Who talks about peace anymore? Maybe the word gets an honorable mention during your church service, but it almost seems like a quaint remnant of the ’60s. Peace signs and anti-war protests are ancient history.
Which is disconcerting at a time when the U.S. is actively at war in 14 countries, according to a special issue of Smithsonian magazine (“America at War”) published in January. I would bet most of us could only name a handful of the countries we are fighting in, much less explain why we are fighting there.
As Daphne Eviatar of Amnesty International USA said, “The U.S. public simply doesn’t see deaths in other countries. They don’t see civilians being killed in Iraq or Afghanistan. With everything going on in the United States at the moment, the fact that we’re even at war has largely fallen off the radar.”
Former President Jimmy Carter recently spoke out about the U.S. being the most warlike nation in the history of the world due to “Washington’s tendency to force other nations to adopt our American principles.” He noted that our country has only refrained from war for 16 of its 239 years. All that war costs money and the U.S. leads the pack in defense spending: in 2017, we spent $610 billion on defense — more than the next seven countries combined.
How do we start building a more peaceful world?
Mothers and Others for Peace wants to start by bringing peace back into the conversation. We are inspired by Julia Ward Howe, who in 1870, after witnessing the terrible loss of lives in the Civil War, published a “Mothers’ Day Proclamation” urging women to unite in resistance to war. Howe hoped Mothers’ Day would be a yearly event to celebrate and reinvigorate women as peacemakers.
Through the month of May, Mothers and Others for Peace explores the history and commitment of women as peacemakers in “Mothers’ Day: Back to Our Roots,” an exhibit at the Oak Park Public Library main branch (in the Community Room behind the check-out desk.)
Stop by and read Howe’s moving “Mothers’ Day Proclamation,” or pick up our brochure and find tips on resolving conflict through nonviolent communication, based on Marshall Rosenberg’s teachings. Tell us “one thing you can do for peace” in your personal life, your community, or your world, and share your answer with us by posting it on our display.
The library has stacks of books for all ages that you can check out on peace and peacemakers. Tell us about a book about peace that has inspired you, and post that on our wall too! Then share your books, stories, songs or poems in our discussion, “What Books About Peace Have Inspired You?” on Monday, May 6, 1-3 pm.
Or bring the kids to make a flower for peace at one of our three paper-flower making activities. “Make a Flower, Give a Flower,” is an easy, fun craft for all ages. We encourage participants to give away a flower — maybe to someone who would least expect it. Stop in Saturday, May 4 and 11, from 1 to 3 p.m., or Wednesday, May 8 from 2 till 4.
Whatever you do, join us in honoring Mothers’ Day by bringing peace back into our hearts, our politics, and our world.
Thank you to the library for hosting our project, and to the League of Women Voters of Oak Park-River Forest for their sponsorship.
Find out more about us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/MothersAndOthersForPeace/
Diane Scott is a member of Mothers and Others for Peace and writes the oldbagblog.com.