Who We Are
SPNPJ is a group of individuals in San Pedro who, in response to the threat of war in Iraq in January 2003, began a weekly vigil at the intersection of 1st and Gaffey in San Pedro, California. From relatively small beginnings our weekly protests grew to 150 strong before the war began. As the war raged on, members of our group (as many as 25 or as few as 5) met every Friday, and on September 4, 2009 we celebrated our 335 consecutive weekly vigil.
Most of us met for the first time on the street corner, feeling hope and excitement about making our voices heard. Some of us were seasoned peace activists; many had never protested before.
Bolstered by similar protests all over the world the peace movement in American communities was starting to swell. Peace vigils were popping up all over California and our group joined in solidarity, becoming the San Pedro Neighbors for Peace & Justice. In SPNPJ we view the current day struggles as part of the larger global struggle for justice and peace.
What We Do
We are committed to education and action, hosting speakers from organizations such as the Coalition for Alternatives to Militarism in our Schools, the ACLU, the Gray Panthers, and the Ruckus Society , as well as showing informative videos such as Rethink Afghanistan, Taxi to the Dark Side and The Revolution Will Not Be Televised .
In addition to holding forums every month SPNPJ has collected signatures in opposition to the Patriot Act, held readings for the Bill of Rights at Liberty Hill Plaza on the 4th of July, organized bus loads of activists to attend demonstrations in downtown LA and Hollywood, organized bus trips to Arlington West in Santa Monica for High School students and participated in labor solidarity actions for UFCW (food clerks).
We reach out to the community by going door-to-door and tabling at 1st Thursday each month in downtown San Pedro. When appropriate we distribute peace information at the Warner Grand and local theaters. We advertise our events through distribution of flyers at local area businesses, announcements in Random Lengths, on KPFK, on 7 listserves, by email blast and by phone.
We are members of the Coalition for Alternatives to Militarism in Our Schools (CAMS), the Vigil Congress and we launched the World Peace Club at San Pedro High. We have created a Peace Club Starter Kit, which is distributed to local high schools. We encourage the building of a peace community and discussion among all those opposed to war regardless of religious, political or personal beliefs. We seek to build a movement of people, independent of the two political parties and loyal to the needs of people not corporations. We seek to unite with all individuals who are working for global peace.