RECENTLY . . .
By Valarie Schwartz
Ah, that lazy, hazy days of summer feeling that sweeps over our towns as we feel the easing-against-the-seams that comes after the student population has greatly diminished. But before succumbing to summer, hold onto your desire to stretch and grow, because some amazing moments await anyone who visits the UNC campus during the first week of June.
The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) is holding its national congress there June 1-5. Every three years since the league’s inception in 1915, women and men have met to educate, invigorate and rejuvenate the membership and other lovers of peace and freedom through the league’s inclusive programs.
The Triangle North Carolina Chapter celebrated its 75th anniversary last December, and is thrilled to be hosting for the first time in Chapel Hill.
Chapel Hill native Lucy Lewis, assistant director of the UNC branch of the YMCA, watched her mother’s activism grow after she joined the group while raising six children as the Vietnam War escalated.
“Peace issues enticed her, but she became concerned about a much broader scope of issues,†said Lewis, who has also been a member since 1968.
Scrolling through the local, national or international WILPF websites provides plenty of reminders of how peace and freedom have been and still must be defended. According to Lewis, the local chapter has about 25 active members who aim high in seeking equality for all “in a world free of sexism, racism, classism and homophobia; the guarantee of fundamental human rights … and world disarmament.â€
Does that all seem too heavy for summertime?
The conference, titled, “End War–Local to Global,†eases the load with plenary sessions and workshops that include eyewitnesses from the front lines, like Kathy Kelly, head of Voices for Creative Nonviolence, who will speak about her recent visit to Afghanistan. The Rev. William Barber, president of the N.C. State Conference of the NAACP, presents the keynote speech Friday evening at the Hanes Art Center. Upon the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, Barber will point out the continued raging of the war in his speech titled “The Long March to Freedom, Equality and Justice: Building the Beloved Community of Faith, Labor and Civil Rights.†The speech is free and open to the public.
Saturday evening begins with a gala dinner reception catered by Vimala’s Curryblossom Cafe at 6, followed by Madeleine Rees, former head of office for the UN High Commissioner for the Rights of Women in Bosnia and now the Secretary General for WILPF International. Rees will speak before the pre-release screening of The Whistleblower, a feature film starring Rachel Weisz and Vanessa Redgrave. The movie chronicles the true story of an American woman who revealed the mass rapes and sexual atrocities perpetrated upon mostly Muslim women in Bosnia. The film will be shown in the Hanes Art Center theater and will be followed by a question-and-answer session and then a reception. The cost for the full evening is $30; $10 for just the movie.
If you want to support the cause but can’t attend the conference, make a sign and become a part of the “local action†Saturday afternoon beginning at 1:45 at the Peace and Justice Plaza (outside the Franklin Street post office).
“Raging Grannies from all over the country will be there singing,†Lewis said. She hopes to see lots of locals in attendance.
“We’d like to see hundreds of people come out,†Lewis said. “It’s a rare opportunity at a really critical time to meet with these people from around the country and the world to talk about what we can all do to build a stronger social-justice movement for peace and freedom.â€
Find the congress schedule at trianglewilpf.org (and be amazed as the cost of the war in Iraq ticks up) or call 370-4114 to sign up for any sessions.
If you’re new to all of this and need to begin more slowly, try tuning into weekly radio shows on WCOM (103.5 FM) from 5 to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, when WILPF members interview socially engaged folks in the community. The shows are available post-airing on the WCOM website.
WILPF meets locally on second Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon at Chapel Hill Friends Meeting House, Raleigh Road.
Contact Valarie Schwartz at 923-3746 or valariekays@mac.com