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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E806-E807]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMMEMORATION OF THE TREE OF PEACE
_____
HON. EMANUEL CLEAVER
of missouri
in the house of representatives
Thursday, June 20, 2019
Mr. CLEAVER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the planting
of the Tree of Peace on the grounds of the National World War I Museum
and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri. This ceremony is dignified by
the presence of Mr. Ross P. Marine, the Honorary Consul of the Slovak
Republic to the Midwest United States and board member of the Czech and
Slovak Club of Greater Kansas City. During his eighteen-year tenure as
Honorary Consul, Mr. Marine has worked to strengthen the economic,
social, and cultural ties between Slovakia and Mid-America, and this
spirit of international cooperation is reflected by the Tree of Peace
project. Since the dedication of the National WWI Museum and Memorial
on Armistice Day in 1926, Kansas City, Missouri has been home to the
country's foremost institution committed to preserving the history of
the First World War. In the shadows of the Liberty Memorial--the most
fitting location our country offers for this project--the Tree of Peace
will convey a message of goodwill and contribute to the reflective
nature of this consecrated site.
Between July 28, 1914 and November 11, 1918, the First World War
claimed the lives of nine million combatants and nearly eight million
civilians. Another twenty-one million military personnel were wounded
during the course of the war. In the United States alone, over 116,000
servicemen were killed, 204,000 were wounded, and 3,350 went missing.
Among the American casualties, 441 were from Kansas City. To this day,
World War I remains among the most costly and destructive wars in
history.
[[Page E807]]
When the National WWI Museum and Memorial opened to the public in
1926, President Calvin Coolidge explained that the memorial had ``not
been raised to commemorate war and victory, but rather the results of
war and victory, which are embodied in peace and liberty.'' The Tree of
Peace project, initiated by Slovak landscape architect Dr. Marek
Sabala, serves a similar purpose.
The Tree of Peace project is an international initiative that began
in the Slovak Republic last year to mark the 100th anniversary of the
First World War's conclusion. Within four years, Dr. Sabala hopes to
plant a Tree of Peace on every continent, a mission designed to
champion a message of peace and the need to avoid armed conflicts. Each
Tree of Peace also stands as a living tribute to all those who fought
and perished in World War I, including those who lost their lives on
unknown battlefields and who remain known only God. So far, eight Trees
of Peace have been planted in four participating countries: Austria,
Slovakia, Russia, and Poland. With the planting of a Tree of Peace at
the National WWI Museum and Memorial on June 21st, the United States
will join this international community in hopes of achieving a world
free from global conflict. At a National Historic Landmark that has
attracted over two million visitors since 2006, the Tree of Peace will
establish its roots at one of the most treasured sites in Missouri's
Fifth Congressional District and the nation.
The motto of the Tree of Peace project, to ``make love the lifeblood
of this world,'' articulates an ideal that is antithetical to the
depravity of warfare. Visitors to the National WWI Museum and Memorial
walk across a glass bridge above a field of 9,000 red poppies--each of
which represents 1,000 combat deaths suffered during the War.
Conversely, the Tree of Peace symbolizes belief in a future where war
no longer inflicts senseless death on so many. World War I was
described by many contemporaries as ``the war to end all wars.'' While
the international community has repeatedly proven this description
false--with graves all across the world bearing testament to the
devastating consequences of armed conflict--the Tree of Peace expresses
faith that we may, once and for all, see war come to an end.
The Liberty Memorial Tower is flanked by two Assyrian Sphinx
sculptures, known as Memory and Future. While Memory shields its eyes
from the horrors of war, and Future shields its eyes from the
uncertainty of times to come, the Tree of Peace affirms hope in a
future that need not cause one to cover one's eyes in fear.
The Tree of Peace project encourages each of us to recommit ourselves
to the noble pursuit of perpetual peace--in which bullets, bombs, and
bayonets are all set aside; hostility is replaced with civility; and
antagonism gives way to amity. The Tree of Peace calls on nations to
silence the beating of their war drums, cast away their rattling
sabers, and pay no heed to war hawks. Only then will the ``just and
lasting peace'' that is described on the north wall of the memorial
become a reality.
Madam Speaker, please join me in celebrating the planting of the Tree
of Peace at the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City,
Missouri. Let us recognize this occasion by reflecting on the values of
friendship, harmony, and goodwill.
____________________