Note from Kathie MM: I received this essay today from fellow peace and social justice activist Dot Walsh. I believe that, increasingly, everyone who believes in, values, and seeks peace and social justice needs to find ways to support organizations like the William Joiner Institute for War and Social Consequences, along with Engaging Peace. Read. And don’t weep. Act.
From Jimmy Jeenz’s website: https://jummyjeenz.com/2018/07/01/the-origin-of-peace/
The Origin Of Peace (shortened and lightly edited)
by Deana J. Tavares 7/1/18
Where exactly does peace begin, and where does it end? I believe peace begins with the individual. Peace dries the tears of oppression, hate, injustice, and unites us. Heals us. It softens our chains by growing flowering fields of beauty within the seas of fear and distrust. One bloom at a time.
I believe peace ends when we lose faith in its possibility and turn angrily and violently towards the pursuit of hatred and war. I believe it ends when race, culture, class, and our various differences are demonized instead of celebrated. I believe it ends the very moment a bright-eyed child full of potential is shot and killed because lines have been drawn, and enemies have been forged.
Peace also ends when we don’t acknowledge the loss of innocence and light within our veterans’ eyes, young women and men alike. When the darkness of war pervades every pore of their being, we lose 22 vets a day as a result of suicide, due to morals and values being questioned when weighed against patriotism. This is the reality of war.
So, how do we collect, cultivate, and harvest peace, and distribute it out into the world? There are many organizations of activists, artists, writers, and performers actively engaged in pursuit of peaceful paths in which to educate and create change. These are also the types of programs that don’t receive adequate funding in order to continue their mission of growing community, promoting peace, and healing our world.
One such program is the William Joiner Institute For War And Social Consequences. For 31 years, the Joiner programs have actively brought together writers across cultures, socio-economic backgrounds, religions, and countries. The programs have united Vietnam and United States veterans in hand to hand friendship, together healing the scars of combat. The Joiner summer writers workshops allow individuals to learn by sharing their perspectives about war and social issues in a safe, understanding, and nurturing environment where the consequences of war are no longer avoided, but processed, and healed.
Graduates of the program give peace a voice within their own countries, communities, schools, organizations, and individual creative practices. In organizations like the Joiner Institute, change begins when we use our voices to find the common threads weaving us together, strengthening our collective quilt of compassion and understanding.
To find out more about The William Joiner Institute for War and Social Consequences, go to their website: https://www.umb.edu/joinerinstitute
#savethejoiner