MAIN Holidays & Observances Peace Day

The United Nations' International Day of Peace - marked every year on September 21 - is a global observance when nations, local communities and people everywhere are expected to "give peace a chance".

This year, mark your calendar for Saturday, September 21, 2024 as the day to celebrate ... peace.

All about Peace Day

In the modern era, the anti-war movement born out of the hippie era in the 1960's, has only been one of the more recent precursors to Peace Day.

By 2002, (the year following 9/11), September 21 was officially proclaimed by the UN as THE day for a cessation of hostilities for 24 hours in a global cease-fire worldwide. Away from the battlefields, local communities also took up the cause with observances and ceremonies, and message writing campaigns to national leaders.

But is world peace even possible? Surely, say the cynics, the world has seemingly always been hard-wired for war.

Yet proponents of peace today envision an entirely different world that is evolving, becoming smaller and more interdependent. Meanwhile, all world religions have alwwaybased upon the very concept of peace. Famous figures throughout history -- Jesus Christ, Mahatma Ghandi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. -- have all called for peaceful change.

What if they gave a war and nobody came? How to celebrate Peace Day

Anyone, anywhere can celebrate Peace Day. Traditionally, millions around the world are called upon to observe a moment of silence at noon on Peace Day or light a candle to show their support.

• Individually, we can also simply talk about the day's significance with friends and family, or reach out to co-workers, local organizations, newspapers, or even governments to tell them of your support for a Peace Day observance.
  
  

• Download songs about peace to play on Peace Day, watch movies about war and peace, or read books about peace with kids.
  
  

• In the classroom, teachers can lead students in skits, crafts projects, or Peace Day lesson plans that help commemorate the day.

Quotes about peace for Peace Day

"There was never a good war or a bad peace." ~ Ben Franklin

"If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can make the world safe for diversity. For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal." ~ John F. Kennedy

"I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in." ~ George S. McGovern

"If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner." ~ Nelson Mandela

"Remember your humanity, and forget the rest." ~ Bertrand Russell

also see in Holidays & Observances -> Mother's Peace Day

Veteran's Day | Christmas Truce of 1919

More about Peace Day around the Web:

Around the Web, find out more about Peace Day at top sites offering more information on personal participation, tips on educational resources and classroom activities, along with multimedia presentations, photo galleries, quotes, poems, song lists, and related resources promoting the idea of peace and understanding around the world.

Peace Day video playlist 

International Day of Peace - The official UN site with information on the its history with tips on personal involvement and suggestions on planning a local event, with download materials, related news and updates.

Peace One Day.org - Official site of filmmaker Jeremy Gilley and his documentary film "Peace One Day", along with the organization's efforts on behalf of International Peace Day. including tips on hosting events and classroom activities, related photo galleries.

International Day of Peace - Wikipedia - Timeline of the first observances by the UN and other world organizations with an overview of local observances celebrated around the world, and related references and resources.