What is all this yammering about Peace?

You know that famous quote "Let there be Peace and let it begin with me?" Well, here I go. For the last two years I have been working closely with an organization called the Student Peace Alliance (SPA). SPA is the college and high school affiliate of a larger movement that is organizing a campaign for a Department of Peace in the federal government.

To be honest, I originally joined SPA because I wanted to get to know someone else in the club a little bit better (if you know what I mean). Since then, my involvement has extended far beyond what my generation calls "social networking." As a student, teacher, daughter, sister and friend, I have seen the real impact of violence on a personal level. As a member of the movement, I have also learned about the role that violence plays in contributing to economic, social and environmental unrest.

The Peace Alliance, and the Student Peace Alliance, is a movement of people who are actively seeking to create a Nonviolent society. From the top we are lobbying for legislation that supports peace and nonviolence and from the bottom we are working in our own communities to live nonviolently and to help others do the same.

THIS IS NOT AN ANTI-WAR CAMPAIGN. I am grateful for the sacrifice that men and women who are in the armed forces make for this country, and for the sacrifices their families and communities make in supporting them. I also believe that by practicing nonviolence we can find a peaceful end to conflicts domestically and abroad that will have a safer, more secure and happier outcome for us and the people who protect our country and way of life.

It is time for my to deepen my commitment to nonviolence by asking you to get involved and to let you know about the work I have been doing over the last few years. Please, click on the links above to learn more about the Peace Alliance and the work we are doing and supporting in this country and around the world. Post comments, ask questions, and participate in the action by becoming a donor or writing a letter to your representatives in Washington.

Peace.

Etta