Mayor Brown challenged to support children’s bid to create
The Biggest Peace Banner The World Has Ever Seen
Mayor Len Brown will receive a challenge from 20 children of Weymouth intermediate school, on Monday, at 1.30, at the
Aotea Centre, to actively work for peace and to champion the cause of peace throughout New Zealand – because that’s what
children want to see happen in their world.
The children were among the first in Auckland to create new metre by metre calico panels for “The Biggest Peace Banner
The World Has Ever Seen” , after it arrived in Auckland five weeks ago.
While creating their art work and messages on the calico panels they decided they wanted to ask the mayor to receive a
letter from them, that is written on a calico panel. A replica will be added to the peace banner itself.
The children want ask the new Auckland City mayor to champion peace in the new city and to listen to the voice of the
children of the city.
As the banner will go on tour round New Zealand early next year, to enable all children to contribute panels, the
Weymouth children will also ask the mayor to issue a challenge to all other New Zealand mayors to ensure that schools in
their area, get involved in making panels and ensuring that in time, the banner is truly the biggest peace banner the
world has ever seen.
The banner was the original idea of children Kaiapoi Borough School, who want it sent to the United Nations when it is
big enough.
It had reached 100 metres in length before it was sent to Auckland to be part of the Earth From Above photographic
exhibition in Aotea Square.
It was sent with an invitation to all Auckland children to contribute new panels containing their own peace messages and
artworks. In the five weeks that the banner has been in Auckland, children and schools have flocked to Aotea Square and
have already added another 150 metres.
On Monday the children will present their “letter” and challenge to Mayor Brown and the banner will be on display.
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