Peace doesn’t have to be a particularly partisan issue. Though most of the founders of the Hollister Peace Vigil, originally known as Hollister In Black, were pretty liberal, there were some conservatives in the mix. We were focused then on the human costs of war. Now we’re all much more aware of the financial costs.
Hollister Peace Vigil started in April, 2002, in the aftermath of 9/11. Most vigilers had a religious motivation. That’s why at first everyone wore black (for mourning) and maintained silence. After the start of the Iraq War in 2003 some members began responding to people who wanted a conversation about why we were doing a vigil—and whether we should.
Over the years, vigilers decided that wearing black was too limiting, even depressing. People dropped out because they couldn’t find the time or the stamina. But as the numbers dwindled and the wars dragged on, more and more passers-by began showing support with thumbs up and V-signs. A few joined the vigil briefly. Others stopped to thank us for our action.
It’s now 15 years later and the vigil continues, every Friday afternoon either at Fourth and San Benito or at Airline and Tres Pinos Road. The wars also continue, and though U.S .casualties are now rare, there is still great loss of life, suffering and destruction among the people of Afghanistan, Iraq, and other countries where the U.S. has taken military action.
If the goal of our wars and raids was to free people from tyranny and foster stable democratic societies, it’s hard to see how 15 years of war has led to good outcomes. So the vigil goes on, a reminder that there are other nonviolent ways of dealing with conflict. After all, we do tend to insist on nonviolent actions here at home.
April 7 will mark the 15th anniversary of Hollister Peace Vigil’s first demonstration. We will convene on the corner of Fourth and San Benito streets. It’s not that we expect any sudden change in national policy because of what we do, but that we continue to bear witness to a search for nonviolent alternatives. We’ll probably continue as long as we need to, or as long as we can.
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