Peace Park

Peace Park

With escalating hostilities and nuke saber-rattling the world could use some peace parks in Tehran, Jerusalem, Islamabad, New Delhi and Washington DC.

December 22, 2001

Dear Mayor Guiliani,

New York should consider building a “Peace Park” at the World Trade Center site. The model for this concept is the Hiroshima Peace Park in Hiroshima, Japan that was built at the epicenter of the atomic bomb site.

When I was first in Japan in 1977, Dr. Takashi Ino the President of Shimonoseki University told me to visit the Peace Park in Hiroshima. He was a WW II veteran and had very strong views on war and peace as a consequence of his wartime service. He said, “If everyone in the world visited the Peace Park, there would never be another atom bomb dropped….”. He recommended that every country build a “Peace Park” in its Capitol as a living memory to the devastating action that mankind had brought on itself. I visited the Peace Park in Hiroshima and it made a life long impression on me.

The Hiroshima Peace Park has a museum that chronicles the history of the atomic blast in a very objective and factual way. There is a living scroll of every Japanese citizen that died from the blast. There is a section of a brick building that was at the precise epicenter of the bomb that was left standing that takes your mind back to that day in 1945. There is a peace bell that every visitor can ring and proclaim their faith in peace for the future. The Hiroshima Peace Park is a necessary statement both about the devastation of the past and the hope for the future. It is powerful and educational.

Mankind needs a “Peace Park” in New York at the epicenter of the devastation by terrorists. The purpose of a “Peace Park” in New York should be that such a terrorist event and destruction never happens again on Earth. We must learn from this tragedy as mankind and a memorial well thought out can help be a teacher for future generations.

Creating an organization to raise the funds to build a Peace Park in New York and involving the entire country and world, could in itself be a healing and learning experience for all the people on this planet. As the leader of New York, you would be the natural leader to take this mantel and mission on. You have proven yourself to be an inspiring leader in a time of tragedy. Such an idea would require a strong leader to get the job done.

Sincerely,

Terry Gardiner