Power to the Peaceful Festival 2006, 9/9/06

On Saturday, September 9th, Musician and Filmmaker, Michael Franti and his group Spearhead with Guerrilla Management present the 8th Annual 911 Power to the Peaceful Festival at Speedway Meadow in Golden Gate Park.

The Festival began humbly in 1999 as an international day of art and culture in support of political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal. The name and date “911” were chosen to call attention to the emergency status of Mumia’s impending execution and drew roughly 6,000 people to the Mission’s Dolores Park. In 2000, PTTP expanded; showing support for all prisoners on death row, and speaking out against the exponential growth of the prison industrial complex.

When the attacks of September 11th, 2001 occurred, the festival took on a new significance, serving both as a day of remembrance for the lives lost in the tragedy as well as a day in which Northern Californians called for and end to all bombing around the globe. The 2002 and 2003 events offered a space for healing and compassion for all the people killed or displaced by terrorism and the war on terrorism. By this time, the festival had outgrown Dolores Park, and was resituated in the lush mile acre of Speedway Meadows in Golden Gate Park, with over 20,000 people attending. In 2004 the festival was themed "Stand up and be Counted", encouraging people to get out and vote. Last year's festival, themed "Bring 'Em Home" emphasized that the best way to support our troops is to bring them home now and drew upwards of 50,000 attendees participating in a day of music, art and social justice.

"Be Peace Now" is this year's theme, reminding us that the path to a less violent world starts from within. Each one of us must commit to what we want to see reflected in the world. Or as Michael Franti sees it, "We can't change the world over night, but we can be a drop in the river that moves a mountain".

In addition to the main stage of live music, PTTP also features morning yoga, an open-air art gallery, a healing arts tent, a DJ tent, vendors and food booths, eco village, kid's zone, bicycle coalition, and social, environmental & political organizations tabling & forums. A second stage has been added this year featuring an array of cutting edge local artists. Sunday September 10th at 1pm, Yoga Sangha of San Francisco will be hosting the Power to the Peaceful, "Be Peace Now Yoga Jam: A day of Yoga, Music and Activism", with Yoga teachers Shiva Rea, Nickie Doane and Eddie Modestini, Katchie Ananda, Acro-Yoga with Jason Nemer and Jenny Sauer-Klein, guest speakers Matthew and Terces Engelhart (Cafe Gratitude), Robi Damelin and Nadwa Sarandah and acoustic musical performances by Michael Franti, Jai Uttal others.

PTTP Festival has been graced with inspirational performances by Michael Franti and Spearhead, KRS-One, String Cheese Incident, Saul Williams, Keller Williams, Blackalicious, Alice Walker, Ram Dass, Talib Kweli, Amy Goodman, The Coup, Digital Underground, Woody Harrelson, Lyrics Born, Anti-Flag, Jello Biafra and Angela Davis and many others.

Getting to the Festival:
Carpool, BART, Bike or Walk with Your Neighbors
Power is in Community, so travel to the festival with your neighbors!
Whether you drive, walk, bike or BART, SpaceShare's travel & neighbor-match will connect you with peace-loving folks in your neighborhood. You tell us where you live, how you're traveling here, and the issues you care about. We'll connect you with neighbors who want to go to the same parties or heal the world on the same path you do.

(see artist line-up http://powertothepeaceful.org/lineup.html)

The 911 Power to the Peaceful Festival Features:

9:00am-11am

Morning Yoga with Michael Franti
The 911 Power to the Peaceful Festival will be hosting a special 2 Hour Yoga Session featuring both Maya Yoga and
Acro Yoga. We invite 1000 yogis to join us at 9am Saturday morning to begin the day.

Maya Yoga with Nicki Doane & Eddie Modestini of Yoga on Maui. Maya yoga is an open system. This system of yoga respects the individual and is accessable to all. Maya Yoga represents a vision where personal practice reveals deeper aspects of one's being; where students gain the tools to serve themselves and the opportunity to explore a singular journey into yoga. In Maya yoga, the practice is the teacher. Eddie and Nicki continue to travel to Mysore to keep the connection with the birthplace of their yoga experience. They were there most recently in winter 2006. Come early and start the day with Yoga!

Acro Yoga with Jenny Sauer-Klein & Jason Nemer of Acroyoga. AcroYoga blends the spiritual wisdom of yoga, the loving kindness of Thai massage, and the dynamic power of Acrobatics. These three ancient lineages form the foundation of a unique new practice that cultivates trust, connection and playfulness. Our highest aim is to bring individuals into a state of union with themselves, with each other, and with the divine. From this place of mutual support the true self can be realized, honored and shared for the benefit of all. Om Shanti.

11am-5pm

Healing Arts Tent
Visit the 911 Power to the Peaceful Healing Arts Tent for a serene environment offering bodywork including massage and reiki coordinate by ARENHA.

Art Gallery
Open-Air Art Gallery showcasing visual independent and emerging artists provided by START SOMA GALLERY.

Kids Zone
Family Fun Tent offering face-painting, story-telling and arts & crafts hosted by MOCHA and the BIG TADOO PUPPET CREW

DJ Tent
Dance Tent featuring the best DJ's in hip hop, reggae, house and breaks. Spinning this year will be Adnan, Garth, Maneesh the Twister, and Hey Man!. For DJ lineup and schedule, go to ARTIST LINEUP.

Social Justice Organizations
Activate yourself and visit the Social Justice & Environmental Organizations tabling on site for information, education and insight on a variety of community issues.

Vendors
Stroll thru the food and artisan vendor row for international foods and conscience product vendors.

American Sign Language
The Festival is proud to offer ASL services on the Main Stage for the entire event.