for Peace (VOW), with special guests Medea Benjamin and Ray Acheson at Metro Hall, Room 308, 55 John Street, Toronto. Join #WomenShapingPeace for brunch to talk peace over pancakes and learn how you can take action to make our feminist vision of peace a reality. Purchase tickets here.

Sunday, September 23, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Blue Scarf Peace Walk. Meet at Grange Park on Beverly St. just south of Dundas St. W. Get a PDF flyer. Buy some blue scarves.

List of confirmed speakers

Conference Schedule:

September 21, 2018, International Day of Peace

4:00 p.m. Doors open for checking in (and picking up boxed dinners), tabling, meeting and greeting.

5:00 p.m. Welcome by Leah Bolger, Peter Jones; and Iehnhotonkwas Bonnie Jane Maracle providing land recognition. Brief reports from World BEYOND War chapters around the world. In Butterfield Park.

5:45 p.m. Opening remarks by Christine Ahn and Ravyn Wngz. Moderator: David Swanson. In Butterfield Park.

7:00 p.m. Music of Tom Neilson and Lynn Waldron. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

7:45 p.m. — 9:15 p.m. Plenary: Using the Rule of Law Against War with Gail Davidson, Daniel Turp, and Ray Acheson. Moderator: Kevin Zeese. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

September 22, 2018, Saturday

8:00 a.m. Doors open for tabling, light breakfast fare.

9:00 a.m. Plenary: Canadian Weapons, Wars, and Indigenous Rights with Tamara Lorincz, William Geimer, and Lee Maracle. Moderator: Lyn Adamson. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

10:15 a.m. Break.

10:30 a.m. Plenary: Global Governance: Actual and Potential with Kent Shifferd, James Ranney, and Branka Marijan. Moderator: Tony Jenkins. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

11:45 a.m. Break.

12:00 p.m. Lunch. Boxed lunches provided. Optional small-group discussions:

Intersectionality: A brainstorm session on “fusion organizing”: how to connect the dots and foster collaboration between the anti-war movement and the movements for ecological, economic, racial, and social justice. Facilitator: Greta Zarro. In Butterfield Park.
Creative Activism: Brainstorming ideas for creative, nonviolent action. Facilitator: Medea Benjamin. In Atrium.

Popcorn & a Movie: “The World Is My Country.” Broadway actor Garry Davis, desperate to stop a war, pulls off an act of political comedy so gutsy and eye-opening that it sparks a huge movement for World Citizenship — and legalizing peace! Martin Sheen calls this lost piece of history a “roadmap to a better future.” It’s a fun and entertaining outreach tool to draw new people into WBW. Q & A with the filmmakers – Melanie Bennett and Arthur Kangis. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

How the Internet Changes Activism: It’s a new world for those of us who want to change it. Facebook, Twitter, email, cryptocurrency and Internet privacy are some of the hot topics we’ll talk about in an open dialogue led by two maintainers of the World BEYOND War website and social media channels. Facilitators: Donnal Walter, Marc Eliot Stein. In Room 187.
Ideas collected by facilitators will be shared through WBW website.

Upgrading the Kellogg-Briand Pact with Kent Shifferd and David Swanson.

This workshop will cover a brief history of the Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928 treaty to end war, its current status, what has and has not been accomplished, and what we can do to make it more effective including bringing a new treaty to the UN General Assembly. Room 230.

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Question for this article:

The peace movement in the United States, What are its strengths and weaknesses?

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1:30 p.m. Workshops:

Disrupting the Business Models of War with Peter Jones, OCAD University and Stephen Sillett.

This workshop looks at long-term strategies for facilitating a transition to new public policy and industry models that might replace war-making as a core function of Western governments.

We’ll consider how the business of the military and the industrial complex are entwined in a long-standing business model of publicly funded international violence that requires a constant flow of new enemies and targets served to the public payers. Large group and small group sessions will design and propose alternatives to the post-war, state-industrial business model which has become extremely expensive and yields poor return on public investment. Room 506.

Departments and Other National Infrastructures for Peace – A Way Forward with Saul Arbess and Anne Creter.

This workshop will present the movement for departments of peace (DoP) and progress made to date, with four countries having DoPs and others with proposed legislation, highlighting Canada and the U.S. The conversation will be broadened by consideration of other national infrastructures for peace(I4P) and a UN resolution calling for I4Ps in all member states, to counteract the military infrastructures for war and violence and to provide a legal framework for conflict resolution by peaceful means at home and abroad. Room 542.

War Tax Resistance: Legality, Practicality, Value with Doug Hewitt-White.

There are active Peace Tax Fund campaigns worldwide. Tax resistance to paying for the military began in Canada over 200 years ago. Legislation has been proposed here in Canada and several other countries. Yet legally redirecting the military portion of our taxes to support peace programs is not yet sanctioned. This workshop will examine and discuss the legal basis for conscientious objection to military service and taxation. Is there a fundamental human right at stake? How practical is tax resistance? How effective is military tax redirection at advancing the cause of peace? Is it an important and valuable strategy? Room 556.

Citizen Action Using the Law with Daniel Turp, and Gail Davidson.

This session will provide participants with an understanding of how individuals and groups can initiate legal actions under domestic and international law to oppose war and associated illegalities of torture and arms sales. We will discuss civil disobedience, the use of universal jurisdiction, the International Criminal Court, Citizens’ Tribunals, the United Nations treaty monitoring bodies, available remedies, and issues of standing in Canadian courts. We’ll evaluate lessons learned from past examples of such initiatives in Canada and around the world. Room 544.

World Peace through World Citizenship and the Global Rule of Law with David Gallup.

What do you think are the most important questions of the 21st century to achieve a sustainable, just and peaceful world? Come prepared with ideas to discuss. This workshop will explore holistic alternatives to the divisive politics of nationalism. We will contemplate how to create spaces (social, legal, political, governmental, and ethical) where humans can interact peacefully and sustainably with each other and the earth. We will examine how world citizenship and world law provide a better alternative to national citizenship and national law. This session will end with a discussion about how world peace, as well as human and environmental sustainability, depend upon the advancement of common world law. Room 554.

2:45 p.m. Break.

3:00 p.m. Workshops:

Organizing 101: Strategy, Intersectionality, and Millennials with Greta Zarro.
In this session, we will discuss the nuts and bolts of grassroots organizing, with a focus on campaign development. We’ll identify effective strategies & tactics for engaging community members and influencing decision-makers. We’ll also look more broadly at movement-building from the perspective of “fusion” organizing and youth activism. Room 506.

Divestment from War Profiteers with Medea Benjamin.

Weapons manufacturers like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and many others have been making a killing on killing by profiting from the death and destruction that their products cause. Enough is enough! In this workshop, learn about and engage with CODEPINK’s Divest from the War Machine campaign. This divestment campaign calls for a radical reimagination of American priorities. Revoking the power of those who profit most from war-making is the first step in transforming our nation and ending the spread of violence, oppression, and death at home and abroad. We will strategize how to best bring the Divest campaign into your community. Room 230.

“Push Pins” Holding Up The Map of Empire: U.S. Military Bases Around the World with Leah Bolger.

How many foreign military bases does the U.S. have? 100? 300? The answer is over 800! Why does it have so many? We’ll talk about the role that these bases play in U.S. foreign policy, and their effect on global relations, as well as efforts to close them down. Room 544.
Organizing Locally to Block National Support for a War with Shreesh Juyal and Rose Dyson.
In 2003, Prof. Juyal collaborated with 88 cities’ community groups and organized mass rallies which successfully persuaded the Government of Canada to not take part in the Iraq War. The belligerent pressure of the United States on its NATO ally Canada did not succeed. This workshop will strategize and plan for application of a similar model in Canada and other nations around the world to resist current and future wars, bases, and war preparations. Room 556.

Peoples’ Tribunals with Tom Kerns.

Peoples’ tribunals provide a powerful platform for championing human rights. As a tactic in the activist toolbox, peoples’ tribunals can help increase States’ and non-state actors’ recognition of and respect for human rights, and help reduce the likelihood of war. This session will look at examples of peoples’ tribunals around the world in the past several decades. It will also more fully describe the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal Session on Human Rights, Fracking, and Climate Change. Room 554.

Learning Peace in Schools with Tony Jenkins.

This workshop will analyze the contradictory ways in which children are being taught to embrace both war and peace in the schools. We’ll examine the increasingly bellicose content of textbooks and various military programs in the nation’s schools, while looking at exciting developments in teaching peace and nonviolent conflict resolution. Room 542.
4:15 p.m. Break.

4:30 p.m. Reports Back from Workshops, Discussion of Plans. Moderator: Marc Eliot Stein. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

5:45 p.m. Break.

6:00 p.m. — 7:30 p.m. Energizing the War Abolition Movement in Canada and Globally with Kevin Zeese, Yves Engler, and Azeezah Kanji. Moderator: Greta Zarro. In Main Auditorium (Room 190).

Registration

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, North America