hoping for peaceful tomorrows

Since the second anniversary of the attack on the WTC and the Pentagon is tomorrow, I thought I'd highlight the work of an organisation of which I'm a member: Peaceful Tomorrows. The name comes from a quote by Martin Luther Jr. which says: "Wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows." The organisation is composed of family members of people who died in the September 11th attack who have recognised the futility of resolving issues via guns and war. The Peaceful Tomorrows mission is: "is to seek effective, nonviolent solutions to terrorism, and to acknowledge our common experience with all people similarly affected by violence throughout the world. By conscientiously exploring peaceful options in our search for justice, we hope to spare additional families the suffering we have experienced--as well as to break the cycle of violence and retaliation engendered by war. In doing so, we work to create a safer world for the present and future generations."

With this in mind the Peaceful Tomorrows group has produced a book of essays by members called: September 11th Families For Peaceful Tomorrows: Turning Our Grief into Action for Peace , which is available in all good bookstores in the USA, and via online stores such as Amazon.

The group has also organised Circles of Hope events in the USA and elsewhere commencing today to mark the second anniversary of September 11, 2001. If you look through the very long list of events you will probably see a vigil of some kind close to where you live that you can attend if you wish.

The biggest event no doubt will be the WTC Circle of Hope Vigil in NY which starts at 6.45pm at Union Square, and moves off in a silent procession at 7.15pm down Broadway to eventually encircle the WTC site in a candlelight vigil. Unfortunately, due to fire regulations candles can't be used, so people attending are asked to bring flashlights instead. I think it's a dignified and fitting way to mark the tragic event, and I hope there will be clear skies so the full moon can shine down upon them.

Article Author: Maura McHugh

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