Mighty Peacestones, undated

The Mighty Peacestones were a black power-era citizens group active in Champaign-Urbana in the 1960s and 1970s. The group sought to unite youth gangs in the area around a social justice mission. The following description of the group was authored by one of its members and appeared in the community newspaper, The Plain Truth: "We the Mighty Peace Stones , are on organization, not a gang. Our membership consists of different gangs that have come together under one name to form an organization to speak and work for the needs of the black community -- work to provide the community with a position of strength from which to make its voice heard. Black people have two problems: they are poor and they are black. All other problems arise from this two-sided reality. Any program to end racism must address itself to this double reality, and this is what the 'Mighty Peace Stones' are working for."