We’re very pleased that President Obama went to Hiroshima. We’re glad that he toured the A-bomb museum in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and laid a wreath at the cenotaph. And we’re very glad that he heeded our call to meet with hibakusha. Obama gave an emotional, rhetorically-soaring anti-war speech, reaffirming his commitment to pursue a world without nuclear weapons – albeit with the caveat “We may not realize this goal in my lifetime.” While the President did not offer an apology for the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki he did hint at one, stating: “We’re not bound by genetic code to repeat the mistakes of the past.”

President Obama pulled off a magnificent symbolic act as the first sitting U.S. President to visit Hiroshima. But to quote a famous old advertising line, “Where’s the beef?” Obama did not respond to our call to back up his disarmament rhetoric with bold action. Tragically, President Obama’s words in Hiroshima are contradicted by his dismal record on nuclear disarmament. His administration has reduced the nuclear stockpile less than any post-Cold War presidency, and has laid the ground-work to spend $1 trillion over the next three decades to upgrade the U.S. nuclear arsenal. And the Obama Administration’s aggressive policies toward Russia and China are fueling growing tensions between nuclear-armed giants.

But Obama’s visit to Hiroshima has generated a level media attention to the dangers of nuclear weapons not seen for years. Let’s take full advantage of this media interest! I encourage you to write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper commenting on the President’s visit to Hiroshima and what he didn’t say. You can draw on the letter we sent to President Obama, and I’ve also written a sample letter to the editor that you can modify. Please let us know if your letter is published by sending a note to info.ufpj@gmail.com. Many thanks for taking action!

For peace and justice in a nuclear free world,

Jackie Cabasso
National Co-convener, UFPJ
(Executive Director, Western States Legal Foundation}

Sample letter to the editor [162 words]

President Obama pulled off an historic symbolic act as the first sitting U.S. President to visit Hiroshima. But to quote a famous advertising line, “Where’s the beef?” President Obama’s words in Hiroshima are contradicted by his dismal record on nuclear disarmament. His administration has reduced the nuclear stockpile less than any post-Cold War presidency, and has laid the groundwork to spend $1 trillion over the next three decades to modernize the U.S. nuclear arsenal. His administration’s aggressive policies toward Russia and China are fueling growing tensions between nuclear-armed giants. Actions speak louder than words. President Obama should initiate a process to negotiate in good faith the early elimination of nuclear weapons, as required by the 1970 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. As a concrete interim step he should dramatically reduce the U.S. nuclear arsenal and urge Russia to do the same. And he should cancel the $1 trillion, 30-year program to modernize the U.S. nuclear arsenal and redirect those funds to meet human needs.

The post Send a Letter to the Editor on Obama’s Visit to Hiroshima appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

Click here for a PDF copy of the Signed Letter to President Obama: https://www.unitedforpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/UFPJ-Letter-to-President-of-USA-Barack-Obama-re-Hiroshima-and-Nuclear-Disarmament.pdf

The post UFPJ Delivers Letter w/ 1,500 Signatures to POTUS Ahead of Hiroshima Visit appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

The Middle East and Central Asia
U.S. military intervention continues unabated – in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Libya, leaving chaos in its wake and millions of refugees fleeing war zones.  Administration advisors push to return boots on the ground in areas that Daesh (ISIS) moves into. In Syria, the U.S., Russia and now France – three nuclear-armed nations – are bombing side-by-side and on different sides. Turkey, a NATO member with U.S. nuclear weapons based on its soil, faces off against Russia,and it appears that the U.S. is arming Kurdish Turkish opponents fighting Daesh across the border in Syria.

The humanitarian crises resulting from these wars are horrific and include: the bombing of hospitals – allegedly by both the U.S. and Russia, lack of food and water in war-torn areas, destruction of entire cities and communities, millions of children losing years of education, (can add some more horrors).

The U.S. (the largest weapons seller in the world) and European allies also are selling Saudi Arabia – the biggest supporter of terrorism in the world — billions of dollars of weapons, which then are being used to slaughter innocent civilians in Yemen and repress democracy in Saudi Arabia..

Europe and NATO
In Ukraine and Eastern Europe, the U.S. and its NATO allies and Russia are backing opposite sides in a confrontation involving four nuclear-armed countries. Both NATO and Russia are building up their forces along Russia’s border, and increasing the tempo of exercises of both nuclear and conventional forces. The Obama administration’s new military budget calls for a massive increase in funding to support this dangerous buildup.

These military interventions continue with little Congressional debate and no real discussion about the merits (if any) and risks (many) involved – leaving the American people on the sidelines and further endangering U.S. troops in futile, endless wars.

The Far East
To add to these dangerous conflicts, the U.S. and China, another nuclear-armed nation, are facing off against each other in the seas bordering China and other Asian nations. In January, North Korea conducted its 4th nuclear test (claiming it was an H-bomb). In a show of force, the U.S. responded by deploying a B-52 bomber capable of carrying nuclear weapons on a low-level flight over its ally South Korea. North Korea’s subsequent satellite launch has further inflamed tensions in the region.

As the U.S., Russia, China and the other nuclear-armed nations spend billions of dollars to modernize their nuclear arsenals, the danger of wars among nuclear-armed states is growing.

The War at Home
The increasing militarization of police in  communities across the U.S., coupled with an ever-growing disparity in wealth, adds to the violence, racism, and oppression experienced by those marginalized by our society. People of color, immigrants, low-income workers and homeless people face unending harassment, intimidation, aggression, incarceration, and even murder by police and vigilantes. The legal system is failing to provide justice as erroneous or draconian use of the criminal justice process ruins the lives and futures of many.

An increasing technological “surveillance state” monitors civilian activities and conceals governmental and corporate criminality. Calls for closing borders, monitoring of Muslim communities, and ever-present racism fuel xenophobia, islamophobia, and hate crimes. In the face of these threats new campaigns are emerging.  Black Lives Matter, Immigrant Rights, and Indigenous Rights movements are demanding self-determination and real security. As peace activists we must also confront this never-ending war at home and stand with our fellow activists who are calling for economic and racial justice.

Cutting Military Spending
Total military spending in the Administration’s recently released FY 2017 budget request continues to increase, amounting to nearly $623 billion, including the Pentagon budget, nuclear weapons and aid to foreign militaries. The budget provides $583 billion for the Pentagon alone in 2017, a $2 billion increase over 2016.The Pentagon budget is more than ten times the budget allocated for diplomacy under the Department of State. Compared to $7.5 billion for military efforts to fight Daesh, the budget provides just $4 billion for dedicated diplomacy and humanitarian relief around the region.

These endless wars have cost millions of lives and trillions of dollars, while the needs of growing numbers of Americans here at home go unmet. Europe is overwhelmed by the largest refugee crisis since World War II, with huge daily migrations (6,000 people per day) and drownings of people so desperate to escape war zones that they undertake perilous journeys to a place that might be safer. Meanwhile, the United Nations is begging for a mere $550 million in aid for the refugees who are the victims of war.

The post US Militarism’s Expanse and the Need for a Movement to Cut Military Spending and Invest in Human Needs appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

The global situation is careening out of control.

Our President, who stated in his 2013 inaugural address that “a decade of war is now ending”, has authorized the bombing of 7 countries (most with which we are not at war):  Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria, Somalia and Libya. The U.S. is currently sparring with Russia over the Ukraine, playing a very dangerous game with another nuclear armed power. 

We have been told by Obama administration national security and intelligence officials that there is no military solution in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Middle East, yet war is our continuing response. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have not created a safer, more stable Middle East.  U.S. and NATO involvement instead have caused chaos and an endless cycle of regional wars. Too many Americans have shown a willingness to go along with more war with very little questioning or objection. 

It is irrational for Americans to believe that people in Iraq, Afghanistan, and across the Middle East will accept U.S. military intervention without fighting back. General McChrystal, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Commander in Afghanistan, warned that “for every innocent person you kill, you create 10 new enemies.” Former State Department official in Yemen, Nabeel Khoury, estimated that “Given Yemen’s tribal structure, the U.S. generates roughly 40 to 60 new enemies for every AQAP [Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula] operative killed by drones.”  Body Count, a recent study by Physicians for Social Responsibility, provides a conservative estimate of civilian casualties: Iraq 1 million; Afghanistan 220,000; Pakistan 80,000. How many new enemies have we created?

There is no solid strategy in place. Wars seem to end, but then reignite with ever more violence. We did not bring democracy to Iraq. We invaded a country with no weapons of mass destruction and no Al-Qaeda presence until after the U.S. invasion. We brought about the death of one million innocent civilians on top of the half million deaths of children, under sanctions from 1991-2003, and left Iraq in chaos with no end in sight. 

Some Americans may be quick to forget the tragedies and misdeeds of war. The people of Iraq and Afghanistan, where the fighting takes place, have not forgotten.  Nor have our military men and women and their families. We must not forget those who served and bore the burden of war, those loved ones who will never return, and all those who were wounded in body, mind and soul. 

Now the war mongers are trying to convince us once again that war is absolutely necessary lest we be destroyed, this time by ISIS (Islamic State in Syria).  ISIS would not exist except for our invasion and occupation of Iraq. The same kind of fear mongering led us to war in Iraq and Afghanistan with catastrophic results! Are we really willing to let those same fear mongers, who have been wrong about everything, lead us into more war? 

ISIS is a terrible, violent entity, but more U.S.-led bombing is not the answer.  A U.S.-led campaign against ISIS is seen as a continuing crusade against Islam. One immediate result of U.S. airstrikes has been a surge in ISIS recruiting.

ISIS is a symptom of deeper problems in the Middle East.  The hard reality is that until the root causes that gave rise to ISIS are addressed, there will be no end to the cycle of violence. ISIS melts into the background, moves to another location, and returns when militias and U.S. air power move out. The struggle against ISIS and Al-Qaeda must be led by the Muslim countries in the region through political, social and economic development, not warfare.  The U.S. should play a positive role by seeking diplomatic means to address the real grievances behind the violence.    

There are no quick fixes. More than a decade of war proves that war is not the answer to violent extremism; it is, in fact, a catalyst.  It is time to stop repeating the mistakes of the past. We need to put our time, money, and intellects into developing a long term strategy that will produce better results than endless war. 

War affects us all, but the profits are reaped by a powerful few.  What we need is a new definition of “national security.”

National security exists when people have jobs with incomes sufficient to provide a decent standard of living, affordable housing and healthcare, education without lifetime student debt, and child and elder care.  National security includes efficient, affordable mass transit, modern public infrastructure, a proper social safety net, transition to sustainable energy, protection of our environment and wholesome food.  National security requires our country to operate in the world by earning respect rather than instilling fear.    

We must stop this madness.  The only thing that has ever put the brakes on the war makers has been people in the streets.  We need tens of millions in streets around the world demanding an end to this insanity.  People are moving; there is an enormous amount of global dissent, but it’s not enough — yet. 

In February of 2003, tens of millions of people around the world did take to the streets to object to a U.S. attack on Iraq. The New York Times called the demonstrations an expression of protest by the world’s other “super-power”. It is time once again for that alternative global super-power to take to the streets.

So spread the word –educate, organize, and mobilize!  Let the super-power; which is all of us; be seen and heard.  See you in the streets! 

• For reflections on the connections between Peace at Home and Peace Abroad, read Michael McPhearson’s thoughtful piece for UFPJ, “Deepening anti-racism Work in the Peace Movement”.
• Join and support the Peace & Planet Mobilization for a Nuclear-free, Peaceful, Just and Sustainable World, April 24 – 26 in New York City and around the world!

All we are saying, is give peace a chance! If you appreciate receiving timely action alerts like this, please make a donation to UFPJ so that we can continue to keep our member groups and dedicated activists linked together for effective action and impact!

The post We, the People, Silent No More appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

Finally some good news! After a marathon of diplomatic efforts from seven nations, a Framework Agreement on Iran’s nuclear program has been reached. This opens the door to further non-proliferation efforts and to a dramatic improvement in US-Iranian relations, after decades of frozen enmity. Most Americans desire a diplomatic solution to the conflict with Iran. But without significant grass- roots mobilization, that aspiration will be thwarted.

In plain sight, the right-wing government of Israel has been determined to sabotage this agreement from the outset. Acting through AIPAC (American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee) and its wealthy American supporters, it is bending every effort to convince our elected officials to advance their agenda. This blatant interference with our nation’s foreign policy is unprecedented in its scope. Millions of dollars have gone into the coffers of US politicians willing to follow the Israeli government’s lead.

The Israeli Prime Minister has found willing allies in Republicans, eager to undermine any diplomatic success by the Obama Administration. But it’s not just Republicans. Too many Democratic Senators and Representatives routinely accede to destructive pressure from the Israeli government, acting through its AIPAC lobbyists.

Significant grass-roots mobilization is needed now to ensure that a diplomatic solution to the conflict with Iran will not be thwarted.

The immediate danger is S. 615, the Iran Nuclear Review Act, authored by Senator Corker, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This bill provides for Congressional review of the final document, allowing for a joint resolution that would bar any statutory sanctions relief. If this resolution passes, the prospect for any final agreement disappears.

For text and co-sponsors:

https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/615/titles

Your help is needed now to advance the cause of peace and thwart this legislation.

What you can do:

• Call your two Senators:
  • Capitol Switchboard: U.S. Senate – 202 224-3121
• Let Them Know:
  • You support the Nuclear Framework Agreement with Iran
  • You strongly oppose S. 615 or any Congressional effort to de-rail diplomacy
  • You believe that as our elected officials, they should oppose the Israeli interference with our national security policy.
  • They should be advocating for negotiations on a Nuclear Weapons and Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone in the Middle East.

• Please forward this message widely:
  • Please send any results to:rustiandgael@unitedforpeace.org
• Other steps:
  • Organize a delegation to visit local office of your Senators, bringing letters or signed petitions
• For talking points:
  • http://fcnl.org/blog/2c/iran_framework/
  • http://www.niacouncil.org/for-better-us-iran-relations-the-iranian-people-are-the-key/
  • http://fpif.org/iran-deal-a-game-changer-for-the-middle-east/

All we are saying, is give peace a chance! If you appreciate receiving timely action alerts like this, please make a donation to UFPJ so that we can continue to keep our member groups and dedicated activists linked together for effective action and impact!

The post Tell Your Senators, On Iran: “Yes to Peace!” appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

The Ukraine conflict has become a complex proxy war involving four of the world’s five original nuclear armed countries: the United States, Russia, France, and the United Kingdom. The extent of support provided by outside powers remains unclear, obscured by virulent nonstop propaganda campaigns promulgated by all sides. The Ukraine war has also become both a cause and an excuse for the ratcheting up of tensions between the U.S. and its NATO allies and Russia.

In addition to the immediate dangers of war, the climate of confrontation has put further progress towards nuclear disarmament on hold. It also has given the military-industrial complexes on both sides a rationale for the resumption of conventional arms racing and nuclear weapons modernization. The people of the Ukraine are the victims, their country a battleground of competing plutocracies.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved the hands of its Doomsday Clock up to 3 minutes to midnight, citing the existential threats posed by nuclear weapons and climate change. It’s time to step back from the brink. We call on all of the governments involved to take steps to reduce tensions, to lessen the danger of an expanded war, and to provide space and build confidence for negotiations to resolve the Ukraine conflict and the growing confrontation between Russia and the U.S. and its NATO allies. These steps should include:

• No military assistance to Ukraine, whether arms, trainers, advisors, or “nonlethal” aid;

• Unconditional humanitarian assistance directed to ordinary people in all of Ukraine’s regions, sustaining social benefits and public services and aiding in reconstruction of housing and public infrastructure;

• Diplomatic initiatives to encourage Ukrainians engaged in the conflict to enter into good faith negotiations in an effort to reach a political resolution;

• No additional deployments of U.S. forces, equipment, or supplies to Europe;

• Reversal of NATO decisions to expand rapid reaction forces and supporting infrastructure in Eastern Europe, and particularly in states on Russia’s borders;

• Termination of U.S. programs to deploy U.S. ballistic missile defenses in Europe;

• A moratorium on military exercises by all parties in and around Ukraine and European states bordering Russia;

• A moratorium on exercises and tests of nuclear-armed forces world-wide;

• Immediate removal of U.S. nuclear weapons from Europe; and

• In this 70^th year since the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and 45 years after the U.S., Russia, and the U.K. committed in the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to negotiate in good faith for an end of the nuclear arms race and the elimination of nuclear arsenals, immediate commencement of negotiations encompassing all nuclear-armed states for the elimination of nuclear weapons

  ---

   

  UFPJ member groups have authored their own statements on the Ukraine crisis:

  The Western States Legal Foundation Commentary, “Ukraine: Time to Step Back From the Brink”, is at http://www.wslfweb.org/docs/wslfukrainecommentary-2-15.pdf

  The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, US Section Statement, “No United States Military Aid to Ukraine!”, is at http://wilpfushttps://wilpfus.org/news/updates/no-united-states-military-aid-ukraine.org/news/updates/no-united-states-military-aid-ukraine

  US Peace Council, “Ukraine: Are We Still Under the Spell of Cold War Propaganda?”, is at https://uspeacecouncil.org/ukraine-are-we-still-under-the-spell-of-cold-war-propaganda/

• US Labor Against the War,  “US LAW Statement on Ukraine”, http://uslaboragainstwar.org/Article/36841/uslaw-statement-on-ukraine

The post UFPJ Statement: Moving Away From War in Ukraine appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

Speakers included WSLF executive director Jackie Cabasso, who also spoke on behalf of United for Peace and Justice, Emily Yates, Iraq War veteran, Cat Brooks of ONYX/Black Power Network, Paul Cox of Veterans for Peace, Stephen McNeil of American Friends Services Committee, Janet Weil, CODEPINK staffer and military family member, and a member of Congress member Barbara Lee’s staff, whow read a statement from Congress member Lee.

Video of the press conference

Jackie Cabasso’s statement 

The post UFPJ Opposes New Request for Authorization for Use of Military Force appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

Click Here to download printable version of UFPJ’s Call to Action

The post Download UFPJ’s Call to Action! “Time for Global Super Power for Peace and Justice to Rise Again!” appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

So make your plans. Hire buses/carpool. Reach out to see who from your area can come to New York for this historic People’s Climate March weekend. Please join us on Saturday for the Climate Convergence, the March on Sunday, and the special UFPJ gathering on Monday!

UFPJ is part of the Peace & Justice “Hub” which is being ably convened by former UFPJ National Co-Coordinator, George Martin. Please read the Peace & Justice Hub’s announcement, below for more information. We will provide additional details about UFPJ’s plans soon.

NOTE: Next Wednesday evening, September 10, UFPJ will host a national conference call to explore the connections between militarism, wars and climate change, and provide detailed information about the People’s Climate March weekend events.  Watch this space for an announcement!

— the UFPJ Coordinating Committee

Click Here to Donate!

Donations to United for Peace and Justice are tax exempt to the extent permitted by law. The Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) is UFPJ’s 501(c)3 fiscal sponsor.  If you would like to make a donation by check, please make it payable to “FOR” and write “UFPJ” in the memo line.

Mail to: UFPJ c/o Fellowship of Reconciliation, 521 N. Broadway, Nyack, New York 10960.

The post UFPJ Sponsors People’s Climate March! appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.

Neither story is at an end. And the need to speak up for peace and diplomacy remains urgent. Since 2001, the United States government has dealt with the problem of “terrorism” by engaging in various forms of warfare against other countries and groups, while building up the military might of its Israeli ally. And the results have been costly, harmful and counter-productive.

The staggering oppression of Palestinians, the millions of people in the Muslim world killed, injured or displaced, and the level of anger now directed at the United States attests to the immorality and futility of this approach.

Responding to the crisis in Gaza and Iraq, we call for:

• Cessation of US bombing in Iraq and a cease-fire in Gaza and Israel

• Immediate end to the blockade of Gaza

• Increased humanitarian assistance to victims of violence in Iraq and Gaza

• Suspension of US military aid to Israel and an arms embargo across the region

• United Nations sponsored diplomacy which includes all regional parties

What can be done?

Members of Congress are back in district this month. This is an excellent time to express concern over US policy in Gaza and Iraq — meet with your Reps, send a letter to the editor of your local paper, demonstrate, or vigil. UFPJ is urging that in whatever action you organize, you incorporate concerns about Gaza and Iraq. Please keep us posted on your plans: rustiandgael@unitedforpeace.org

The tragedy in Ferguson is the logical extension of a militarized US foreign policy applied at home. When you outfit police like an army, they end up treating the community as “the enemy.” Our police are learning to adopt the same callous indifference to death in urban communities as our military is trained to adopt in causing death and destruction in urban communities of other countries. This must be halted and reversed. We must again raise Dr. King’s prophetic 1967 warning that the violence visited by US forces upon the Vietnamese and the police violence visited upon people of color and the poor at home flowed from the same poisoned well. Click here to tell the Pentagon, Congress, and the President: No More Weapons of War for Local Police!

Resources for action.

Gaza

US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation*– national coalition of 400+ groups working to end U.S. support for Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem.

Jewish Voice for Peace — works to achieve a lasting peace that recognizes the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians for security and self-determination.

If Americans Knew — educates the American public on issues of major significance that are unreported, underreported, or misreported in the American media.

Mondoweiss — news website devoted to covering American foreign policy in the Middle East from a progressive Jewish perspective.

The Electronic Intifada — an independent online news publication and educational resource focusing on Palestine, its people, politics, culture and place in the world.

*The US Campaign to End the Occupation is helping constituents across the country to organize in-district meetings with their Congressional offices to challenge Israel’s violations of Palestinian human rights. The US Campaign is also working with groups and individuals who are planning direct actions, including bird-dogging members of Congress at events held during the August recess. If you would like to coordinate your actions, please contact Mike Coogan at development@endtheoccupation.org or call 202-332-0994.

Iraq

Moveon.org — 8 Things To Know About The Crisis In Iraq

FCNL — Responding to the Crisis in Iraq — Without Bombs

Progressive Democrats of America – The Situation in Iraq: What we Know

Ferguson

Amnesty International Alert

If you appreciate receiving timely alerts like this, please make a donation to UFPJ so that we can continue to keep our member groups and dedicated activists linked together for effective action and impact.

The post No Time for Silence … appeared first on United For Peace and Justice.