The Santa Monica Pier hosted Day of Peace on Sunday, September 19, 2010, sponsored by Jane Goodall's Roots & Shoots Program. If you look real close on the beach to the left you can see the Veterans for Peace memorial that's been displayed there every Sunday for 6 and half years (for a closer look, scroll down the page).
When I went to the Day of Peace event at the Santa Monica Pier this past Sunday, the last thing I expected to see was such a sobering reminder of war. I’m talking about the sea of red and white crosses stuck in the sand north of the pier, a memorial sponsored by the Veterans for Peace. Every Sunday morning they erect this impressive tribute to our fallen soldiers, then disassemble it Sunday night. And they haven’t missed a week since they started 6 and a half years ago!
In other words, it was it no way connected to the official Day of Peace events that I soon discovered were being held under a white tent on the opposite side of the pier. In fact, I don’t recall seeing any references to war there at all…unless you count the “environmental war” we’re fighting to save our eco-systems. Several local students were represented there showcasing their school projects dedicated to environmental protection.
Sunday’s Day of Peace event was sponsored by Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots organization — an event held every year on the weekend closest to the UN International Day of Peace on September 21 (today).
Children and parents paraded peace doves through the crowd, set to the tune of a school marching band. The peace doves had wing spans 20 feet wide, made from recycled materials, of course.
As explained on the Roots & Shoots website, “With tens of thousands of young people in almost 100 countries, the Roots & Shoots network connects youth of all ages who share a desire to create a better world.”
Jane adds this:
“Roots creep underground everywhere and make a firm foundation. Shoots seem very weak, but to reach the light, they can break open brick walls. Imagine that the brick walls are all the problems we have inflicted on our planet. Hundreds of thousands of roots & shoots, hundreds of thousands of young people around the world, can break through these walls. We CAN change the world.”
THE EVENT
I enjoyed meeting the lovely women accompanying dogs up for adoption through the Downtown Dog Rescue. Though they are not officially a pit bull rescue, it seems they represent the majority of their dogs in need of loving homes. I met three super sweet pit bulls that day, any one of whom I would have loved to take home if I had the room.
This was my favorite Day of Peace display, created by students from Santa Monica High School.
The Gentle Barn had a booth there too, a local sanctuary for farm animals. It was yet another reminder that I need to get out there for a tour and some volunteer work.
I also met Lloyd Sax that day, the Director of Artists Relations for Artists Palooza, “Empowering Artists to Empower the World” — a relevant connection I think as artists are, and will always be, uniquely poised to inspire and inform.
SOCIAL MEDIA REVIEW
Website – Overall, it’s an impressive one with comprehensive info on various Roots & Shoots programs. But it would be nice to see on the home page highly visible links to its social media pages. And though there are frequently updated “News” and “Events” sections, there is nothing referenced as a “Blog” which is the first thing many of us look for when visiting a site.
Facebook – This is where Roots & Shoots really shines. They have more than 6,000 friends and great interaction on their wall. They even take the time to respond to commenters.
Every Sunday, Veterans for Peace places this sea of crosses in the sand to represent the soldiers we have lost in Iraq and Afghanistan -- an interesting juxtaposition to the Day of Peace events on the other side of the Pier.
Twitter – Aside from posting regularly, Roots & Shoots’ Twitter page could use some work. They have only a little more than 600 followers and there appears to be no interaction, as all of the tweets are either promotional tweets from Roots & Shoots or retweets of updates posted by related twitter users, like the Jane Goodall Institute.
YouTube – Roots & Shoots does not appear to have its own channel but the Jane Goodall Institute does. It is certainly an important page to link to from the Roots & Shoots home page, though a separate Roots & Shoots Channel is something to consider.
Flickr – They need one. And as evidenced by the Facebook page, they have plenty of photos to upload, all presenting an opportunity to utilize keywords that will turn up in search results.
Visitors to the Veteran for Peace memorial sign books like this -- with thanks, blessings and pleas for peace.
JANE GOODALL’S PEACE DAY MESSAGEIf you really want to be inspired on this International Day of Peace, you MUST hear Jane Goodall speak.
With gratitude,
Meredith Simonds, Social Media Reviewer, Blogger and Consultant
The social media suggestions in this post are general and brief. To see what a comprehensive review entails, please see my Social Media Action Plans.
