Celebrating the International Day of Peace
By JoAnn Gaines, CDTL CA-36

The International Day of Peace provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations, communities, nations and governments to commemorate and celebrate a shared day for peace and to create practical acts of peace.

On Nov 30, 1981, the UN General Assembly resolved to establish The International Day of Peace to coincide each year with the opening of the General Assembly (the third Tuesday of September). It was to be "devoted to commemorating and strengthening the ideals of peace both within and among all nations and peoples; ..." The first Peace Day was celebrated in September 1982.

In 1999, British filmmaker Jeremy Gilley began work to convince the UN to establish the first-ever Day of Peace with a fixed calendar date. On Sept 7, 2001 the Member States of the UN unanimously adopted the first-ever annual day of global ceasefire and non-violence--"Peace Day" -- to be observed on September 21.

The inspirational feature documentary "Peace One Day" documents Jeremy's efforts. Peace One Day now works to create global awareness of the day, to inspire global ceasefire observance, and to manifest life-saving activity and individual action throughout the world on Sept. 21 each year.

Jeremy's new documentary with the actor Jude Law, "The Day after Peace," largely focuses on preparations for life-saving activities in Afghanistan during the 24-hour ceasefire held on Sept. 21, 2007. Guns fell silent in Afghanistan on Peace Day again in 2008. Watch the CNN video with Jeremy and Jude Law: Peace Day: Afghanistan.  An Associated Press article can also be found online.

Anyone, anywhere can celebrate Peace Day. Last year, over 100 million people marked the day. Events ranged in scale from private gatherings to public concerts and forums where hundreds of thousands of people participated.

Individuals, organizations, schools, places of worship, government departments and agencies, etc., can commemorate and celebrate in an appropriate manner. This may include observing a minute of silence at noon, ringing of bells, sharing the universal wish "May Peace Prevail on Earth," peace walks, community service projects, cultural exhibits and performances, religious/spiritual services or events (including interfaith/interspiritual activities), special events at libraries, and other education and public awareness activities in order to help to establish a global day of peace in our homes, our communities and between nations.

Schools have held assemblies, watched the Peace One Day film(s), sponsored peace education programs, taken on community service projects, or simply celebrated by joining in a minute of silence at noon and envisioning a world of peace and plenty.

Other actions around the world have included vaccination campaigns, food drops, arms handover ceremonies, peace walks, peace-related discussions and debates, concerts and cultural performances, art exhibitions, peace prayer/flag ceremonies, and memorial services.
This year, in support of Peace Day and Culture of Peace Month (Sept), our region obtained five Peace Day Proclamations from local City Councils, held two Walks for Peace in the L.A. area, participated in Ojai's second annual three-day celebration, "Living Peace in Ojai," and more. And a number of our students attended the Peace Jam Call to Action Conference at Loyola Marymount University in L.A., September 11-13.

A wealth of information is available on the website www.InternationalDayOfPeace.org ; also www.un.org/events/peaceday. 

"May Peace Prevail on Earth"