Mothers’ Day of Peace
As Mother’s Day approaches, I am reminded of the original Mothers’ Day Proclamation of 1870, written by Julia Ward Howe in response to the destruction of war. Here is a snippet from the proclamation, “Arise, then … women of this day!… We women of one country will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. The sword of murder is not the balance of justice…” She called for a “Mothers’ Day of Peace.”
As mothers/parents, we have the immense responsibility to protect not only our own children but all the children of the world! We naturally respond to anything that threatens the well-being and safety of our children. We understand that children are defenseless.
It is outrageous that the greatest threat to children of our world is the United States military. If you haven’t seen the film, “Earth’s Greatest Enemy” — please do!
Arise, people of this day and find a battle to join. There are battles both locally and nationally to fight! We are needed to fight against genocide, pesticides, separation of families, concentration camps, underfunding public education, racism, transphobia, hunger, homelessness, health care and climate change.
Arise! We need to be proactive against mandatory miliary draft registration. It’s only a matter of time that the U.S. war machine will be looking for our sons and daughters again to fight their dirty wars.
Happy Mothers’ Day of Peace!