24 days of peace

The year so far has been a violent and bloody one with more than 100 murders, reports of rape and violent robberies being caught on tape.

But imagine for a second what life would be like if there were 24 days of peace. Imagine what could be done if this nation experienced 24 days without a violent robbery, rape or murder. How would 24 days of peace affect the business sector? What, beside crime, would the Government focus on? What will the police do?

The 24 Hearts Organisation, which operates out of London, seeks to find out as its goal is to assist in bringing about 24 days of peace.

Sophie Lodge, who is leading the project in London and in Trinidad and Tobago, told Sunday Newsday she knows their goal seems to be an “outlandish dream”, with the efforts of this nation’s leaders and security forces having little to no impact on spiralling crime.

However, by reaching out to children and other people at the grassroots level through art, Lodge and the 24 Hearts Organisation hope to promote a message of togetherness and positivity and change the mindset of future generations. The 24 Hearts project was borne out of the tragic fire which destroyed Grenfell Tower. On June 14, 2017, just before midnight, a report of the fire was made and over 200 fire-fighters responded to the blaze. By the time it was doused, the fire had destroyed 151 apartments and killed close to 80 people.

Lodge said she started the 24 Hearts project as a heartfelt response to the fire.

“I wanted to spread love and represent the strength and unity of local communities,” she said. She originally wanted to design 24 hearts, one for each floor, and display it in recognition of the tragedy. But as the idea spread across London communities, several people came together to create hundreds of hearts. A collaboration with Kensington Community and Schools’ Carnival Band meant that hundreds of hearts were also displayed during carnival at Notting Hill. After the success of its first project, the 24 Hearts Organisation visited 16 primary schools in North Kensington, telling the story of the Grenfell fire and asking children to draw portraits of people who make their community special. The drawings were created in heart shaped templates, and children were asked to complete the strap line “everyone is special but this person is special because...”

This resulted in over 4,500 drawings being made of people, from Nelson Mandela to people in the community like road sweepers, bus drivers, friends and relatives.

In a conversation between Lodge and film maker Jamie Simmons during a visit to Trinidad, Lodge realised the project could also have an impact here. Simmons and Lodge discussed the idea of conducting the same projects locally, with the ultimate goal of achieving 24 days of peace. When asked what 24 Hearts could do to achieve so many peaceful days, Lodge said 24 days of peace would be the end game, but for now the organisation will work on gauging interest and increasing awareness. “At the moment this is the spark of an idea,” Lodge said. “I love the idea and although it may sound a little optimistic it is certainly something to aspire to. We feel that we could spread the message on a grassroots level by visiting schools and creating hearts with the children whilst working towards a common goal of 24 days of peace.”

The 24 Hearts Organisation’s first project was done at Buccoo’s Early Childhood and Education Centre, Tobago where children helped to create the first wall of love. The wall was created on February 19, with the same heart templates that were used in the London projects. The students of the learning centre were given a similar presentation reminding them of the value of people in their communities, and teaching them about the fire which initiated the project.

“Perhaps when every school in Trinidad has created a wall of love, then the country will be ready to act as one,” Lodge said, “When I decided to make 24 hearts eight months ago I couldn’t have imagined where it would lead. I believe in the power of people and positivity and I believe that together we can make some magic happen.”