Honoring a truly great man, deserving of peace prizes

by Stefan Schindler

Nobel Peace Prize: The medal

There are many things we could say about this leader and the respect he has earned–for his courage, his values, his integrity. But he says it best himself.

“I ain’t draft dodging. I ain’t burning no flag. I ain’t running to Canada. I’m staying right here. You want to send me to jail? Fine, you go right ahead. I’ve been in jail for 400 years. I could be there for 4 or 5 more, but I ain’t going no 10,000 miles to help murder and kill other poor people. If I want to die, I’ll die right here, right now, fightin’ you, if I want to die. You my enemy, not no Chinese, no Vietcong, no Japanese. You my opposer when I want freedom. You my opposer when I want justice. You my opposer when I want equality. Want me to go somewhere and fight for you? You won’t even stand up for me right here in America, for my rights and my religious beliefs. You won’t even stand up for my right here at home. “ — Muhammad Ali (nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the US Gandhi Foundation, 2007)

That quote says it all. Which is why we  honored Ali with The Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award (“we” being The Life Experience School and Peace Abbey family and friends), and why we were equally honored to have his presence and his words at the unveiling of The Memorial Stone for Unknown Civilians Killed in War — Ali reminding all of us gathered there that nine out of ten casualties in modern war are civilians, and more than half of these are children.

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Muhammad Ali receiving Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award

Stefan Schindler is a philosopher, teacher, and poet.  He is co-author with Lewis Randa, the founder of The Life Experience School and Peace Abbey, of The National Registry for Conscientious Objection.  Stefan is a frequent contributor to Engaging Peace; a Board Member of The Life Experience School and Peace Abbey; author of The Courage of Conscience Awards for John Lennon and Howard Zinn; and author of Space is GraceDiscoursing with the GodsThe Tao of Socrates, and America’s Indochina Holocaust, and Buddha’s Political Philosophy.

Engaging in peace: A personal story (Part 2)

By guest author Dorothy Walsh

Coming from a middle class family, I had to learn about what Gandhi called the worst kind of violence: poverty.

Dot Walsh in South AfricaMen and women on the streets struggling with addictions or homelessness needed someone to hear their stories and not judge them. I found I could offer kindness and compassion without becoming a victim myself.

Working at STEP, a treatment on demand facility with staff members and clients coming out of prison, reinforced my connection to my brothers and sisters.

Over the years, I have taught a mediation course at a local college and organized and developed a volunteer program at the homeless shelter, Rosie’s Place. I also supervised students from nine schools in the Boston area who set forth emboldened in the quest to show that there are alternatives to violence even in an unjust society.

While at the Peace Abbey, I met and greeted peacemakers from all over the world. I had the honor of presenting Rosa Parks with the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award, giving a big hug to Joan Baez, sitting with Maya Angelou, and traveling to South Africa with the Mandela Award. More recently, I participated in giving a Courage of Conscience Award to the Benebikira Sisters of Rwanda (http://engagingpeace.com/?p=1155).

I have found that in every situation someone shows up who can help us find the courage to begin again, to rise above the dark clouds and find the rainbow. This was true even in the closing of the Peace Abbey, a sanctuary of peace not only for me but for countless others.

Before long, I was introduced by friends to storytelling and writing and began telling prison and other stories from my life’s  journey. In a world with much violence, we do well to remember the words of Gene Knudsen Hoffman (1919-2010), “An enemy is one whose story we have not heard.”

This story-telling venture led to the “Oneness and Wellness” program I am currently hosting for Dedham Cable TV, sharing the stories of guests who seek to make this world a better place for all.

Dot Walsh, lifelong peace activist