Praying and Riding for Peace Through the Streets of South Los Angeles
Bringing the community together in the name of common sense values
Bikers, low riders and Corvette club members rode through South Los Angeles in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the United in Peace Rides. Along the way, they stopped to pray for the victims of senseless violence. And, as it does each month, the Peace Ride ended at the Church of Scientology Community Center in South Los Angeles, whose participation in each of the rides has been pivotal in the movement’s success.
Each month, Peace Riders hand out copies of The Way to Happiness. The signature orange cover of the Peace Ride booklet matches the initiative’s banners, flags and T-shirts. But it is what is inside these booklets that makes them so important—21 common sense precepts or values shared by people of goodwill of all cultures, backgrounds, religions and beliefs.
A police officer taking part in this month’s Peace Ride joined the LAPD eight years ago after serving in the Marines. Born and raised in South Central, he knows firsthand the cultural and ethnic tensions that break out in violence in the city. He spoke of the importance of The Way to Happiness as a means to cut through differences and restore communication by reminding people of what we all have in common.
A woman joined one of the three Peace Ride prayer circles held along the route to pray for a life lost to gang violence. She spoke of the importance of getting this booklet into the hands of youth. “Young people have to make decisions that will affect them the rest of their lives,” she said. “Their decisions can go either way. And The Way to Happiness can help them choose peace and a better life for their families and the entire community.”
At the end of the ride, a Peace Ride board member presented an award to author, humanitarian and Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard, who authored The Way to Happiness, saying the booklet’s common sense values form the foundation of the initiative’s success. Next, the Peace Rides recognized the LAPD for 10 years of protecting the riders each month with motorcycle patrols from the South Traffic Division.
The Way to Happiness Foundation presented an award to the Peace Rides for raising awareness of gang violence and bringing the community together in the name of peace.
United in Peace is a multiethnic, multifaith popular movement that unites people to work together to bring peace to our inner cities. Law enforcement and government leaders have recognized the reduction in violence and crime rates in neighborhoods touched by the Peace Rides. In Compton, California, the mayor and city council have acknowledged the Peace Rides, noting that each ride has also resulted in statistical drops in crime.
