COMMUNITY OF PEACE
Saturday, February 15, 2003
By Ray Wolf
MOUNT SHASTA - I'll be up front. I'm not a big fan of peace demonstrations. It's not because I don't agree with the message. It's because I don't enjoy being in crowds. Yet, today was different. Today, I joined with a worldwide community of peace to send the message to the war mongers in Washington D.C. and London that we will not sit idle while plans are being made to sacrifice American and Iraqi lives for oil profits.
I arrived early at St. Anthony's Parish in Mount Shasta so I could observe the arrival of my fellow peace activists. I wanted to see what vehicles they drove. I wanted to see whether they chose to walk instead of drive. Many did walk despite the thirty-nine degree temperature and the steady rain. I was interested in how they dressed. I wanted to see if a certain type of person typified the contemporary peace activist.
What I learned was that there is no one single type of person objecting to an attack on Iraq. The man who parked in front of me displayed an American flag in his car's rear window. When he got out of the car, I noticed that he was wearing a ball cap that read, " Viet Nam Veteran." There were many Viet Nam veterans demonstrating for peace today.
Many of the peace activists carried American flags. They were obviously proud to be Americans, but they understand that what our government is about to do in Iraq is illegal, illogical, and immoral. They recognize that it is our duty as U.S. citizens to speak out and educate our fellow citizens.
As the march moved down Mount Shasta Blvd towards the post office, I stopped walking and watched as about 350 people walked slowly past me. In the crowd, I saw local business owners. I saw both old friends and new ones. I saw people of faith. I saw people who for reasons of age or injury could barely make the walk. I saw parents with young children. I saw teenagers. I saw people who I know darn well voted for Bush.
Today, this diverse group of people was united with over six million of their brothers and sisters from around the world in a single committed community-a community of peace. I was privileged to be among them. |
