2/02/06 Honor King In Season For Nonviolence
Submitted by WNPJ member Jean McElhaney
Thursday, February 2, 2006
Dear Editor: Coretta Scott King, another champion for social justice, has passed away. But you and I are alive, and we are still shaping the world each day with our actions.
I suggest that we honor her memory by participating in the Season for Nonviolence, which was inspired by the 30th and 50th anniversaries of the deaths of Martin Luther King Jr. and M.K. Gandhi. It is a 64-day period, from Jan. 30 to April 3 each year, that is specially dedicated to demonstrating the power of nonviolence to heal and transform our lives and our communities.
Participation can take many forms. These include things like cultivating a specific quality of nonviolence each day (e.g., courage, forgiveness, respect, etc., for self and others), transforming a personal conflict, studying the lives and teachings of nonviolent leaders, supporting organizations working for nonviolent social change, and joining the movement to create a Cabinet-level Department of Peace. Use your imagination, love and will to find the way that is right for you!
For more information, check out these Web sites: www.agnt.org/snv02.htm for the Season for Nonviolence, www.ThePeaceAlliance.org for the Department of Peace Campaign, and www.nonviolentpeaceforce.org for the Nonviolent Peaceforce.
You may be part of a group that would like to sponsor a speaker or a workshop on nonviolence. The Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, www.wnpj.org, maintains a speaker's bureau. Facilitators for workshops on nonviolence can be found by contacting the Fellowship of Reconciliation, www.for.org.