Posted on Sept. 23: Ending violence, peace by peace

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/antiviolencenetwork.gif” caption=”Anti-Violence Network logo”]Traditionally university campuses have been a forum for discourse and debate, but when times are tense, tempers can quickly get out of hand. This year, students and staff participating in Month Without Violence events are learning how to be sensitive to portrayals of violence and the sobering reality it has for its victims.

Ecumenical chaplain Carol Wood and human rights educator Jane Mulkewich are two members of McMaster's Anti-Violence Network, an association of 15 staff and student groups who are co-ordinating activities for the Month Without Violence, which runs from mid-September to mid-October.

“Likely each of us has had some experience of an abuse of power or violent behaviour in our lives,” says Wood. “Violence can appear so strong or powerful that it can take away our voice. The members of the Anti-Violence Network want the voice of peace and mutual respect to be heard through our programming efforts.”

The month will begin on Sept. 24 with “Roses Among the Stones” a non-violent service beginning at the steps of Gilmour Hall and continuing to the Nina de Villiers Rose Garden, built in memory of a young woman who was sexually assaulted and murdered.

“The garden ceremony is a powerful symbol of renewal and hope,” says Wood. “Just as a garden renews itself through the stages of death and new growth, we experience that sense of renewal through liturgy and music.”

University President Peter George, McMaster Student Union president Neville Boney, and Nina's mother, Priscilla de Villiers, will speak at the ceremony.

Throughout the month, the various groups involved in the Anti-Violence Network will host events to promote campus safety and peacemaking through education. International concerns, homophobia, racism, war, and domestic abuse are among the issues being addressed.

Rounding off the month, Mulkewich will host a poster forum in October where participants will openly discuss how student groups portray their messages on campus.

“Many of our student groups make posters to advertise their meetings or events and they use strong images or phrases to evoke thought, but if somebody finds those posters offensive, it quickly generates unrest,” she says.

The group will be discussing how to best communicate events and ideas by looking at posters that have raised controversy on campus in the past. They'll also review the McMaster Student Union's policy on visual representations such as weapons and violence.

The poster forum will run on Oct. 16 from 2:30-4:30 p.m. in MUSC Rm. 319. For more information about the poster forum, contact Jane Mulkewich at ext. 24067 or mulkew@mcmaster.ca.

For more information about the Anti-Violence Network or Month Without Violence events, visit http://www.mcmaster.ca/hres/avn.htm, or contact Carol Wood, ext 24127, Hannah Schayer, ext. 27289 or Elaine Hay, ext 27581.