Santa Barbara News-Press
Santa Barbara, California
February 1, 2000
[photo, not shown here, titled:]
Long March
[captioned:]
Mike Eliason/News-Press
Participants in the Global Peace Walk travel State Street to draw attention to the U.N.
News Press Staff Report
Global Peace Walk participants stopped at De la Guerra Plaza Monday on their way to the East Coast to bring attention to what members called questionable actions of the United Nations. "We want global peace now," said Trilight Ray, a member of the group. "The U.N. has gotten involved in war and in breaking its own charter."
About 20 participants gathered in a peace vigil that included chanting prayers and drumming.
While making their cross-country journey, the group has been gathering proclamations from mayors that support Global Peace Walk Day, which is June 2. Two years ago, Mayor Harriet Miller signed such a proclamation.
Six members walked to her office to ask that she attend the peaceful gathering, but they were told she was in a meeting and will attend the vigil today.
The group began the walk on Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday on Jan. 15 at the War Memorial Building in San Francisco. From Santa Barbara, the group plans to head to the Cesar Chavez Memorial near Bakersfield and then Hollywood before they reach the Nevada nuclear weapons test site by mid-February.
Members plan to hold peace vigils at the end of February at the Nevada site called Big Mountain before heading to New Mexico to attend the Global Peace Zone ceremonies in April.
By Aug. 6, they plan to gather in St. Louis and meet other groups before walking to Washington, D.C. On Oct. 9 they will re-dedicate the Washington Monument for Peace and then arrive Oct. 24 at the United Nations in New York City.
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[Description of photo:]
Global Peace Walkers walking down the east side of State Street in Santa Barbara just below the entrance to De La Guerra Plaza next to City Hall. At the request of Reverend Yusen Yamato, shown at the left, the walk that day was lead by David Crockett Williams, shown on the right, both beating on the Celestial Drums, the flat prayer drum with a handle carried walking by practitioners following the example of the Most Venerable Nichidatsu Fujii while chanting the Na Mu Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo universal medicine word mantra for "Global Peace Now!"
More information on Nichidatsu Fujii, "Guruji" is at:
http://www.dharmawalk.org
Note the October 9 date was chosen because it is John Lennon's birthday and in the year 2000 the Global Peace Walk conducted a ceremony there then to re-rededicate the Washington Monument as a Symbol of the Message of Peace, as per the example of the peace pole of ancient history, see more info at:
https://www.angelfire.com/on/GEAR2000/peacepole.html