Day of Peace events
Each year the world observes the International Day of Peace on September 21. The UN General Assembly has declared this a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace by observing 24 hours of nonviolence and cease-fire. Never has our world needed peace more. This year’s UN theme is Actions for Peace: Our Ambition for the #GlobalGoals. It is a call to action that recognizes our individual and collective responsibilities to foster peace.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, “Peace is needed today more than ever. War and conflict are unleashing devastation, poverty and hunger, and driving tens of millions of people from their homes. Climate chaos is all around. And even peaceful countries are gripped by gaping inequalities and political polarization.”
Prescott Peacebuilders is a local nonprofit committed to building an identity of peace and a culture of nonviolence in Prescott. The group is inclusive and non-political, aligned with the core beliefs and practices of the International Campaign of Non-Violence, its mission to inspire our community to believe in and work toward a more peaceful, livable world.
For many years Prescott Peacebuilders has planned events to honor and celebrate this day. This year’s observance will feature three events.
On Sunday September 17 the group will present the documentary film Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down at the Prescott Public Library at 1:30pm, with a discussion on gun violence to follow.
Next will be a celebration on the Courthouse Plaza on Thursday September 21 at 6:30pm, with music and speakers. Those attending are being asked to bring battery-powered candles and peaceful signs. A highlight of this program will be several La Tierra students reading original poems and essays on the meaning of peace.
On Sunday September 24 the Peacebuilders events will culminate with a concert for peace in Granite Creek Park beginning at 1:30pm, featuring MacDougal Street West, Morphus, Salt of the Earth, Rita Cantu, Womansong and the Galactigogues. Attendees are encouraged to bring a picnic lunch, chairs and blankets to enjoy the concert. There will be no charge for any of the events; donations are welcome to help cover costs.
Questions? Write prescottpeacebuilders@gmail.com.
Empty Bowls September 17
This year’s Empty Bowls fundraiser will take place on the Courthouse Plaza on Sunday, September 17, 11-2pm. This well known and well loved annual event, organized by the Prescott Unitarian Universalist Fellowship and the Granite Peak Unitarian Universalist Congregation, showcases hundreds of handmade soup bowls, mostly ceramic but many of wood, by local artists, spread out on long tables.
For $20 each visitor can choose a bowl they love to hold soup from one of the many participating chefs and restaurants set up adjacent to the bowls, plus a piece of bread and bottle of water. The bowl is yours to keep and the funds raised all go toward local food-related charities. Empty Bowls draws many people to the Square, waiting patiently in a long snaking line to see the bowls on what is usually a beautiful early-fall day.
For more information visit prescott-empty-bowls.square.site.
