05-Jul-2004
The biggest contingent by far in Montclair's Fourth of July parade, which was held today, was a block-long peace coalition sporting colorful t-shirts and signs calling for supporting our troops by bringing them home from the war in Iraq.
It is a message that hopefully is blooming across America. To help hone that message, I'm participating in two workshops at the Veterans for Peace National Convention in Boston on July 23. I've posted some details on my Workshops page. Full information on the convention is at www.veteransforpeace.org.
Indeed, much of my vacation this month involves speaking at workshops on the fine arts of peacemaking and writing. As I wrote in an essay on nuclear war and poetry years ago, if we blow ourselves off the face of the Earth, there go our arts as well. It would be wonderful to see the military some day working to protect our future, rather than refighting old battles.
