Tag: peace

Songs of Peace: War Pigs

Fans of metal and hard rock know that some of the most overt anti-war songs have come from bands such as Metallica, Megadeth and Iron Maiden. Going way back to the roots of metal, in 1970 Black Sabbath gave us “War Pigs,” a scathing indictment of war.


Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerer of death’s construction

In the fields, the bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind
Poisoning their brainwashed minds
Oh lord, yeah!

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:

November is Peace Month at your School Library

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day is November 11. Today at LTSS we will observe Remembrance Day Assemblies.

Armistice Day was established to honour the fallen of the First World War, which formally ended at “the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.” Later, the name of the day was changed to Remembrance Day. Canadians served and died in yet another World War, as well as other wars and peacekeeping missions around the globe. Remembrance Day is a national holiday to honour the memory of those Canadians who have fallen in war.  

On Remembrance Day we pay our respect to those that have paid the terrible costs of war. Remembrance Day is not meant to celebrate war or glorify war. War has brought untold suffering and pain to the world. Those who has experienced war, especially those that have lost loved ones in war, know that war is not something to celebrate.

It is also important to remember that Remembrance Day is not one of the those holidays that is just a chance for rest and recreation. Please take some time to reflect on what Remembrance Day is all about. On November 11th at 11:00 AM, plan to take some time to honour those that have died and all those who lived through the horrors of war. Whether you attend a ceremony in person, or check out the television coverage of the ceremony in Ottawa or other parts of Canada, take some time for Remembrance.

Songs of Peace: Fussing and Fighting

Many of Bob Marley’s Songs show up on lists of the greatest songs about peace and critiques of war. We previously featured “One Love.” In 1971 Bob Marley and the Wailers gave us “Fussing and Fighting.” The lyrics are simple but the message combined with the music is deeply compelling.


We should really love each other
In peace and harmony, ooh
Instead, we’re fussing and fighting
And them workin’ iniquity

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:

November is Peace Month at your School Library

Peace

November is Peace Month at your School Library. Learn more about peace and alternatives to war. Explore non-violence, pacifism, conscientious objectors, anti-war movements, civil disobedience, peacemakers, non-aggression, reconciliation, and other topics related to the pursuit of peace.

International Day of Peace

September 21 is the International Day of Peace, also known as World Peace Day.

The International Day of Peace was established by the United Nations to be observed every year on September 21.

From the UN: “This year marks the 25th anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace… In that declaration, the United Nations’ most inclusive body recognized that peace “not only is the absence of conflict, but also requires a positive, dynamic participatory process where dialogue is encouraged and conflicts are solved in a spirit of mutual understanding and cooperation.” … The International Day of Peace has always been a time to lay down weapons and observe ceasefires. But it now must also be a time for people to see each other’s humanity. Our survival as a global community depends on that.”

Find out more:

United Nations International Day of Peace

International Day of Peace.org

UNESCO

Bob Marley

Reggae legend Bob Marley was born on this day in 1945 in Nine Miles, Jamaica. Sadly, he died far too young, at only 36 years old, in 1981.  Marley was an international music superstar who helped catapult the Reggae sounds of Jamaica into the global consciousness. Marley was a revered symbol of the African Diaspora and was a strong voice for anti-racism and democratic rights. For more on the life of this amazing artist, take a look at some of the many books we have here in the school library.

Online you can also check out:

MLK Day

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed on the 3rd Monday of January as a Federal Holiday in the United States. The day is observed in celebration of Dr. King’s birthday, January 15, 1929. In 2024 MLK Day is observed on his actual birthday.

Source

Martin Luther King Jr. was the leading figure of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s in the USA. In life Dr. King was at the forefront of the fight against segregation, discrimination and other forms of racism, especially as entrenched in state and federal law. Tragically assassinated in 1967, the legacy of King has continued to inspire those who fight against racism and other forms of social injustice.

Martin Luther King Jr. was committed to the principles of non-violence. King was convinced that the only way to fight against the hate and violence and injustice of racsim was to counter it with peaceful resistance and non-violent protest. Perhaps more than anything else, this is why Dr. King is a hero to millions of people in the US, in Canada, and around the world.

Image Source: editor Eugenio Hansen, OFS, CC BY-SA 4.0 OTFW, editor Eugenio Hansen, OFS, CC BY-SA 4.0, via wikimedia

Songs of Peace: Alice’s Restaurant

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our American friends, family and neighbours! Along with Turkey and football games, another staple of American Thanksgiving for many is listening to the 18 minute classic, “Alice’s Restaurant.”

November has been Peace month in the School Library, with an emphasis on understanding peace education, the antiwar movements, civil disobedience and other non-violent means of social change. Such themes overlap with American Thanksgiving in “Alice’s Restaurant.”


Originally released in 1967, Arlo Guthrie’s 18 minute long recording of “Alice’s Restaurant” has become on of the most famous protest songs against the Vietnam War.  The events described in the song, beginning with a Thanksgiving celebration amongst friends during the sixties, were the inspiration for a film which was released in 1969.

More than 50 years later Guthrie’s signature song is a staple of classic rock radio stations on and around American Thanksgiving.

Find out more:

source: Arlo Guthrie / You Tube via Warner Records

November is Peace Month at your School Library. Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:

Songs of Peace: “Bulls on Parade”

Rage Against the Machine have many titles that could be picked for lists of the greatest protest songs. One of the most overtly antiwar tracks is “Bulls on Parade.” (1996).

Weapons not food, not homes, not shoes
Not need, just feed the war cannibal animal
I walk the corner to the rubble that used to be a library
Line up to the mind cemetery now
What we don’t know keeps the contracts alive and movin’
They don’t gotta burn the books they just remove ’em
While arms warehouses fill as quick as the cells
Rally ’round the family, pockets full of shells

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series:

November is Peace Month at your School Library

Songs of Peace: “Hero of War”

“Hero of War” is a 2009 song by the American band, Rise Against. Many of the most well known peace and antiwar songs that are most prominent in popular culture come from the 1960s and 1970s, particularly protest songs against the American war in Vietnam. However, there are also many other more recent songs that look critically at more contemporary wars, including the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Have a listen, and spend some time thinking about your response. What do antiwar songs, and songs of peace and alternatives to violence, have to say to us in 2023?

Other “Songs of Peace” in this series: