One World Peace Walk on Sep 9th

We invite people to join in The One World Peace Walk on September 9th to bring attention to the devastating toll of war on civilians in the Middle East, Darfur, and around the world. Cities and towns have been destroyed, missiles have been rained down on population centers, and hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes. The numbers are appalling: over 1,000 civilians killed and 970,000 people displaced in Lebanon, over 3.8 million people affected in Darfur. The situation in Iraq continues to be dismal with between 41,000 and 100,000 civilian causalities in addition to the tragic toll on our military forces. Join us as we walk to speak out for peace and to tell all world leaders that targeting of civilians is unacceptable and must be stopped.

The walk is sponsored by the Walpole Peace and Justice Group and is supported by the Peace Abby in Sherborn as well as local church outreach groups. Walkers will carry a small replica of the Peace Abbey’s 2 ton memorial stone that has traveled to Arlington National Cemetery, Belfast, Nagasaki, and Hiroshima. The Peace Walk will start at the Norwood Common at 1:45 PM with an opening ceremony and end at the Walpole Common at 4:30 PM with a closing ceremony. We recommend that people park their cars in Walpole and take the MBTA bus from Walpole to Norwood. The walk will proceed down Route 1A and is 4.6 miles long. Water will supplied along the route and refreshments will be served at the closing ceremony.

We are honored to have Joseph Gerson, Program Director for the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) in New England speak at the closing ceremonies. He has been an influential voice on issues of peace and justice since 1976 and has spoken at over 70 colleges and at international conferences. He has given the keynote addresses at the World Conference Against A&H Bombs in Hiroshima, the Japan Peace conference in Sasebo, and the Swedish Peace Council. Dr. Gerson is the author of several books and numerous articles on peace and justice. We will also have a group sing led by local musicians. The public is invited to join the walk or, if you are unable to walk, join us at the closing ceremony to hear Dr. Gerson speak.

Philip Czachorowski