ABOUT THE PEACE & JUSTICE RESOURCE NETWORK

The St. Olaf Peace & Justice Resource Network was started by three students in 1997 after they returned from spending a semester studying in Indonesia. It was their "incredulity at the inequality of systems in Indonesia" that moved them to create this group. The objective of the new group was to work on the campus, community, national and international level to strive for a just and peaceful world.

Now eight years old, the Peace & Justice Resource Network has grown tremendously. We have put out topical newsletters and have also sponsored speakers, organized events, and have held petition campaigns. Peace & Justice will continue to work on whatever relevant issues our members are impassioned with. We have a cubicle in the Student Organization Resource Center (SORC) in Buntrock Commons.



THE 2004-2005 PEACE & JUSTICE RESOURCE NETWORK:

Coordinators: Pete Williams, Maria Borg, Autumn Cutting, Deborah Eide
E-mail list: Autumn Cutting
Newsletter Team: Carl Schroeder, Sonja Tengblad
Webmaster: Deborah Eide


STATEMENT OF BELIEFS:

  • We believe that in order to be responsible citizens of the global nation we must work together at the campus, community, national, and international levels to strive for a just and peaceful world.
  • We believe that we can work to identify and dismantle oppressive systems through awareness, education, and activism.

    GOALS:

  • To educate ourselves and our community about issues of peace and justice
  • To provide opportunities for student activism on global and local topics of concern
  • To integrate peace and justice efforts on the St. Olaf campus, and make connections with activists on other campuses


    AGENDA:
  • To coordinate events with the intent of promoting awareness and activism about the issue being discussed. Past events have included speakers, special dinners, information tables, lobbying elected officials, letter-writing campaigns, and participation in rallies and protests.
  • To support the efforts of other campus and community groups to promote peace and justice. Methods of support include assistance with advertising, information sharing, and co-sponsorship of events.


    PAST NEWSLETTER THEMES:

  • Welfare (October 1997)
  • Genocide (November 1997)
  • Women's Health (February 1998)
  • Poverty (April 1998)
  • Food and Hunger (November 1998)
  • War (February 1999)
  • Living Justly (March 1999)
  • Violence (April/May 1999)
  • Global Conflict and Militarism (October 1999)
  • Labor (November 1999)
  • Just Pieces (December 1999)
  • At St. Olaf (February 2000)
  • Food (March 2000)
  • Crime and Punishment (April/May 2000)
  • School of the Americas (November 2003)
  • The American Christmas (December 2003)
  • Jimmy Carter (February 2004)
  • Bangladesh (March 2004)
  • Gay Marriage (April 2004)
    PAST EVENTS:

    1997 - 1998 ACADEMIC YEAR

    February 1998
    Members presented a seminar on campus organizing and activism at the Peace Prize Forum at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota.

    May 1998
    A campus-wide "Ten Days of Peace," including:
  • a presentation by Tammy Walhof, regional coordinator of Bread for the World, on debt relief;
  • a "Peace Picnic," focusing on discussions related to peace and justice;
  • a World Topics Dinner, featuring speaker Dr. Joseph Mbele;
  • a Cultural Diversity dinner, co-sponsored with the Hispanic Students Organization.

    1998 - 1999 ACADEMIC YEAR

    October 1998
    Participation in Alliant Action rally against landmine production, in collaboration with the St. Olaf Greens. Held at Alliant Techsystems corporate headquarters, Hopkins, Minnesota.

    November 1998
    Hunger Banquet
    The Hunger Banquet allows participants to role-play the dramatic food inequalities around the world. Guests represent different parts of the world's population, and each group receives the meal that the people they represent could afford to eat. The Banquet was held in the St. Olaf cafeteria, and about a hundred St. Olaf students participated as guests or volunteers. A collection was taken for Oxfam America.

    Food waste awareness event in the St. Olaf cafeteria, in collaboration with the St. Olaf Environmental Coalition. To call attention to the amount of food wasted daily in the cafeteria, volunteers positioned themselves by the cafeteria disposal lines and ate the leftover food from students' trays.

    February 1999
    Information and letter-writing campaign for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

    March 1999
    Information and letter-writing campaign to protest the economic sanctions on Iraq, which have taken the lives of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children. Generated 150 letters from the St. Olaf community. Peace & Justice also sponsored a van up to the Twin Cities to hear Denis Halliday and Phylis Bennis speak about the sanctions against Iraq.

    April 1999
    Information and letter-writing campaign to support Jubilee 2000, a world-wide movement to forgive the debts of heavily indebted poor countries. The campaign generated 150 letters and 120 petition signatures. Students, faculty, and staff also generated a 33-foot-long paper chain which symbolized the "chains of debt" that the Jubilee 2000 movement strives to break. Representatives from the Peace & Justice Resource Network brought the chain to the offices of Senators Paul Wellstone and Rod Grams, where they discussed Jubilee 2000 with staff members. Peace & Justice also sponsored an open dinner on campus to talk about debt relief.

    Awareness event and protest regarding the economic sanctions on Iraq, in collaboration with the Carleton Social Justice Movement. The event included a community beans and rice dinner at the Northfield UCC church, a slideshow and presentation by two members of the Catholic Worker, and a candle-light vigil in Bridge Square in downtown Northfield. We also invited Marie Braun, who recently traveled in Iraq, to speak on campus prior to the protest in collaboration with the Political Science Department.

    May 1999
    Members joined the Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) procession in the annual May Day Parade in Minneapolis. WAMM was marching to stop the ongoing bombings and sanctions of Iraq and Yugoslavia.

    Clothing/supplies drive for Kosovar refugees. Generated a large truck full of donations which were made available to refugees.

    July 1999
    Created webpage devoted to the group and peace and justice issues.

    1999 - 2000 ACADEMIC YEAR

    September 1999 Invited Erik Gustafson, director of Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC) to speak at St. Olaf. Gustafson spoke about the injustices of the economic sanctions on Iraq. Members participated in the Midwest Iraq Sanctions Conference at Macalester College, St. Paul.

    October 1999
    Started weekly vigil with Carleton Social Justice Movement in Bridge Square of Northfield against the economic sanctions on Iraq. Sent several people to National Organizing Conference on Iraq in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

    Peace & Justice becomes an official affiliate of the Student Peace Action Network (SPAN), a national organization of student groups devoted to peace and social justice.

    Cosponsored an Open Mic Night with FFC (Feminists For Change) and GLOW (Gay, Lesbian or Whatever).

    Brought students to see Father Roy Bougeous talk in St. Paul about the School of the Americas military academy.

    Participated in Committing to Peace conference in St. Paul that brought together activists of many ages and causes.

    November 1999
    Participation in Alliant Action rally against depleted uranium munitions and other military weapons that target civilians. Held at Alliant Techsystems corporate headquarters, Hopkins, Minnesota. Two members were arrested in the direct action for sitting in front of Alliant's doors.

    Members went to Fort Benning, Georgia to protest the School of the Americas (SOA) with over 12,000 other activists. About 4500 people crossed the line on to the base in a funeral procession commemorating those who have died because of graduates of the SOA. Two Peace & Justice members crossed the line, risking arrest. Upon return to campus, they gave a presentation on the SOA and civil disobedience.

    February 2000
    Members participated in various degrees in the annual Peace Prize Forum at St. Olaf. Members presented several seminars entitled "The United States Military Action in Kosovo" (Emina Stojkovic), "Effecting Change: Protest and Civil Disobedience" (Jennifer Randolph and Andrea Hamberg), "Indonesia: 'Unity in Diversity' or Disintegration?" (Sonja Jacobs and Julia Willis), and "Genocide by Sanctions: Eyewitness Accounts" (Derek Burrows). Members also helped present a session on student activism.

    March 2000
    Hunger Banquet
    Organized with the Holstad Honor House. This role play on hunger issues was participated by over 100 students. Speakers spoke about their experience and knowledge of hunger related issues. Money was raised and donated to the Northfield Foodshelf.

    April 2000
    Food Waste Project
    Members scraped caf trays for one meal and displayed it outside the Cafeteria to raise awareness of food waste at St. Olaf. Distributed suggestions to minimize food waste to students.

    Six members traveled to Washington, DC for the IMF/World Bank protests, which included over 20,000 people. The protests were directed at the negative consequences of global economic policies of the two institutions. Before and after the trip, we held informational "teach-ins" on the issues.

    May 2000
    Brought members to May Day actions in Minneapolis. Actions were committed to bringing about economic justice in our world and placing munitions contractor Alliant Techsystems on public trial for violations of international law.

    Members joined the Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) procession in the annual May Day Parade in Minneapolis. WAMM was marching to stop the economic sanctions on Iraq.

    2001-2004: See Brian Lindsley's St. Olaf Activist Manual for more recent events.


    The Peace & Justice Resource Network has a coordinator, but operates by consensus. It is the members who come to each meeting who decide its agenda and activities. People are encouraged to become involved in Peace & Justice to whatever degree they can.

     




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    Please email any comments or questions to pjrn@stolaf.edu.

    Last updated September 14, 2004.