the lake DWOH edition
don’t pull apart, “peace” together
9300 W 104th Avenue | Westminster, CO | 80021 | USA | Planet Earth | Milky Way Volume 27 | DWOH edition April 2016
I am...
Dwoh April 29, 2016
...starting Solveig Williams ‘16 doesn’t think world peace is ever possible. But she does think it’s worth striving for. “I think you have to start small,” Williams said. “You can’t start from the world down, you have to start small with individual people and build that up, which is what I hope we’re doing as a school and with A Day Without Hate.” After attending the DWOH rally last April, Williams quickly developed a love for the message the day was founded upon, and knew she wanted to become a catalyst for peace herself. This year, PeaceJam put together their “We Are Change” night to raise awareness for education for women in developing countries—a new event to the school, and a launching pad for their plans for DWOH. “[We called it ‘We Are Change’ because] we wanted to make it a ‘we’, culminating to bring everyone into it,” Williams said. “That kind of changed into ‘I am Change’, of us personally looking at DWOH, ‘I can make peace, and I can change the world.’” And as for a peace-spreading reality check? “I think it’s easy to look at peace as something that’s unattainable,” Williams said. “Even when you try to make peace, [people] say, ‘you’re just one person, what can you do?’ But I think even if it’s something small in your school, giving someone a compliment, making them happy, I think it’s about starting small and spreading little bits of peace to help change people’s attitudes.” It’s small, but it’s a start. And that’s something.
...ACCEPTING
“I think it unites us under the white flag of innocence and unity and it makes us realize that we are all unique and have differences.” -Kaelen Barondess ‘19
...continuing
...LEARNing Day Without Hate has done more than spread awareness, it has also influenced people’s minds and hearts. One of the many people that it’s changed is Elysia Crandall ‘17, who has always been one for peace. “[DWOH] showed me how I was doing and how I was being as a person— it changed me for the better,” Crandall said. She explained that hate and anger really aren’t worth it—they just cause more problems than needed. “I think if we were to love everybody and try to make changes, we would have a more peaceful place, with less problems like war and hate and abuse,” Crandall said. It’s hard to miss Crandall’s light-hearted and joyful attitude. She is always willing to show someone the sunshine in every situation. Even outside of school, you can find her volunteering at shelters and helping the needy. It’s something she’s really passionate about. To her, helping the people who need it is something she’s all about.
q&a WITH aDAM bACA—one of the twelve who started it all What inspired the group to start DWOH?
The spark of it was Virginia Tech. [Ben Reed] basically came in our class and was like ‘What’s going on in our world—what’s wrong with it?’ I think that was the inspiration to just make us start thinking about what is going on in our world and just start questioning it.
Are you surprised with how much it has grown?
I would say yes and no. I am surprised with the fact that it has gotten so big and that it’s in at least four countries now and across thirty states, but at the same time I’m not. All we were trying to do was fulfill our own need for making our school safe, and once we did that, then we started to hear out from other people that had the same needs. The surprising part is that we pretty much built it on accident.
...observing
What do you do in your life today to promote peace?
“In life we are given a few fleeting moments where we can truly address injustice head on: I hope that educated and inspired students would know exactly what to do in those moments.” -Ms. Christy Hayashi
Do you think it is possible to prevent the manifestation of hate and even eradicate it altogether?
I do my part. I live by a kind of mantra ‘see the need and meet the need’. I try to show that this day [Day Without Hate] is not just about the day, it’s about how you live. This is just the seed—the start for where you are going to end up.
I would have to say no; it will never be a perfect world, but I think we can go ahead and shift the weight of where we are at right now with hate so that we don’t see it as much because of all the love.
A WEEK LEADING UP TO DWOH MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY
PJ DAY - HAT AND JERSEY Dream DAYaway all Put a the hate cap on that’s hate. in your life.
BEACH DAY-
PEACE DAY-
Take a vaction from hate.
Hippievibe the hate away.
FRIDAY WEAR WHITE DAY-
Wear white to give hate a fright.
PEACE: PLAY IT FORWARD A PLAYLIST FOR PEACEFUL PERSPECTIVE
Be a Dreamer. . .
Imagine: John Lennon Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream: Simon & Garfunkel I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free: Nina Simone If I Had a Hammer: Peter, Paul, and Mary We Shall Overcome: Pete Seeger
Be Bright. . .
Be Bold. . .
Blowin’ In the Wind: Bob Dylan Here Comes The Sun: Richie Havens Follow The Sun: Xavier Rudd Mr. Blue Sky: Electric Light Orchestra (ELO)
Be the Change . . . The Day The World Gets ‘Round: George Harrison (What A) Wonderful World: Sam Cooke Everyday People: Sly & The Family Stone Turn! Turn! Turn!: The Byrds The Times They Are A-Changin’: Bob Dylan
All You Need Is Love: The Beatles If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out: Cat Stevens Please!: Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros Respect: Aretha Franklin Let It Be: The Beatles Lean On Me: Bill Withers Stand By Me: Ben E. King
Be Bigger. . . One Love/People Get Ready: Bob Marley & The Wailers Life Is Hard: Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros Don’t Wanna Fight: Alabama Shakes Pride (In The Name Of Love): U2 AJ Ehrhardt | Jenna Hines | Olivia Koontz | Emily Leo | Ty Milliken | Kayla Pray