With the
recent death of a great leader Mandela
I am back pondering world peace leaders…Please
take a minute to close your eyes and see
what names come to mind when contemplating
world peace leaders…. whose names come rolling easily off your tongue? Nelson
Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Dali Lama, Ghandi, Malcom X, Mother Teresa. Why do you think majority of names in our
minds are men’s names? Why do these names come so easily to us? Why aren’t the names
of great women peace leaders like Aung san Suukyi, Wangari Maathai, Rigoberta
Menchu, Mary Robinson, Nasrin Sotoudu, Buffy Saint-Marie immediately lightly and easily
roll of our tongues? Why aren’t the names of women peace leaders side by side with their great male peace
counterparts? I believe Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Dali Lama, Ghandi would be the
first to acknowledge and ponder too this absence and I believe Mother Teresa would be happy to share that lonely space.
Aung San Suu Kyi Burma
Nasrin Sotoudeh Iran
Mary Robinson Ireland
Buffy Saint-Marie Canadian-American Cree
