PEC Hosts Picnic and Welcomes Free “Play for Peace” Concert Tour on June 26 at Lake Lansing Park

U2 tickets at Spartan Stadium on Sunday are available for $275 apiece.  Or you can come to the free “Play for Peace” concert on Sunday, June 26, 2011, at 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. at the Lake Lansing Park South Band Shell in Haslett.  A free picnic at 5 p.m. will precede the festivities.  Tickets to this event are NOT available through Ticketmaster!

The Peace Education Center of Greater Lansing is welcoming an eclectic lineup of musicians who will perform a variety of music, including blues, folk, and hip hop.  The event is free and open to the public, and suitable for all ages.  The performances will be held in the park’s Band Shell.  The Peace Education Center will stake out a spot at the park and will host a free picnic with food and drinks at 5 p.m.  The picnic site will be marked with — what else? — peace signs!

The artist lineup includes:

• ‘Nique LoveRhodes
• Ryan Castelli
• Joe Kidd
• Darrin Breil (of the New Day Sun)
• Kevin “Mr. Peace” Szawala
• Pretty Shaky String Band
• Victor McManemy

The concert supports the statewide campaign, “Moveable Peace,” which is being coordinated by the Michigan Peace Network, a statewide network of 140 peace and justice organizations.  The new campaign will launch a number of peace actions that will take place starting July 30 and run through Labor Day.  Some highlights of the campaign include:

• From July 30 through August 9, peace groups will participate in a “Peace Walk,” traveling on foot to Lansing from Kalamazoo, Detroit, Grand Rapids, and Saginaw.  The walk’s emphasis is on stopping in towns, cities, and villages along the way, highlighting the cost of military spending, listening to local residents, and then compiling their concerns and hopes.
• A petition drive that recommends to the Governor and State Legislature to create a state Michigan Commission for Peace and Justice.
• A weekend festival and bridge walk at the Mackinac Bridge on Labor Day will be a capstone event of “Moveable Peace,” in a show of unity to send a message of peace and solidarity that will be heard throughout the state.

Donations to the statewide “Moveable Peace” campaign will be accepted on a pass-the-bucket basis during the event.

Information about “Moveable Peace” is available through the Peace Education Center at 517-515-5634 or peaceedcenter@gmail.com and on the Web at moveablepeace.org.