Milestones / Achievements
Repeace begins in September 2008, as an intuition of a Swiss Italian social psychologist living in San Francisco (CA), Andrea Tosi, wanting to have more impact in the exercise of social change, and see more cohesion and synergy in the very fragmented and competitive realm of US "Activism." The first nine months are spent creating a new identity, a new way of framing the idea that all activism is a "peace process/peace movement." Repeace has developed through hard work, dedication, and the volunteering efforts of ordinary people around the world through social networking. These are the achievements of the project, with the words by the influential people, whose attention was captured.
September 2009-September 2010
Andrea Tosi connects on Facebook and early social networks (Tribes, Ning) and starts the US grassroots movement, with the assistance of BigSur activist and ThinkProgress page Admin LeeAnn Achterberg. Photojournalist Gabrielle Price of Indianapolis, former Union organizer Randy Fullerton and many other online agents of change get involved and spread the seeds of a new idea. Gabrielle Price writes the piece "Selling Peace like Soap" in Indianapolis Examiner in October 2010 (here)
October 2010
A renowned CA activist, NGO consultant and teacher, notices the 3 repeace commitments/pledges on a flyer in BigSur, and contacts Andrea Tosi. Repeace is pitched with the following words to Alternet and CommonDreams in the search of participation, promotion and a managing director.
Repeace is a content-smart and graphically rich campaign focusing on a redesigned peace symbol that signals a new way to frame “peace.” The peace movement as the absence of war, is stalled and lacking efficacy as the argument is always made that violence is a necessary evil for self protection. Reframing peace as living with the security that government is responsive and accountable to the needs of its citizens, and the separation of corporations and state, is a far greater and more empowering definition of what it means to live in peace.
In this more enlightened view of peace, not only is war more difficult to wage, but so is the relentless exploitation and abuse of citizens without redress: economic slavery, inequality based on race, gender, sexuality, and income. The new symbol is an organizing device to capture attention and spread this understanding of the kind of peace we all deserve. It empowers people by giving them the opportunity to pledge their commitment to this understanding, and become part of a mass movement- a revolutionary shift in thinking that could potentially mobilize enormous political and social power toward the realization of peace.
2012 Repeace.com platform and first PSA
The repeace vision is implemented at repeace.com. San Francisco Producer and Director Ron Merk co-produces and directs the first official repeace video and PSA, (here)
Professor in the field of Non violence praises the repeace platform for the vision and approach
I think you've done a superb job. This is a fine tool that you've developed, notwithstanding all of the accurate points you make in your message about the very real difficulties. I think that your selection of assertions and historical nuggets is excellent and presented fetchingly. You have a wonderful background for this work. I wish you the very best and hope that you can connect with other networks so that you can have even greater echo.
November 2012: Iceland's Member of Parliament Birgitta Jónsdóttir finds Repeace "very clever"
In November 2012, former assistant to Birgitta Jónsdóttir, Jón Þór Ólafsson (current MP and Pirate Party member) respond to Andrea Tosi and congratulate him on the Repeace.com approach. Birgitta wishes to have a repeace Iceland platform developed as well. Due to language barriers, lack of funding and staff, Andrea is unable to mobilize the needed resources to reach more Icelandic activists. The grassroots movement rests on the Facebook page.
June 2012: Co-founder of the US Coffee Party Movement, Annabel Parks, praises Repeace.
The Coffee Party Movement is an organized political action that was born as a reaction to the Tea Party phenomenon. It had a major initial reaction in progressive America and dates back to January 2010. Andrea Tosi was contacted from the co-founders. His work and vision, were praised as "amazing job."
May, 2014 Popular Blogger of DailyKos is inspired and writes about Repeace
Daily Kos popular Blogger Ray Pensador often wrote about new venues for the resistance and new solutions of empowerment. He connects and writes on different occasions about Repeace (hier eine Liste)
May, 2014
Canadian freelance Blogger Stephanie Renaud writes an article on Repeace (here.)