Dear Mr. President

 This letter is copied with permission from the Peace Marchers. I heard about their journey right before I left on my Peace Ride, in a Chicago Tribune article. They are reaching a very intense phase of their march. To reach Washington D.C. by September 10, they will need to march 25 miles a day. Currently they are in West Virginia. Wish them all the speed their legs can muster. At least they will be in better shape than me when finished….

Their hearts are in the right place and mine moves in honor of their march. They have been walking since May 21!  I often think of them while riding alone-and appreciate the solidarity between us, despite the distance. The letter below is a good read! Good Luck to you Peace Marchers!

Dear Mr. President,

As a representative of the March for Peace, I am requesting that you provide us with a place to sleep when we reach Washington D.C. on September 10th. We have been walking across the country from San Francisco since May 21st, and would like to share our experiences, and what we have learned from the thousands of people we have encountered along the way. Many kind folks have opened up their homes to us. We have had wonderful conversations with them about nonviolent solutions to global conflict, sustainability, and other issues important to all of us.

The people we have stayed with and talked to along the way have not necessarily been activists. We have been traveling through rural America, through small towns, past farms and factories, cornfields and feed lots. These are the parts of the country that voted for you; we have talked with and listened to them.

You recently said that the American people are willing to give “the surge” in Iraq a chance. This is not what we have seen and heard. The other day in Dayton, Ohio I had a conversation with a taxi driver who voted for you twice. He said that it was time for a change in Iraq and at home. We have heard the same from veterans, school teachers, correction officers, farmers and many others.

We will not be confrontational; we are a peaceful group. All that we ask for is a chance to share our experiences and enter into a dialogue. We are good guests. No one will bother the historic items, make too much noise late at night, or leave the toilet seat up. If you already have guests, we will be more than happy to camp out on the White House lawn.

Please let us know as soon as possible if we can plan on staying with you on September 10th.
I can be reached at march@marchforpeace.info

We look forward to sharing our experiences with you in September.

Sincerely,

Peter Cobb
Not in Our Name, March for Peace
On Behalf of Ashley Casale, Michael Israel, Antonio Kies, Isabelle Salmon,
Art Brown and Mike Russell (Marchers)