| 29 Peace Monuments |
29 Peace Monuments
Dedicated in 1992
Right click image to enlarge.
June 3-14, 1992 - Peace Monument, UN Conference on Environment & Development (Earth Summit), Brasilia (Brazil). Erected by the Baha'i International Community and the Baha’i Community of Brazil. Contains soil samples from nearly 150 countries, a symbolic representation of the oneness of humanity and the global cooperation needed to achieve lasting peace. On September 19, 2000, the final earth samples from 26 nations were deposited [as shown in image].
1992 - Platz der Vereinten Nationen / United Nations Square, Friedrichshain, Berlin (Germany). Named Landsberger Platz 1864-1950 and Leninplatz 1950-1992. The square contained 19 meter Lenindenkmal / Lenin Monument (upper image) designed by Nikolai Tomski (president of the Academy of Arts, USSR) from 1970 until 1991 when the district of Friedrichshain voted 40 to 13 to demolish it. On 13 November the 3.5-ton head was removed, as depicted in the film Good Bye, Lenin! 129 parts were buried in the sand pit at Seddinberg at Berlin- Müggelheim. A fountain (lower image) designed by Adalbert Maria Klees replaced the monument in 1994.
1992 - International World Peace Rose Garden, Martin Luther King, Jr., National Historic Site, Atlanta, Georgia (USA). One of several WPRG's sponsored by International World Peace Rose Gardens, Sacramento, California (USA).Visited by EWL.
1992 - Monument de la Paix / Peace Monument, Central City, Bamako (Mali). Arch is two arms supporting a sphere (the earth?) topped with a dove of peace. Photographed by Lowell & Marge Owens.
1992 - Charlie Brooks Memorial Peace Fountain, Detroit River, Windsor, Ontario (Canada). At former Coventry Gardens. "Floats in the Detroit River and has a coloured light display at night. The fountain is the largest of its kind in North America and symbolizes the peaceful relationship between Canada and the USA." Entry #1342 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). Visited by EWL.
1992 - "Plus Jamais la Guerre / War Never Again," (Monument a la Paix et au Souvenir de Hull / Hull Peace & Remembrance Monument), Boulevards Saint-Joseph & Alexandre-Tache, Hull, Quebec (Canada). "Six wall sculptures depict the progress towards the common goal of peace in three materials (concrete, steel & granite)... A collaboration of the Royal Canadian Legion, the City of Hull & the Department of National Defense." Entry #1348 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). Left image by EWL 12Aug2012.
1992 - Memorial Arch, Peace Park, Eau Claire Promenade, Prince's Island Park, 2 Avenue & 8 Street SW, Calgary, Alberta (Canada). "In 1992 the park was dedicated as part of a Canada 125 project to commemorate Canada's peacekeepers (one of 250 peace parks that opened throughout Canada that year). Memorial Arch acts as a memorial to the soldiers who died in World War 1, 2 and the Korean War. Originally, the Arch was part of the Strathcona Building built during WW1. The Arch was salvaged when the building was demolished and spent several years in City storage before it was erected at the Bridgeland LRT station in 1985. It was dismantled block by block and reconstructed in Peace Park in 1992." Twelve elm trees arranged in a circle, an ancient Bosco Sacro design that represents peace, were also planted in the park.
April 15, 1992 - Plaque entitled "Sri Chinmoy International Peace Falls," Niagara Falls, Ontario (Canada). Text: "The Falls of Niagara joins hundreds of beautiful, significant and inspiring sites throughout the world which have been dedicated to the cause of peace and international friendship. With its thunderous majesty, Niagara reminds of the boundless energizing power of a higher force. Such will one day be the power of peace on earth. When human beings everywhere aspire and strive for peace based on love and the feeling of oneness, the cascading power of this peace will transform the fate of humanity. A Sri Chinmoy Peace Site is born of the spirit of oneness. It exists for one reason: to inspire a stronger sense of internationalism and fellowship among peoples in all countries. It takes its name from a man who has dedicated his life to this goal. Sri Chinmoy is an international ambassador of peace who has dedicated his life to the pursuit of world harmony and the fulfilment of the unlimited potential of the human spirit. Niagara Falls a spectacular natural wonder. World peace an unprecedented human achievement. The Niagara Parks Commission 1992." Image & information courtesy of Ed Buckner, president of American Atheists.
"...In 1996, a plaque associated with Sri Chinmoy at the Statue of Liberty [New York City, NY (USA)] was removed by the National Park Service after several weeks of protests due to a call by American Atheists, who viewed this as a violation of the separation of church and state."
1992 - Chiune Sugihara Memorial, Vilnius (Lithuania). By Vladas Vildžiunas and Goichi Kutogawa. Shiune Sugihara [1900-1986] was a Japanese diplomat who helped thousands of Jews leave the Soviet Union while serving as consul of the Empire of Japan in Lithuania. Vilnius is called "The Jerusalem of Lithuania."
1992 - Monumento ŕ Paz / Peace Monument, Avenida Beira-Mar Norte, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina (Brazil). Erected by the Bahá'í faith. "It is possible to read another phrase that Bahá'u'lláh says. "Peace is not only possible, but inevitable is the next stage in the evolution of this planet." [Google translation]
1992 - "May We Have Peace," entrance to Parrington (North) Oval, Oklahoma University, Norman, Oklahoma (USA). 11-foot bronze statue by Native American artist Allan Houser [1914-1994]. Features a Chiricahua Apache man with a peace pipe. "In 1994, Houser returned to Washington, DC, for the last time to present the US government with the sculpture, 'May We Have Peace,' a gift, he said, 'To the people of the United States from the First Peoples.' The gift was accepted by First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton for installation at the Vice President’s residence [now at the National Museum of the American Indian]."
1992 - Disappeared - La Paz (Peace Dove), HemisFair Park, San Antonio, Texas (USA). Sculpture of a dove with its wings wrapped around the world. Sculpted by Cuauhtemoc Zamudio. "I have a request in to our San Antonio Parks & Rec department to find out what they did with the lovely peace dove, a gift from our sister city of Monterrey, Mexico, that disappeared from HemisFair Park a while ago." /// Information courtesy of Susan Ives (San Antonio Peace Center).
1992 - Historial de la Grande Guerre / Museum of the Great War, Péronne (France). "Near the heart of the Somme battlefields. Looks mostly at WW-I & the years just before & just after. Strives to place war in a social context, stressing 'the common suffering of the combatants' & 'the civilians, who were equally mobilised by the war effort.' Additionally, it has two major permanent specialist exhibits: Prisoners of War & Children in World War I."
1992 - Insan Haklari Aniti / Human Rights Monument , Karsiyaka, Izmir (Turkey). "Sculptured by Bihvat Mavitan in 1992. Human Rights Made up of three elements that represent majority & democracy. That’s why it’s not a single composition. Biggest element is the door to human rights. The road going human rights passes through this door and reaches eternity, symbolizing the hope of society for improvement." HIGHWAYS RIGHTS TURKEY 1992
1992 - Seodaemun Prison History Hall, Seodaemun Independence Park, 251, Tongil-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul (South Korea). "A living history site for Korean history where visitors can pay a high tribute to the patriotic ancestors who valiently fought against the Japanese invasion for sovereign independence, and renew the determination of the spirit of independece." The prison opened about 1910. Info courtesy of Gerard Lössbroek.
1992 - "Monumento a la Paz," Parque Juan Carlos I, Madrid (Spain). By sculptor Yolanda d'Augsburg (born 1942 in Brazil, works in Spain).
1992 - "Reconciliation/Hands Across the Divide" Statue, west end of Craigavon Bridge, Londonderry (Northern Ireland). Produced by Maurice Harron. An image of the statue illustrates the website and brochures of the "Ulster Project" in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (USA).
1992 - 1st International Conference of the not yet formed International Network of Museums for Peace (INMP) in Bradford (England). Arranged by "Give Peace a Chance." Over 30 peace museums from 10 countries (including Australia, Japan & USA) exchanged experiences and make a start on future cooperation.
1992 - Japanese American National Museum (JANM), 369 East First Street, Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, California (USA). 85,000-square-foot (7,900 m2) Pavilion added in April 1999 with new "Heart of Community" exhibit presenting Japanese internment during WW-II. Entry #81 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). One of 27 US museums in "Museums for Peace Worldwide" edited by Kazuyo Yamane (2008). Video | Website | A Smithsonian Inst Affiliate.
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ESeptember 12, 1992 - Vandalized August 8, 1996 - WVU "Peace Tree," West Virginia University, Morgantgown, West Virginia (USA). "Commemorates the University's commitment to the rediscovery of America's Indian heritage. Chief Leon Shenandoah, Tadodaho (Presiding Moderator) of the Grand Council of the Haudenosaunee Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy, & Chippewa Chief Robert TallTree, also a musician, artisan and storyteller, were invited to plant & bless the tree. On August 8, 1996, vandals cut down the Peace Tree. A second Peace Tree, which still stands today, was planted by Mohawk Chief Jake Swamp on October 19, 1996. /// According to Haudenosaunee oral tradition, the Creator sent a Peacemaker to unite the warring Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, Mohawk & Onondaga Nations by planting the original Tree of Peace at Onondaga [New York] ca. 1000 A.D. The Tree marked the formation of the Haudenosaunee Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy. As told by Chief Jake Swamp, when the Tree was planted, the Peacemaker told the first leaders: 'This will be the symbol that we will use. The white pine will be the symbol of peace. Now the greenery of this tree will represent the peace you have agreed to. Every time you look at this tree and its greenery, you will be reminded of this peace you agreed to because this tree never changes color the year round, it's always green, so shall be your peace.'"
September 15, 1992 - World Peace Bell, Cowra Civic Square, Cowra, New South Wales (Australia). There was a POW camp for Japanese and Italian military personnel in Cowra during World War II. On August 5, 1944 at least 545 Japanese POWs attempted a mass breakout from the camp, in perhaps the largest prison escape in world history. Japanese go there to visit the graves of family members.
October 22, 1992 - Peacemakers Monument, Shenandoah University, Winchester,Virginia (USA). Commemorating the handshake between President Ronald Reagan & Mikhail Gorbachev on December 7, 1987.
November 11, 1992 - Caseley Park, off of Buckingham on Bradford, Riverview, New Brunswick (Canada). "Near the park entrance stand the 12 trees which comprise the Peace Grove. Caseley Park was dedicated to peace as part of the Peace Parks Across Canada project during Canada's 125th birthday celebrations. Riverview joined some 400 other communities in planting Peace Groves of 12 trees, symbolizing the ten provinces and (at the time) two territories." "There is a monument in the centre of a circle of trees in remembrance of our 14 sisters who were killed in Montreal on Decenber 6, 1989. It is placed there to honour and grieve all abused women. Also in Caseley Park there is a monument placed in dedication of the memory of the Canadian Merchant Navy."
Typical Stolperstein. Translation: "Here lived Ida Arensberg. née Benjamin *1870 - deported 1942. Murdered in Theresienstadt on 18.9.1942." As of January 11, 2015, there were 50,000 Stolpersteine in 21 countries of Western Europe: Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Belgium, Ukraine, Italy, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, France, Croatia, Luxemburg, Russia, Switzerland, Greece, Spain, Belarus & Lithuania. According to Wikipedia, "the stolperstein project [is] the world's largest decentralized memorial."
