Home › News › Local News
Peace runners on their way to Panama pass through county
Chuck Kirman / Star staff Runners in the Peace and Dignity Journey to Panama pass through Ventura on Wednesday. The goal is to allow the interaction of indigenous peoples and communities and to honor sacred sites. of all colors.
STORY TOOLS 
More from Local NewsNearly 20 runners passed through Ventura County on Wednesday to celebrate and unite people of indigenous cultures.
The runners, en route to Panama in South America, are part of the Peace and Dignity Journey, an event started in 1992 by elders from Western Hemisphere tribes to "reclaim peace and dignity by honoring indigenous ways of life, and current struggles of resistance to modern colonization," according to a statement from organizers.
The six-month run started May 1 in Chickaloon, Alaska, and will end in Panama, where several hundred indigenous tribes from both North and South America will convene.
The run is held every four years, and this is the fourth time it's come to Ventura County, said Gilbert Manchego, treasurer of the Peace and Dignity Journey Committee of Ventura County.
This year's journey is about honoring sacred sites and, Manchego said, Ventura County was a prime stop for the run. "This was all Chumash land once upon a time," Manchego said.
The runners started Wednesday in Santa Barbara and in the afternoon stopped near Surfers Point in Ventura, where, Manchego said, the Chumash used to gather frequently.
"The West is very sacred to the Chumash," Manchego said.
"They are the water people."
The runners then sprinted off to Saticoy, where they planned to camp overnight. Saticoy was a sacred spring and a major gathering place for the Chumash, Manchego said.
The runners planned to continue their journey today through Santa Paula, Fillmore and Piru before heading to Val Verde in Los Angeles County.
Posted by VivaVentucky on July 17, 2008 at 7:05 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I saw these guys running on the beach near Emma Wood yesterday. It was a beautiful sight.
Posted by cassandra2 on July 17, 2008 at 8:19 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Bit of a teaser though. I'd love to know more of this group, what exactly they are saying, what they mean by what they are saying.
Article discussions on this site are to support community debates of issues related to our stories and editorials.
Discussions should not stray from the subject of the story or editorial.
We do not allow the following:
- Posts that degrade others on the basis of gender, race, class, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation or disability.
- Disparaging remarks, abusive language or obscene comments.
- Threats, whether obvious or veiled.
We reserve the right to delete threads and/or ban users for these or other reasons we deem necessary.
Opinions are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.
There are 2 comments to this article.
Comments are found beneath the Yahoo! ad below.