Mid-Missouri Peaceworks celebrates UN Day of Peace

Residents and organizations rallied for UN day.

By Sam Butterfield

Published Sept. 22, 2008

In celebration of the United Nations' International Day of Peace, some Columbia residents have taken to the streets the past few days to rally behind a common ideal: that peace prevail.

Representatives of Mid-Missouri Peaceworks and other volunteers went door-to-door Saturday as part of Million Doors for Peace, a national project affiliated with the organization United for Peace and Justice. The last rally event is today.

The volunteers participated in what Lily Tinker Fortel of Mid-Missouri Peaceworks called "the largest anti-war mobilization of 2008," in the hopes of obtaining signatures for a petition calling on Congress to bring home all troops from Iraq within one year.

"It's a really great way to send a message to our national representatives and to our fellow citizens that we're ready for this war to be over," Tinker Fortel said of the door-to-door effort.

Sunday saw a large peace rally starting at Douglass Park, which focused on combating violence within the community, as hundreds of citizens and members of local organizations such as the Youth Community Coalition, Imani Mission Center, and Destiny of HOPE turned out to march to the Boone County Courthouse.

Residents affiliated with various churches and charities came out in throngs waving cardboard peace signs and green placards with an image of a dove reading "neighbors for peace."

The rally started inside a small roofed picnic table area with Heather Windham of Rainbow House Columbia, a children's charity, addressing those in the audience and encouraging them to take first-hand steps to curb violence, rather than allowing the police to solely handle problems.

"We're hoping to increase awareness that it's up to all of us to stop the violence in our city," Windham said.

After Windham outlined the agenda for the rally, she turned her bullhorn over to Darrell Foster of First Ward Ambassadors. Foster gave an impassioned cry for advancement within the black community, saying "you young people have the opportunity to get an education, to be successful."

Foster called America "a buffoon," arguing that Americans need to collectively act to protect each other.

Jeff Johnson, a community activist from St. Louis, then delivered a plea for unity and justice, saying "people hollerin' about how we don't care, we all care."

Johnson advocated for positive parental involvement in children's lives and for citizens to inform themselves so as not to be caught off guard by the criminal justice system.

"If you don't know the justice system, you better know it," he said. "You can be whatever you want to be, stay in school and get an education."

Furthering the rally's aim of unity, Columbia Police Department officer Mike Hayes and Interim Police Chief Tom Dresner also spoke at the event. Hayes, who runs the Neighborhood Watch program, said "it bothers me that people think one, two, three of us can't make a difference," while Dresner sought to address a prevailing belief that the CPD is uninterested in hearing allegations of misconduct or abuses.

"Place some faith in our new Professional Standards Unit," Dresner said before explaining that CPD has a new bureau in place required to listen to and investigate all complaints. "We have 152 people down there that care about you very much, and if there are some bad ones, well, we want to do something about it."

After the officers spoke, several more speakers were given the opportunity to voice their sentiments, including one man who wore a Ku Klux Klan hood and carried a sign wrapped in a noose, accusing CPD of corruption.

From there, the marchers proceeded from the park toward Boone County Courthouse on Walnut Street. The marchers, who included members of the various organizations and citizens who wished to vocalize their anti-violence stance, chanted "Stop the violence, peace on the streets," as they paraded through downtown.

The marchers spoke numerous languages as they proceeded and represented groups ranging in interest from the environment and international peace to local churches, reflecting the UN's mission of one day of uninterrupted, unrestrained peace for all.

Laura Hopkins, a Columbia resident who marched Sunday, said she would like to see legislation passed to deal with violence.

"It's really important that people let our politicians know that we the people will not stand for violence," she said.

After the march, the participants cooled off for a few hours before heading to Elm Street Yoga for a Peace Trance Dance, where they were encouraged to find balance and groove for peace.

Tuesday was the culmination of Peaceworks' activities for the celebration, as Tinker Fortel, who traveled to Iran this May, presented the documentary "Iran is Not the Problem" at MU's agriculture building. Tinker Fortel was introduced to the program, run by the organization Friends to Iran, a subsidiary of the Fellowship of Reconciliation, through Peaceworks. She traveled to Tehran, Shiraz, Esfahan, Qom, Persepolis and several rural areas over the first two weeks of May with 21 other Americans, serving as a civilian diplomat attempting to bridge cultural gaps for peace.

Tinker Fortel stressed that though language and religious barriers existed, her message was that humans need to see more similarities than difference within each other to create peace.

Although the screening of the documentary did not draw a blockbuster crowd, Tinker Fortel offered personal experience and showed a multitude of photos of her trip, emphasizing the personal connections she made and the overwhelming warmth with which the Iranians greeted her delegation.

On whether or not she had been duped as a political pawn by the Iranians, Tinker Fortel responded with a message that summarized both the UN and Peaceworks' message for the peace events, saying "the Fellowship of Reconciliation has a vision of peace and justice, of people living in harmony with the earth and at peace, and if somebody wants to use me for that, I'm fine with that."