First, I want to thank members and friends of PVCC for giving me the opportunity to go to Fort Benning, Georgia with Julie Lane. We had a great experience with the thousands of others who gathered this year to call for the closing of the School of Americas. We will share some of the highlights on Sunday and more in the weeks and months to come.
This week, in the Communicator, I want to call your attention to another story that my daughter Elizabeth called to my attention. It is the story of the Mirabal Sisters of the Dominican Republic. They are also known as Las Mariposas (the Butterflies). Patria was 36 years old, Minerva was 34 and Maria was 24. They were murdered on November 25, 1960 as they drove back from visiting their spouses in jail. They were killed by a death squad dispatched by General Trujillo. In 1999, the sisters received recognition by the United Nations General Assembly, who designated November 25 as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women in their honor. November 25 now marks the beginning of a 16 day period of Activism Against Gender Violence. The 16 day observance ends on December 10, the International Day of Human Rights.
So let us give thanks this year for the witness of all people, past and present, who work to end violence and who remind us that another world is possible. At the SOA Watch, one of the many songs Julie and I heard was “Peace Becomes You.” And so it does.
Blessings, David