Above: Dr. Gina Fromer Speaking at International Peace Day Celebration last year
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By Dr. Gina Fromer, President & CEO of GLIDE
44 years ago, the United Nations chose September 21st to be the International Day of Peace. Every year our country celebrates this day, but our world isn’t getting any more peaceful. Why is peace so challenging to create?
GLIDE fights for peace and safety every day on the streets of San Francisco. Our approach considers all forms of violence that cause death, including economic violence. Where economic violence exists, physical violence often follows.
That’s why true peace is grounded in economic factors like housing, health care, food, safety, and opportunity. It’s also grounded in spiritual values like justice, dignity, and respect. Above all, peace is built on love! Without love, you have no foundation.
That’s why we build GLIDE around a love agenda. Most people know us for serving meals to unhoused people in the Tenderloin– but we also have dozens of other programs that alleviate poverty and suffering and bring peace to people’s lives. And our justice work includes a history of activism in international peace issues. The reach of GLIDE’s love is global!
Peace Activism in GLIDE’s History
During the Vietnam War, an anti-war activist spoke at Glide Memorial Church 12 days before he was imprisoned for resisting the draft. Our co-founder, Reverend Cecil Williams spoke at anti-Vietnam war protests as well. In 1983, our co-founders Janice Mirikitani and Reverend Cecil Williams protested the Livermore Nuclear Lab together.
When the War on Iraq started, Reverend Cecil was just as outspoken: he led nearly 11,000 people in an anti-war march and rally in SF on January 20th, 2003. In his speech he said, “Give us the facts before you bomb Iraq… we want the facts, George,” addressing the then-president of the United States.
This anti-war activism was a natural extension of GLIDE’s peacekeeping efforts on the streets– like the historic Citizens Alert project in the 60’s which operated a hotline, provided support for victims of police brutality, and advocated for police reform.
Today, I stand up and speak for immigrant rights, prison reform, and for world peace. Whether it’s a rally about ending slavery in prisons, or a celebration of International Peace Day, I step up to the podium and make sure GLIDE’s values are heard by this country.
Local and International Conflict Have Patterns in Common
There are so many similarities between what we see happening internationally and what we see happening on the streets of the Tenderloin. The global stage repeats what we see on the local stage.
Solving hunger and other basic needs also keeps peace on the streets. People who are hungry, tired, or otherwise suffering have a harder time using nonviolence to resolve conflicts.
The connection between hunger and conflict is playing out on the world stage as well. Let’s be real: hunger is often used as a weapon of war. We’ve seen many headlines recently about children in war zones starving. This is unacceptable. Children should not have to pay the price for adults’ mistakes. No child should ever go to bed hungry. I’ve been fighting for that cause all my life!
Peacekeepers Must Set an Example
Minimizing the force used by peacekeepers helps keep everyone safer. Whether it’s in global conflicts or on the streets, all too often, people intervening in conflict use more force than necessary. That’s why at GLIDE, our unarmed Community Safety Team keeps people safe not with force but with trust, respect, and compassion.
Without ever laying hands on a client, our Community Safety Team is able to use emotional intelligence and cultural understanding to resolve conflicts. The love our Safety Team feels for our community is foundational to GLIDE’s values.
Those Most Harmed Must Be Part of the Discussion
We recently convened a public safety forum at GLIDE, and we’re about to have more. The mission of that safety forum was to ensure the people most affected by violence in our city had input into city policies. I wish our world leaders also convened forums where they asked policy advice from those most affected by war! They certainly would learn a thing or two.
This International Day of Peace, we carry forward GLIDE’s legacy of peacemaking, from the Vietnam era to today, and we recommit ourselves to a vision of peace rooted in love. We must work together towards a world where every child is safe, every family is fed, and every person has a chance to live joyfully, without fear.
