Letter Archive:
M/D/Y Topic of Focus

The Art of Peace

By: Peter Slack
pslack@shaw.ca

The World Peace Forum held in Vancouver in 2006 originated with the City of Vancouver’s Peace and Justice Committee. One of its committee members, Sam Fillipoff, felt strongly the conference should have a local tie-in; otherwise it would be another talking head conference with no significance for the people of Vancouver.

Fillipoff wanted to involve children and youth in the Forum. His passion for the peace movement came naturally from his Doukhobor ancestry and its history of pacifism. The Doukhobors are a Christian dissenting sect of Russian origin. Fillipoff always wanted to implement this heritage of human faith and consciousness and present these concepts to children.

Employed by the BC Teacher’s Federation, Fillipoff asked teachers from around the province if they would be prepared to collect war toys. Fillipoff says, “Why are we allowing children to play with war toys. It teaches aggression. There are good guys and bad guys; war can be fun and killing people is OK as long as they are on the other side.”

Susan Ruzic, a teacher from Coquitlam implemented the first War Toys To Peace Art project. The Museum of Anthropology cooperated and agreed to come on board with a display area and workshops. A UBC group working with children from Africa arranged to have peace art brought from Uganda depicting their war experiences. The exhibit had an enthusiastic six month run at the Museum.

Another door opened, “while all of this was happening I heard it was the International Decade for Culture, Peace and Non-Violence for Children of the World (2001 – 2010). The United Nations declaration is supported by the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates. It encourages culture, peace and non-violence for children.”

Fillipoff discovered the Olympic Truce had recently been reinstated into the Olympic Movement. The Truce calls for the ceasing of war for the duration of the Games, recognizing the role of sport as an instrument of peace and development.

War Toys to Peace Art conveys the ancient biblical message: they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war no more (Is.2:3-4 & Micah 4:2-3).

“Vancouver is hosting the 2010 Olympic Games”, Fillipoff says, “what a great opportunity to focus on the 500,000 child soldiers who are forced into killing family members, friends and other children.”

“The BCTF has promised organizational support, but we need other educational partners to get involved. We are living in a culture of violence and need to move to a culture of peace and non-violence. There is always going to be conflict and differences of opinion, but its how these issues are resolved, that’s important."

The plan is to have a Peace Educational and Cultural Showcase at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. It would expand on the Olympic Truce and build a culture of peace for children through education. “War toys is the soft side of soldering,” Fillipoff points out, “the other side of the spectrum is actual child soldering; denying children their childhood, their education, and families. A life they would reject if given the opportunity.”

Support and approval for the 2010 project has not yet come from VANOC or the Provincial Government. Fillipoff says, “no one has said no, but we need funding and a proper venue for the cultural showcase. We are told the games are supposed to leave a legacy of sport facilities for the province. I would also like the Olympics to leave a social, cultural and educational legacy that continues to build a culture of peace for children with each succeeding Olympic Games; a foundation for the Olympic Truce.

The Olympic Movement encourages friendly competition, international understanding amongst youth, not only through athletics, but also by social interaction. We don’t want war anymore for our children. We don’t want to teach them into war.

Fillipoff encourages people to get involved with their community schools. “Why are we letting our children play with war toys? Are these the values we want transmitted to the next generation? We see acts of violence almost on a daily basis within our own communities. Peace begins within the home. Each of us can be actively involved in teaching children to play peacefully, cooperatively; to respect diversity and to stop child soldering in other countries.”

Wikipedia defines a work of art as a creation that has been made in order to be a thing of beauty in itself or a symbolic statement of meaning, rather than having a practical function. War Toys to Peace Art is works of art, but it also delivers a practical function.