September 21st is the International Day of Peace, celebrated worldwide since 1981 when the UN declared it as a day to strengthen the ideals of peace. For the past two years in California, Fresno Hub leader Carol Goiburn and fellow activist Sharon Bell-Stevens have organized the local peace community in purchasing and presenting an international peace pole to one of the many deserving champions for peace and social justice. This year’s recipient of the peace pole was The Big Red Church located in Fresno’s Tower District.
The unveiling ceremony was open to the public, including local, state, and national elected officials. Senator Adam Schiff’s office sent the senator’s field representative, Sami Eastton, and after the ceremony, Ms. Goiburn and Ms. Eastton had a chance to get to know each other.
Events like these are a chance to build bridges between people for positive change. One local dignitary present at the ceremony was Dr. Sudarshan Kapoor. Dr. Kapoor is well known in Fresno as a staunch supporter of peace and a nuclear weapons abolitionist. Dr. Kapoor was the force behind the well-known Peace Garden located at Fresno State University, where every year a commemoration is held to remember those whose lives were lost to the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
The peace pole is a four-sided obelisk with the message “May Peace Prevail On Earth” in eight languages. Reverend Simon Biasell-Moshrefi and The Big Red Church’s social justice committee chose English, American Sign Language, Punjabi, Hebrew, Arabic, Hmong, Armenian, and Spanish as the languages they believe best represent their congregation. The peace pole stands close to the sidewalk where all passersby can easily see it and be reminded of the beauty and potential of peace. It is Ms. Goiburn’s hope that these peace poles will also function to alert the community of the dangers of nuclear weapons and raise awareness of the need to abolish them.
If you’re interested in joining the Back from the Brink Hub in Fresno, CA, please reach out to Carol Goiburn at cgoiburn@pm.me.
