Armistice Day: WWI, the War to End All Wars and The Forgotten Promise, with Jack Erickson

The Monterey chapter of Veterans for Peace invites everyone to celebrate both Armistice Day and Veterans Day with a program at the Monterey Peace and Justice Center in Seaside. All are encouraged to bring a bell to ring at 11 a.m., the exact moment the World War I armistice agreement was signed on November 11, 1918.

An Open Mic segment will follow. Audience members are invited to share a brief story, poem, favorite quotation, or song starting at 11:10 a.m.

Afterward, Jack Erickson, Chapter 46 member, author, and historian, will discuss events that led up to World War I and his insights about the four-year "War to End All Wars," including a little-known post-armistice battle at Scapa Flow, Scotland in 1919. Erickson will discuss his visits to WWI battlefields and trenches and will display relics recovered from the trenches. An open discussion will follow the presentation

Program:
10:30 AM Refreshments and Social Time
11:00 AM Ringing of the Bells
11:10 AM Open Mic
11:45 AM The War to End All Wars and the Forgotten Promise, with Jack Erickson
01:30-2:30 PM Reclaim Armistice Day Vigil at Window on the Bay, 717 Del Monte Blvd., Monterey CA

Background: One hundred and five years ago, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, World War I Allied forces and Germany signed an agreement to cease hostilities as a prelude to peace talks. November 11th was thereafter designated as Armistice Day, a day to honor World War 1 veterans and celebrate the cause of world peace. Despite WWI being called "the war to end all wars", it did not serve that vision.

The ensuing WWII and Korean War prompted veterans service organizations to press for a national day to honor all veterans. In 1954, President Eisenhower signed HR7786 to expand the scope of "Armistice Day" to include all veterans who served our country, both in war and in peace.

In redesignating November 11 as "Veterans Day" something was lost. Veterans For Peace has taken the lead in restoring the original (and forgotten) intention of November 11th as a day on which we "... reconsecrate ourselves to the task of promoting an enduring peace so that their efforts shall not have been in vain." [HR7786]

About the Speaker:
Jack Erickson is veteran, an author, and a historian. He is a former Air Force intelligence officer, U.S. Senate speechwriter, Washington-based editor, and RedBrick Press publisher. He serves as Treasurer for Veterans For Peace Chapter 46. He and his wife Marilyn live in Carmel Valley, California. Jack Erickson

Sponsor:
Veterans For Peace (VFP), Chapter 46 is the Monterey County chapter of a national organization of Military Veterans and allies whose collective efforts focus on building a culture of peace by using their experiences and voices to expose the true causes of war and the enormous costs of wars, with an obligation to heal the wounds of wars.

Contact Michael Dempsey, Chapter President, mikedevfp46 [at] gmail.com

Website: https://vfp46.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JohnSteinbeckIV/