in my opinion

Advocates of Peace

By Jacquelyn Allen

Peace activism is alive and well in Washington State – but you might never know it. Currently, there are 103 active peace groups trying to create positive change within their communities on issues of international and societal importance without much, if any, help from the local media.

That means, for each of the 39 counties across the state, there are between two and three peace groups per county. Yet, research shows that 29% of these very same groups have not been mentioned in the Seattle Times or Post Intelligencer since the turn of the millennium and only 32% of these peace organizations are mentioned in the Seattle newspapers more than once a year. When they do appear, 11% of the articles present these groups negatively, whereas the remaining 89% includes both a neutral and a positive scope. I find this rather surprising considering that journalism is supposedly objective and is meant to promote a neutral point of view. More important, however, is the lack of visibility and voice. In some of these cases a member may be quoted, but more likely the coverage is simply a calendar listing about an upcoming event. Rarely do any of these organizations receive a feature article, despite the promising story potential!

Whether a local meeting, church gathering, concert, vigil, protest or march, there are dedicated events and discussions about peace happening across the state every single day. These events are difficult to know about unless one is already involved in the group. There are many reasons that these groups’ efforts are not widely recognized, much due to a war-oriented discourse that seems to plague this country. Fortunately many peace organizations prepare newsletters and maintain websites for those who seek them out. Still, wouldn’t you like to know more about what is really happening across the state?