Kathy Kelly, a Catholic peace activist and founder of Voices of Creative Non­violence, spoke at several events in the Boston area Nov. 13-15. I attended her talk at Simmons College on Monday afternoon, where she was introduced by Prof. Becky Thompson. It drew about 60 people, more than half of whom where students.

Kelly had just returned from Afghanistan.   Speaking of the recent Time magazine cover that showed a young Afghan woman whose nose had been cut off by her traditionalist father, she recalled the question which she was asked by a group of Bamiyan University students: "Do Americans care more about noses or fingers?"  The reference was to the Stryker Brigade soldiers who are charged with murdering Afghan civilians and cutting off their fingers as a trophy.

December 22, 2010

Dear Friends:

We are sending you the SANTIAGO DECLARATION-THE HUMAN RIGHT TO PEACE.
The Declaration is the culmination of years of discussion and debate among global peace activists to finally enshrine in international law the recognition of humanity’s centuries longing for peace and security.

This is a people’s initiative, another track in the struggle for peace. It lays the foundation for the continued demand to the end of the wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq and the conflicts plaguing the world. It forcefully outlines the responsibilities of governance that declares the truism “peace is not only the absence of war”.