Peace Essay Contest World Peace. How can an idea so simple and ...

Peace Essay Contest World Peace.How can an idea so simple and cherished feel so unattainable?Why is it that we—as a culture—will say we want peace yet,inexplicably, furnish guns and troops to unstable nations? In orderto ensure the well-being of our world, it is our responsibility toidentify ways to end the ravaging institution of war.In the years leading up to1928, the world made huge steps towardachieving world peace —August 27th, 1928 heralded the signingof the Kellogg-Briand Pact against the institution of war. This pactreflected the mindset of humanity; without the rallying call of thepeople, countries would not have been able to produce amultinational treaty so revolutionary. It is not enough that theKellogg-Briand Pact renounces war, the idea requires theunfaltering determination of the populace to reject war.Unfortunately, American society has been misled to believe that byfighting we are avoiding future conflict. There has been instilled anidea that war is honorable and patriotic, that fighting is good when,in reality, it causes death, poverty, and famine. From an early age,children learn about war and violence. Violent messages permeatemovies and video games glorify killing. The media insinuates thatviolence will solve our problems and lead to peace. Thispropaganda is perversely false—war cannot be regarded separatelyfrom the horrible atrocities that make it up.In order to insure a peace-oriented society, we must implementwhat has worked in the past and analyze what actions requiremodification. One idea that assisted in the creation of the pact wasAristide Briand's commitment to clarity, simplicity, andpopularization. For clarity, weneed to inform even the youngest of citizens about the need forpeace. We should at least offset —if not eliminate—the tolerationof violence with a more vocal praise of peace. This can be done

through positive reinforcement of peace through a National PeaceDay (or a Kellogg- Briand Day as suggested by David Swanson),and lessons about the peace movement in schools. I first learned ofthe Kellogg-Briand Pact, albeit only briefly, in my sophomore A.P.United States History class at Wheaton North High School.Unfortunately, my textbook classified the pact as “delusory in theextreme” with “ostrichlike neutralism”. This is a root problem inthe struggle for the Outlawry of war: peace is not stressed, andsometimes outright dismissed, in schools. Students need to hearabout the Kellogg-Briand Pact before high school. Respect andadherence for the pact can only be successful through a thoroughunderstanding. Additionally, one of the advantages to the Kellogg-Briand Pact is that it was formed with a straightforward message ofbanning war; without loopholes and reparations, we only need tofocus on the task of renouncing war as an instrument of policy. Ifthe popular demand for peace is great enough, then policymakersmust listen to the call. Popularization can be achieved withconstant messages and outreach. With the use of e-mails, websites,and social networking sites, the movement against war can reach agrowing set of citizens. We need constant reminders of our ideals.For example, at my church we installed a peace pole by theentrance. The peace pole has the statement “May Peace Prevail OnEarth” in eight different languages; my church congregation usesthis peace pole to monumentalize what we hold important.Not only should we look at what has worked in the past, butanalyze what we need to modify. To stop all war, we need toaffirm that change is achievable in our lifetime. We recognize thebenefits both morally and economically of peace, but we lackconviction that it can happen now. Our view of 'no war' is tooabstract, left to sci-fi novels and indie songs. We cannot justassume that future generations are destined to have an ideal world;this only debases the weight of our current behavior. Despite theKellogg-Briand Pact being a multinational treaty, the U.S. does not

involve other countries in the personal push for peace. The stanceagainst aggression needs to look outside the confines of our nationin order to achieve peace: it only makes sense that an idea of suchinternational scope should be actualized by many nations. Havingpeace- oriented relationships with other countries would allow theUnited States to feel more accountable for its actions. This idea isclear to me through my own experiences in high school sports.During my cross country season, running a workout is far morebearable with a team despite the workouts being harder and faster.The United States needs other 'teammates' for assistance andencouragement.The Kellogg-Briand Pact provides the United States with anincredible start to a world against war. We just need to enact thepact through a 'now' mentality and popularization; we need tocollaborate with other nations for encouragement and support. Ifthe will of the people is for peace, then peace will be undeniable.