Professor Ellen Ross, who serves on the Peace and Conflict Studies committee, and Chris Densmore, Curator of the Friends Historical Library will join Elaine Pryce, Pendle Hill’s Henry J. Cadbury Scholar for 2008-9 to discuss Quietism and Quakerism in the Barn at Pendle Hill on Thursday night, May 28, 7:30-9:00 p.m. Visit Pendle Hill’s website for more information and directions.

Students, faculty, and staff gathered in the Lang Center for our annual picnic yesterday in order to socialize and congratulate our graduating seniors of the class of ’09!

• Julian Chender
• Jonathan Leung
• Maurice Weeks
• Reina Chano
• Ian Yarett

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to sit outside because of the rain, but we enjoyed the opportunity to mingle and welcome new students, and we presented Prof. Amanda Bayer with a gift to mark her eleven years of service to the program. Prof. Bayer coordinated the program for at least four of those years and has made many important contributions. We appreciate her leadership!

Peace and Conflict Studies minors Kevin Kim ’12, Reina Chano ’09, Jonathan Leung ’09, and Maurice ’09 enjoy some of the delectables during our indoor picnic.

A recent article that appeared in The Phoenix offers a historical perspective on peace and justice activism at the college.

“During her time at Swarthmore, Miriam Feingold Real ’63 was no stranger to the county jails. An ardent activist who was involved in organizing many of the demonstrations against segregation in Chester, Pennsylvania and Cambridge, Maryland, Real believed that sometimes sacrifices had to be made in the name of social justice. ‘Some of the activities we were involved in ended up with us being arrested,’ Real said. ‘I remember spending several days in jail with my school books from Swarthmore, attempting to do my homework and study.’ Real is only one of many students in the history of the college who have translated their concern with social justice into explicit activism. This dual dedication to academics and social change has been a mark of Swarthmore’s reputation for years, but few have questioned to what extent it is a part of the College’s history.” … Read the whole story by HANNAH PURKEY in the March 5, 2009 issue of The Phoenix.

George Lakey has served as the college’s Lang Visiting Professor of Issues for Social Change within the Peace and Conflict Studies Program for the past three years. Faculty, students, and staff gathered on Friday, May 1, 2009 to show their appreciation and sing Broadway show tunes in Parrish Parlor. We have been privileged to have such a dedicated and experienced colleague in Peace and Conflict Studies. George has brought much energy, expertise, and humanity to our lives, and we look forward to working with him in the future. We have learned so much! Thank you, George.

[display_podcast]

George Lakey leads students, faculty, and staff in, appropriately, “You’ve Got to be Carefully Taught.”