As we observe the Fourth of July, let’s celebrate peace

This Fourth of July, as we celebrate our independence as a nation, let’s also advocate peace in the world. The United States must be a beacon of hope for freedom and peace everywhere. That is when America is at its best.

Both during and after World War I Americans added peace pageants to Fourth of July celebrations. A newspaper headline read “Peace pageants in every town.” The idea was to encourage world peace while educating about the horrors of war. Parades and performances about peace were included in Independence Day observances.

Our Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in 1776 was followed by years of war.

But we eventually forged a lasting peace with Britain and Canada. Differences were settled by peaceful means.

There was always the chance of more conflict between the U.S. and Britain after the War of 1812. But instead of wars there were peace agreements such as the 1846 Oregon Treaty, which settled the dispute over territory that was jointly occupied by Britain and America.

The Rush-Bagot Agreement of 1817 disarmed U.S. and British warships on the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain. This rejection of costly armaments in favor of building peace is an example for every nation. These are great achievements we can celebrate. In a world where there is so much conflict and strife, we need to counter this by advocating peace.

America has many champions of peace we can celebrate, and not all of them were public figures. Take Army Lt. George Harrington, who led hunger relief missions in Latvia after World War I. Even after the 1918 conclusion of that war, Latvia was struggling with internal conflict and was at risk of famine.

Harrington and officers of the American Relief Administration arranged food distributions for Latvia’s capital city of Riga. But the ARA officers were in danger because of ongoing violence. Harrington even helped arrange an armistice between the combatants in Latvia to save lives and allow food distributions.

A report read: “Lieutenant Harrington deserves the greatest credit. He has prevented wholesale murder at Riga.”

Harrington and the ARA’s heroics were early examples of America’s Food for Peace movement. America is at its best when we act upon the goal of peace and food for every country.

In America peace can start in the heart of one person and spread to others. It even can start in our youngest. Up in Maine during 1982, 10-year old Samantha Smith was worried about nuclear war with the Soviet Union.

She mailed a letter to the leader of the Soviet Union about peace. She got a reply and was actually invited to the Soviet Union, where she visited as a goodwill ambassador. Two years after her historic visit, Samantha passed away in a tragic plane crash. But she still inspires young people ever since to be activists for peace.

Today we need as many peace activists as possible with wars taking place in Ukraine, Yemen, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other countries and regions. With these wars are severe hunger emergencies. There is the constant threat of more wars, and the danger of nuclear weapons looms large. We need peace.

As President Dwight Eisenhower said in his 1959 Fourth of July message “Our major goal is the achievement of a lasting peace with justice.”

This Fourth of July let’s make sure that words for peace are part of our celebrations. America must always be a leader for peace.