Lynn Renee Photography Blog | A Peaceful Protest
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A Peaceful Protest

21 Nov A Peaceful Protest

Posted at 03:50h in Photography, School, Uncategorized by
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A Peaceful Protest

After all of the commotion during the Chicago Public Schools strike (view photos on Facebook or Instagram) I thought it would be fun to focus (always pun intended) on a different kind of organized union of voices that can be heard every September at Edison Region Gifted Center.  The annual Peace March combines the kindergarten, first grade, and second grade classes on a short walk from school over to a local park where they make they make their peace pledge and sit for peace.
Finding just the right colors to make their flags for the peace march can be a tough project for some second graders.

During the week prior to the march the students make signs, flags, and have discussions about past peaceful leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. Then they all gather at the front of the school to begin their march through the neighborhood.  Parents are encouraged to participate and its hard to resist witnessing the sweetness.  Luckily it was a gorgeous day since you never know what it will be like in Chicago.
A first grader reaches out to his kindergarten buddy to get ready for the march. They will hold hands with their third grade buddy as well as they walk through the neighborhood.

The kindergarten teacher, Daneal Silvers, is a Golden Apple Award recipient from 2018 and leads this activity every year.  Trying to keep a peaceful energy with 28 kindergarteners every single day has to be exhausting, but she does it so well even as a parent you can fall under her spell. One of the reasons we chose this school for our son was because of their emphasis on calm energy throughout the school.
In flowing white Ms. Silvers leads the way out of the school and through the neighborhood. Her classes are so devoted, as students and parents we will follow her anywhere.

Treking through the neighborhood this pack of elementary school kids is quite a sight to see.  They are surprisingly quiet while they make their way to their destination.  Parents, family members, and other volunteers work the route to keep everyone safe from the city traffic. The neighborhood is very diverse so this group drew quite an audience from passersby.
As a family member volunteer, Ralph is very involved in the school, stopping traffic so the peaceful protest can be safe with just one hand.

When they reach the park there are more parents and more family members waiting to properly document the moment.  Ms. Silvers sets the kids up for the group photo so that everyone can get it.  Then they say their peace pledge.  It wasn’t more than ten minutes before the classes got up and headed back to school, to pack up their bags and go home for the day.
When we reached our destination I couldn't figure out who this crowd of people was waiting for us. Then I quickly realized they were parents and family members, cell phones ready to capture this moment.

When they got back to school they were waiting to be let inside the building, the security guard must have been away from his desk momentarily.  Since it was very warm day a chant rang out from the sweaty faces, “what do we want, air conditioning, when do we want it, now!” Yeah, I think they did well in their civics lesson for the day, don’t you?
Three grades of ERGC students gather with signs in hand to demonstrate their love of peace.
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