A Santa Cruz advocate of non-violence is scheduled to speak on
peaceful conflict resolution Monday at St. Benedict Catholic Church
on Fairview Road.
A Santa Cruz advocate of non-violence is scheduled to speak on peaceful conflict resolution Monday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. in the parish hall at St. Benedict Catholic Church on Fairview Road.
Scott Kennedy, who heads a Middle East program of the Resource Center for Nonviolence, recently led a group to several Middle Eastern countries. His speech will focus on violence issues not only internationally but also in small cities such as Hollister.
Kennedy said his viewpoints follow the spirit of Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr.
“Especially since 9/11 there’s been a tremendous interest… in nonviolence,” Kennedy said.
Local charity organization Fishes and Loaves decided to sponsor the speech because of the organization’s heavy involvement with peace and justice issues.
“And this is certainly one of those,” said Peggy Kingman, who’s helping organize the event. “It’s a very critical issue right now.”
Kingman emphasized Kennedy’s plan to relate his experiences and knowledge of international issues to a more local touch.
“The speech will also be directed toward violence in our area,” she said. “Violence in general in our country is so much more rampant than any other country in the world.”
Kennedy is a co-founder and director of the Fellowship of Reconciliation, an inter-faith organization that explores alternatives to war. It originated after World War I as a coalition sponsored by Jews and Muslims and has numerous supporters in Hollister, San Juan Bautista and Gilroy, Kennedy said.
He started taking groups to the Middle East region in 1968 and has gone there more than 30 times, most recently in October.
