REMEMBERING PEACE CAMPS

History
1981

The Women's Peace Camp at Greenham Common started in 1981 and went on for nearly 20 years, when they won! dismantling of the nuclear weapons site and military base. But only after camping in the mud for decades. Today the Common is open green space with deer. Welsh women began the occupation--"On the 5th September 1981, the Welsh group “Women for Life on Earth” arrived on Greenham Common, Berkshire, England. They marched from Cardiff with the intention of challenging, by debate, the decision to site 96 Cruise nuclear missiles there. On arrival they delivered a letter to the Base Commander which among other things stated ‘We fear for the future of all our children and for the future of the living world which is the basis of all life’."

Over the years, the women breached the walls to perform ritual actions in opposition to military violence: "On New Year’s Eve 1982 the women broke into the base for the first time; 44 women climbed over the military base’s fence and climbed on top of the silos and danced around on them for hours. All the women were arrested, and 36 were imprisoned. On 1 April 1983 200 women entered the base dressed as teddy bears to protest — a "child" symbol like the teddy bear was a stark contrast to the highly militarized atmosphere of the base; the women again were highlighting the safety of their children and future generations of children. The next major event was 'Reflect the Base' on 11 December 1983, when 50,000 women circled the base to protest against the Cruise missiles which had arrived three weeks earlier. The day started as a silent vigil where women held up mirrors as to allow the base to symbolically look back at itself and its actions; however, the day ended with hundreds of arrests as the women pulled down large sections of the fence."


Time Lapse to Washington DC
2004

https://youtu.be/johabhyURIw

Back to 1983 In Seneca New York
USA
(I was there, and have three boxes of slides to show for it)
The Seneca Women’s Encampment for a Future of Peace and Justice has also been referred to as: the Encampment, the Women’s Encampment, the Women's Peace Camp, the Peace Camp.  The camp took place mainly during the summer of 1983, from July 4 through Labor Day, concluding with a Labor Day Action honoring workers and highlighting the inflation and job loss that militarism brings. The Encampment continued through till 1994 when it "transitioned" into a "Women's Peace Land."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seneca_Women's_Encampment_for_a_Future_of_Peace_and_Justice
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