A Century of Peace Efforts by Women

April and May, 2015, mark a century of peace efforts by the women of the world.  According to http://womhist.alexanderstreet.com/hague/intro.htm the International Congress of Women for Permanent Peace brought together women from all over the world to "promote peace through personal diplomacy."  (Personal diplomacy meant negotiation rather than the use of weapons.)  The first such Congress was in April-May of 1915, the time of World War I.  It was popular to call the organizing women names such as "sensationalists" and "Peacettes."  But, their message was heard loudly and clearly.  Jane Addams, Emily Greene Balch, and Alice Hamilton were delegates to the Congress. 
The back-story of the peace movement is demilitarism, setting down weapons and stepping up meetings between combatants.  Recent female Pulitzer Peace Prize winners have fostered the formation of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF).  They speak eloquently about their personal successes in bringing about peaceful solutions to violent struggles.  We don't hear much about these women.  Hopefully, we women can bravely spread the word and put forth our own ideas about how to solve problems peacefully and end bloodshed.

~ Submitted by Frosty Kroening