Join conversation asking "Is War Ever Justified?"

Fox Valley Citizens for Peace & Justice presents "Is War Ever Justified?," a public conversation about one of the great questions of all time, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18, in the Elgin Room at Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave. in Elgin.

They will have a panel of four speakers, representing a range of opinions on both sides of this challenging question. Some of the speakers will base their opinions on religious grounds, some on social justice, and some on philosophical and historical grounds. An open dialogue between the speakers and the audience will follow.

The speakers will be:

• Earl Silbar, an Elgin resident and retired GED instructor at City Colleges of Chicago, is former adjunct professor at University of Illinois (labor education) and Rosary College (criminology).

• Vince Hardt, an active Lutheran layman and adult education director for his congregation. He has been involved in recent years in mission trips to Costa Rica and China. He is active with Northern Illinois Jobs with Justice, Occupy Naperville and Fox Valley Citizens for Peace and Justice. He has a bachelor's degree from Augustana College, and a master's degree in education from Johns Hopkins. He taught English as a foreign language for three years in Algeria, then taught secondary English for four years after his return to the U.S. He has been employed since then in insurance claims.

• Vivienne Bailey, a longtime resident of Elgin now retired, worked in the postal service in information systems at the Northern Illinois District in Carol Stream. She is a member of St. James AME Church in Elgin.

• Rex Burwell, a lifelong advocate for peace and justice, is a retired English professor from Harper College. He has lived in Elgin for 30 years.

The program is free and open to the public. All are welcome.

For more information, call (847) 742-6602 or visit www.fvc4pnj.org. Follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/fvc4pnj.