Tag: Peace

Change Course

There’s no doubt we’re in for a ride as the chaotic upheaval of the government continues. Certainly, there’ll be people in need and hopefully we’ll find a way around failing systems to help. If you’re still falling in line with Republican or Democrat talking points, it may be time to consider the talking point that suffered the most in both parties’ rhetoric: our humanity.

When a government abdicates its responsibility to protect the welfare of its people by choosing instead to build wealth through military industry and resource theft, that government is not worthy of its people’s allegiance. Since October 2023, we have witnessed a government unyielding in its support of genocide. The hand off from Biden to Trump was seamless and now we are expected to complete the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians by a single decree of our president / king. 

And just as South Africa and others accused Israel of genocide, there is now a request for the International Criminal Court to investigate Biden, Blinken and Lloyd for their complicity in genocide by “aiding and abetting” Israeli war crimes in Gaza.

European nations are uniting in fierce opposition to Trump’s erroneous statements on Ukraine. And we must reckon with what appears to be another US resource grab in disregard for the sovereignty of Ukrainians – and what it could mean for other nations if Putin’s aggression continues with US approval.

As the United States wealth gap increases and countless marginalized people face the terror of hatred unleashed and run amuck, we shouldn’t ask, “How did we get here?” In a country whose entire history has been one of attempted genocide of Indigenous people, cruelty of enslaved people and the scapegoating of anyone who challenged the normalcy of the “divine right of kings” – the question should be: “How do we emerge from this horror?” 

It’s beyond time for us to acknowledge, challenge and change the storyline of empire that has been our history. Yes, we have been led by high ideals but time and again we have surrendered those ideals. Whether out of fear of the powerful or the desire to climb the ladder, we have squandered beloved community. We have sacrificed our humanity, our individuality and our human family and for what? Changing course is still an option. It will require a commitment toward peace and peace building. It will require a truth telling and courage to face the backlash that will surely, is surely, coming. It will require a restoration of each individual’s humanity and the reinvigoring of community. It is possible and it is happening for some of us. We can remain frozen in the fear of this moment of violence and repression or rekindle and support the ideals of liberty and equity for all. Choose. 

Pursuing Peace

For people of various beliefs this season carries a singular message: peace on earth, goodwill to all. For many the lip service ends with the season and we are left in a swirl of hopelessness and indecision. Yet before our time here, and I imagine long after we’re gone, there have been persistent and passionate voices that have stood and will stand for humanity and peace. They inspire us with wisdom borne of effort, and paths forged by determination and choice. 

We honor the memory of these people and stand on the shoulders of the countless nameless whose work towards peace lives on in us. We seldom realize the torch is being passed.  And, we the living are the bearers of that torch, if we accept it and as we understand it.

The 1948, United Nations Declaration of Human Rights was an achievement of great significance as it was drafted and ratified by people from different cultures and countries. It was the first time a universally recognized understanding of the rights of humankind was proclaimed. Say what you will about the UN, but this effort to inspire and uplift all of us has been the cornerstone of over 70 human rights treaties. This in a world seemingly hell bent on self-destruction.

So, in this moment as we begin to look to the new year with apprehension and hope, it is incumbent upon us to consider where we stand as torchbearers of peace.

Have we understood and accepted peace in our own lives? Surely, we cannot establish peace around us if we remain in turmoil and confusion.

Most recently an esteemed member of the Global Peace Education Network passed on. Federico Mayor Zaragoza‘s words to all people of peace echo on, “We cannot remain silent anymore”. “Do not be a spectator”, he warned.

Now, it’s up to us to answer that request in any and every way we can.

Call for a United Nations 
Global Peace Education Day

Please read our petition and add your name if you share our goal for a UN day of peace education.Since peace is central to the mission of the United Nations, we are urging the General Assembly to declare an official UN Global Peace Education Day. The United Nations has more than 150 international days for different humanitarian themes, but there is no day dedicated solely to the theme of Peace Education

Bring Peace to Rafah

Democrats are terrified of Trump. They admit that Biden’s choice to support Israel and the slaughter of over 35,000 human beings, including 15,000 children is “wrong”, but they are terrified that if they speak out, Biden will lose and democracy will be no more.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but democracy took a back seat to militarism in this country a long time ago. Militarized police on university campuses should be telling us this. 

Biden is turning a blind eye towards Rafah, regardless of what his words say. Rafah is the last holdout for 1. 5 million Palestinians who ran there for safety. The government of Netanyahu is showing no sign of letting up on his seven month march of destruction and death. And Biden is showing no understanding at the consequences of his unequivocal support of Netanyahu from the start.

And one day, as we saw with Bush’s Iraq horror, we will come to know Biden’s complicity in these war crimes as calculated resource and land grabs – costing countless lives and ways of life.

War will never bring us peace. 

It’s beyond time that we stop the United States war machine. Biden is little more than a puppet to the industries of war and fossil fuels, as were the presidents of both parties before him. Choose your poison.

Students are again the conscience of the United States. The rallies and encampments are the culmination of a sincere desire for peace – with the recognition that divestment from war is our way out. End war and save the environment. End war and save our humanity.

We have a bigger choice before us than who will be in the White House in 2025. We have the choice of who will emerge from this nightmare. Peacemakers or warmongers. 

To all the terrified Democrats: try being in Rafah right now.

Silence is Betrayal – King’s moral stance against the Vietnam War continues to teach us.