"A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history."
~Ghandi
"One day we must come to see that peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but that it is a means by which we arrive at that goal. We must pursue peaceful ends through peaceful means."
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.
"What is the POINT of another Peace march?"
I have been asked this question in various forms over the last few months, ever since I started telling people about the World March for Peace and Non Violence. Although the question has been phrased many different ways, the real questions people seem to have are: "What is the use of trying to change the way things are?" And "What makes you think you can do anything about it?"
I am an artist. I am not a political person. In general, I would rather sing about the human experience or dance than discuss, ponder or participate in politics. But I am a big believer in personal responsibility and "being the change you want to see in the world."
I've focused on mindfulness; initiating change in small ways- random acts of kindness for strangers, practicing peace in my own sphere of influence by resolving conflicts in loving ways. I never felt the need to join groups or carry signs, and never really felt like my getting involved in such activities would make any positive difference in the world.
Until now.
A few months ago, I went to a meeting that unexpectedly changed my life.
I went to the meeting with a friend, knowing nothing about it (we were going swing dancing afterwards, and I was far more focused on that than where we were going beforehand!)
But at this meeting, there was a core group of passionate people who were taking on a monumental task with hope and faith that everything would come together to make their project a success. That was how I discovered the World March for Peace and Non-Violence. I volunteered to get involved with this wonderful project by throwing a small dance event to help raise funds and before I knew it, I became one of the Orange County Organizers...! So what was it that inspired me to participate?
This is the first World March to circle the earth calling for the end of war and nuclear arms, and the elimination of violence of all kinds. It has been endorsed by leaders of nations, philanthropists and celebrities all over the planet.
But all that, as impressive as it is, could just be a flash in the pan, a momentary blip in the collective attention span of our easily underwhelmed society. Through history, many communities have marched to bring awareness to their needs, rights and demands. Some have found to their dismay, that the very people they are trying to persuade are more than happy to observe and then walk away unchanged. What makes this March different is that it is not isolated to one place, one demographic, one topic.
This March will last 90 days and pass through all climates and seasons. It began on New Zealand on October 2, 2009, the anniversary of Gandhi’s birth, declared the “International Day of Non-Violence” by the United Nations. It will conclude in the Andes Mountains (Punta de Vacas, Aconcagua, Argentina) on January 2, 2010. The WMFPNV involves EVERY community and individual that has a desire to address Peace issues in the place they live.
The more I talked with the people behind this March, the more I realized how much we need something like this right now. Grand gestures are easily forgotten, but relationships change us forever. The team of Marchers goes wherever they are invited and gets communities dialoguing about their own peace issues. Some communities are experienceing inter-racial or religious violence. Some nations are in the middle of civil wars. Some communities still struggle with sexual oppression. In whatever place the March visits, the team will attend and participate in forums, meetings and festivals organized by the local individuals and groups who request their presence!
To create global awareness - as has already happened with environmental issues - of the urgent need to condemn all forms of violence and bring about real peace, everyone must get involved!
The backbone of the march will be the route through 90 countries, but the heart and body will be the thousands of local initiatives developed at each point along the way. These initiatives will vary in form and size (e.g., a concert with thousands of people, a university symposium on economic violence, a community forum on discrimination against immigrants, a workshop on civil disobedience, a theater or dance piece that expresses the hope for a violence-free future, seminars with school children on conflict resolution, a neighborhood potluck for peace, street actions, art exhibits, etc.) Participants will organize forums, meetings, festivals, conferences, and events (sports, cultural, social, musical, artistic, facilitate meetings and educational, etc.), depending on their own creative initiative. Hundreds of projects have already been set in motion by different individuals and organizations.
This "facilitation" approach hopes to merge the wills of people everywhere and create a global conversation. The ultimate intention of the March is to achieve global Peace via the eradication of nuclear weapons; the progressive and proportional reduction of non-nuclear arms; the signing of non-aggression treaties among nations; and the renunciation by governments of war as a way to resolve conflicts, as well as creating bridges in communities currently divided amongst themselves.
The march will be successful according to its ability to reach the billions of people worldwide who are yearning for an end to the violence.
These goals take time, and will not be reached simply by one march or one seminar.
You can help by talking about the march with your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, fellow students, and total strangers.
This is a powerfully positive project, and I sincerely hope you will find an authentic way to get involved.
Most of you already know I've been talking about almost nothing but Peace events for the last few weeks ... and now you know why! So what am I doing besides talking?
The World March Team will be arriving in LA in December for ONE DAY. As the Orange County section of the LA/OC Welcoming Committee, Alec Marken and I are trying to create as much awareness about the March and its objectives before the arrival of the team as we can. Time is so short, and we have so little time to actually spend with the Marchers when they arrive, so we are doing all we can to get people involved.
Each event we hold has two purposes: to raise awareness about the March itself, and thus bring people's awareness to peaceful living, and to raise funds to support the arrival of the World Marchers in LA in December (providing food/lodging/transportation to forums, etc).
Because the main event is the arrival of the Marchers, and because we only have one day with them, we really are depending heavily on fundraising events to achieve both purposes. So far, we have 4 main events: one already past, (Bands and Bellies 1), Bands and Bellies 2 coming up on Nov 22, a bellydance show on November 29th at Merry's Fashion with Passion in Long Beach, and a symbolic peace march/celebration concert on the day the marchers arrive at Immanuel Presbyterian in LA (site of many civil rights marches)
Bands and Bellies was our first OC support event (featuring local bands and professional bellydancers) and it was marvelous success.
So many people volunteered their time, energy and creativity to the event, and many more are already stepping up for future events. To those of you have already gotten involved, I just cannot tell you how much I appreciate all your help!!
To those of you just hearing about this or who feel hesitant to get involved, let me just say that this is the ONLY World March planned, and it will only succeed in its objectives if people the world over become part of the solution rather than expecting someone else to fix everything. As someone once said "Don't wait for the government to step up, or think that 'they' will take care of it. Who are 'they?' There is no 'they!' There is only us- it has to be us!"*
If you can do nothing else, tell people about what we are doing and practice peace in your own life!
ANYTHING you can do to create peace makes life better for everyone!
http://www.worldmarchusa.net
~Ghandi
"One day we must come to see that peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but that it is a means by which we arrive at that goal. We must pursue peaceful ends through peaceful means."
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.
"What is the POINT of another Peace march?"
I have been asked this question in various forms over the last few months, ever since I started telling people about the World March for Peace and Non Violence. Although the question has been phrased many different ways, the real questions people seem to have are: "What is the use of trying to change the way things are?" And "What makes you think you can do anything about it?"
I am an artist. I am not a political person. In general, I would rather sing about the human experience or dance than discuss, ponder or participate in politics. But I am a big believer in personal responsibility and "being the change you want to see in the world."
I've focused on mindfulness; initiating change in small ways- random acts of kindness for strangers, practicing peace in my own sphere of influence by resolving conflicts in loving ways. I never felt the need to join groups or carry signs, and never really felt like my getting involved in such activities would make any positive difference in the world.
Until now.
A few months ago, I went to a meeting that unexpectedly changed my life.
I went to the meeting with a friend, knowing nothing about it (we were going swing dancing afterwards, and I was far more focused on that than where we were going beforehand!)
But at this meeting, there was a core group of passionate people who were taking on a monumental task with hope and faith that everything would come together to make their project a success. That was how I discovered the World March for Peace and Non-Violence. I volunteered to get involved with this wonderful project by throwing a small dance event to help raise funds and before I knew it, I became one of the Orange County Organizers...! So what was it that inspired me to participate?
This is the first World March to circle the earth calling for the end of war and nuclear arms, and the elimination of violence of all kinds. It has been endorsed by leaders of nations, philanthropists and celebrities all over the planet.
But all that, as impressive as it is, could just be a flash in the pan, a momentary blip in the collective attention span of our easily underwhelmed society. Through history, many communities have marched to bring awareness to their needs, rights and demands. Some have found to their dismay, that the very people they are trying to persuade are more than happy to observe and then walk away unchanged. What makes this March different is that it is not isolated to one place, one demographic, one topic.
This March will last 90 days and pass through all climates and seasons. It began on New Zealand on October 2, 2009, the anniversary of Gandhi’s birth, declared the “International Day of Non-Violence” by the United Nations. It will conclude in the Andes Mountains (Punta de Vacas, Aconcagua, Argentina) on January 2, 2010. The WMFPNV involves EVERY community and individual that has a desire to address Peace issues in the place they live.
The more I talked with the people behind this March, the more I realized how much we need something like this right now. Grand gestures are easily forgotten, but relationships change us forever. The team of Marchers goes wherever they are invited and gets communities dialoguing about their own peace issues. Some communities are experienceing inter-racial or religious violence. Some nations are in the middle of civil wars. Some communities still struggle with sexual oppression. In whatever place the March visits, the team will attend and participate in forums, meetings and festivals organized by the local individuals and groups who request their presence!
To create global awareness - as has already happened with environmental issues - of the urgent need to condemn all forms of violence and bring about real peace, everyone must get involved!
The backbone of the march will be the route through 90 countries, but the heart and body will be the thousands of local initiatives developed at each point along the way. These initiatives will vary in form and size (e.g., a concert with thousands of people, a university symposium on economic violence, a community forum on discrimination against immigrants, a workshop on civil disobedience, a theater or dance piece that expresses the hope for a violence-free future, seminars with school children on conflict resolution, a neighborhood potluck for peace, street actions, art exhibits, etc.) Participants will organize forums, meetings, festivals, conferences, and events (sports, cultural, social, musical, artistic, facilitate meetings and educational, etc.), depending on their own creative initiative. Hundreds of projects have already been set in motion by different individuals and organizations.
This "facilitation" approach hopes to merge the wills of people everywhere and create a global conversation. The ultimate intention of the March is to achieve global Peace via the eradication of nuclear weapons; the progressive and proportional reduction of non-nuclear arms; the signing of non-aggression treaties among nations; and the renunciation by governments of war as a way to resolve conflicts, as well as creating bridges in communities currently divided amongst themselves.
The march will be successful according to its ability to reach the billions of people worldwide who are yearning for an end to the violence.
These goals take time, and will not be reached simply by one march or one seminar.
You can help by talking about the march with your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, fellow students, and total strangers.
This is a powerfully positive project, and I sincerely hope you will find an authentic way to get involved.
Most of you already know I've been talking about almost nothing but Peace events for the last few weeks ... and now you know why! So what am I doing besides talking?
The World March Team will be arriving in LA in December for ONE DAY. As the Orange County section of the LA/OC Welcoming Committee, Alec Marken and I are trying to create as much awareness about the March and its objectives before the arrival of the team as we can. Time is so short, and we have so little time to actually spend with the Marchers when they arrive, so we are doing all we can to get people involved.
Each event we hold has two purposes: to raise awareness about the March itself, and thus bring people's awareness to peaceful living, and to raise funds to support the arrival of the World Marchers in LA in December (providing food/lodging/transportatio
Because the main event is the arrival of the Marchers, and because we only have one day with them, we really are depending heavily on fundraising events to achieve both purposes. So far, we have 4 main events: one already past, (Bands and Bellies 1), Bands and Bellies 2 coming up on Nov 22, a bellydance show on November 29th at Merry's Fashion with Passion in Long Beach, and a symbolic peace march/celebration concert on the day the marchers arrive at Immanuel Presbyterian in LA (site of many civil rights marches)
Bands and Bellies was our first OC support event (featuring local bands and professional bellydancers) and it was marvelous success.
So many people volunteered their time, energy and creativity to the event, and many more are already stepping up for future events. To those of you have already gotten involved, I just cannot tell you how much I appreciate all your help!!
To those of you just hearing about this or who feel hesitant to get involved, let me just say that this is the ONLY World March planned, and it will only succeed in its objectives if people the world over become part of the solution rather than expecting someone else to fix everything. As someone once said "Don't wait for the government to step up, or think that 'they' will take care of it. Who are 'they?' There is no 'they!' There is only us- it has to be us!"*
If you can do nothing else, tell people about what we are doing and practice peace in your own life!
ANYTHING you can do to create peace makes life better for everyone!
http://www.worldmarchusa.n
*Michael Jackson, shortly before his passing.
