The California Wellness Foundation announced its annual Peace Prize winners this week, and Anthony Thigpenn, who runs a policy education nonprofit in South Los Angeles, is one of this year’s winners. Thigpenn has been neighborhood organizing and educating communities on the ins and outs of public policy for more than 30 years, and MoJo knows so. Back in 1982 the magazine featured Thigpenn as one of our “Heroes for Hard Times,” for his work as a community organizer in what was then South Central..
The Peace Prize, in its 14th year, awards $25,000 to three activists each year who have shown extraordinary commitment to prevent violence and promote peace in their communities. Other recipients this year are Sahra Abdi, who teaches Somali and African refugees and immigrants in San Diego, and Margaret Diaz, a former victim of domestic violence who established a shelter and transitional housing program for women and children also in Southern California. Find out more about the award and the foundation at their website.
