Nearly 6,000 people who formed a massive human peace sign in Ithaca are hoping their effort is good enough for the Guinness Book of World Records.
Guinness doesn't have a peace sign category, said Guinness spokeswoman Jamie Panas. But if it decides to add one, the Ithaca group would claim the record, said Trevor Dougherty, a sophomore at Ithaca High School who organized the event as a follow-up to a YouTube video he filmed called "Stand Up for World Peace."
Dougherty said Ithaca will ask Guinness to sanction its record of 5,814 people.
Panas said Guinness researches all new record proposals and uses its discretion on what to accept as new categories. Records must be measurable, verifiable and breakable and must serve the public's interest, she said.
Each year, Guinness receives about 65,000 inquiries from people wanting to set or break records, according to its Web site. It usually takes four to six weeks to decide on a record application, the Web site said. Guinness counts more than 40,000 records.
Dougherty told The Ithaca Journal a video of Sunday's event will be released on Youtube.com within the next few weeks.
The event capped the three-day Ithaca Festival.
