March 2025
Donald Trump and Elon Musk (are) taking everything they can get their hands on, and daring the world to stop them. On Saturday, April 5th, we're taking to the streets nationwide to fight back with a clear message: Hands off!
The Organizers of Hands Off! 2025
HANDS OFF! Saturday, April 5th-- Cities Unite Against Trump and Musk
Over 600 events are planned in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and many international cities, in what will be the largest protest of the second Trump Administration, "Hands Off." The biggest gathering is expected in Washington, D.C., NOON to 3:30PM at the Washington Monument. SIGN UP HERE, or find a protest near you HERE. Let the Administration and its enablers in Congress know we do not consent to the destruction of our government and our economy for the benefit of Trump and his billionaire allies, or to efforts to gut essential programs like healthcare, Social Security, public education, and civil rights protections. A core principle behind all Hands Off! events is a commitment to nonviolent action. All participants are asked to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who disagree with our values. Demand Hands Off! -- our rights, our resources, our democracy, and our future.
This April 4: Organize a Participatory Reading of Dr. King's "Beyond Vietnam" Speech in Your Community
On April 4, 1967, exactly one year before he was killed, in his prophetic speech, "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence," Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. declared: "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death." King's speech laid bare the relationship between U.S. wars abroad and the racism and poverty being challenged by the civil rights movement at home and called for a "revolution of values." The Poor People's Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival has picked up Dr. King's unfinished work. We encourage you to organize a participatory reading of the speech in your community this April 4, to keep building momentum for the Poor People's Campaign. Click here for UFPJ's toolkit. Read more HERE.
Bishop Barber Delivers a State of OUR Union Speech
In an impassioned speech, delivered concurrently with Trump's March 4 address to Congress, Bishop William J. Barber II, National Co-Chair of The Poor People's Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, addressed the new administration's "immoral philosophy and betrayal of our basic moral commitments—not just momentary betrayal but every day!" Declaring, "WE MUST RESIST!" he shared that he and many other faith leaders would go to the Capitol the next day to address Congress in person. "This is not just a crisis of democracy; this is a crisis of civilization! In this moment, like never before, we must stand for a moral agenda. We must be openly and deeply disturbed by the Trump-Musk-Johnson agenda..... We've got to increase and embolden our agitation. We've got to stand tall, because bowing down is not an option." Watch the full speech.
Free Mahmoud Khalil: Protest and Take Action!
"Justice escapes the contours of this nation's immigration facilities," Mahmoud Khalil wrote in a letter dictated by phone from an ICE prison cell in Louisiana, where he remains although his case has been transferred to a New Jersey court. Invoking an obscure statute, the Trump Administration is trying to deport Khalil, a leader of the Columbia University protests against Israel and a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. Now, government lawyers have also accused him of omitting information on his application for a green card. READ MORE about the legal issues of Khalil's case. Heed Khalil's warning, "The Trump administration is targeting me as part of a broader strategy to suppress dissent. Visa-holders, green-card carriers, and citizens alike will all be targeted for their political beliefs." Online actions, HERE and HERE. Then raise your voices in protest!
WEBINAR RECORDING: "First They Came for the Immigrants -- Understanding & Responding to Mass Deportations"
At the forefront of the of Trump Administration's white supremacy campaign is the mass deportation of millions of immigrants, most of whom are guilty of no more of fleeing for their lives from violence and war, or in pursuit of work and economic security. A March 18 webinar, sponsored by Massachusetts Peace Action and the Campaign for Peace Democracy and Common Security featured three immigrant rights activists: Araceli Argueta, an anthropologist and campaigner from El Salvador, is the Organizing and Advocacy Director for the American Friends Service Committee's (AFSC's) New Jersey Immigrant Rights Program. Itzel Hernandez is an organizer with the AFSC; she is also a DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient. Dr. Alexandra Piñeros Shields directs the Master of Public Policy Program at the Heller School, Brandeis University where she teaches courses on immigration policy, economic justice, and participatory action research. WATCH HERE.
Nuclear Ban Week in New York City
The Third Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons took place March 3-- 7 at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. 86 countries participated in the meeting as States Parties or observers, on the final day adopting a political declaration rejecting nuclear weapons and challenging nuclear deterrence, and a procedural package of decisions. The meeting also served as the hub of a beehive of activity for some 1,000 nuclear disarmament campaigners from 163 civil society organizations around the world, including representatives from directly impacted communities, who organized more than 70 side events in the UN and across New York City during the week. Read more here and here. Listen to Libbe HaLevy's Nuclear Hotseat podcast.
Photo credit: ICAN-Darren Ornitz
The Role of Cities in the Promotion of Nuclear Disarmament
On March 4, during the 3rd Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, the Austrian Mission to the UN, Mayors for Peace, Back from the Brink, Northwestern University, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, and Physicians for Social Responsibility, hosted a side event and reception titled, "The Role of Cities in the Promotion of Nuclear Disarmament." The events were convened by Professor Hirokazu Miyazaki, who is conducting research on municipal efforts for nuclear disarmament and nuclear justice. They featured the mayors of Hannover, Germany, Rochester, NY, and Easthampton, MA, an Alderwoman from Chicago and international nuclear disarmament campaigners. The mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki participated via video. Read more.
WEBINAR RECORDING: If Not Now, When?
An International Forum to Prevent Nuclear War and Secure our Future was held in NYC on March 4, during the 3rd Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Sponsored by the International Peace Bureau, the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament & Common Security, Peace Action NY State, and the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung - NY Office, the forum featured: Reiner Braun-- International Peace Bureau (Germany); Zhao Tong-- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (China); Rami Khoury-- Renowned Middle East Journalist (USA); Jackie Cabasso-- Western States Legal Foundation (USA); Aigerim Seitenova-- Qazaq Nuclear Frontline Coalition (Kazakhstan); Masako Wada-- Nihon Hidankyo, Nobel Peace Prize (Japan); Maylene Hughes-- Back from the Brink, PSR (USA); and Sharon Dolev-- Middle East Treaty Organization (Israel). Watch here.
The Autocrats' Dance: United for Peace and Justice Ukraine Resources
An ignorant wannabe autocrat with dreams of neo-colonial exploitation and an autocrat who is wily and entrenched bargain over the fate of Europe. The European governments have other ideas, but their capacity as counterweight to declining but still dangerous superpowers remains in question. Meanwhile, the Russian government continues to pose a clear threat to people both inside and outside its borders, imprisoning anti-war protesters, and violating the human rights of children both in the regions it occupies and those it continues to attack, and showing no sign of slackening the pace of its war while slow-walking negotiations. Peace movements will need to look deeper than NATO's role for the causes of the Ukraine war, and for more comprehensive solutions than NATO's ending for a path to a stable peace in Europe. Find more resources here.
War for Power's Sake: United for Peace and Justice Resources on the Gaza/Middle East War
After repeated ceasefire violations, Israel's rulers have resumed full-scale war on Gaza, killing five Hamas officials, their families, and hundreds of other people in an initial wave of airstrikes. Netanyahu has used perpetual war as a means to hold his coalition together and to stay in power. Netanyahu's approach is buttressed by the Trump administration's unconditional support, which extends from removing the few existing constraints on weapons shipments to making Israel/Palestine issues the focal point of Trump's war on dissent at home. With outside help from a variety of U.S. groups backing Israel's wars, including billionaire donors, the Trump administration is seeking to target protesters with penalties ranging from academic sanctions to deportation, and to pressure universities to monitor and limit speech. Find more resources here.
Image: Rousseau Diderot, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
New Book by Phyllis Bennis: Understanding Palestine and Israel
As Israel's extremist government launches a renewed assault on the Gaza Strip, the Institute for Policy Studies is offering a new movement resource for the broad coalition of Americans who've called for an end to U.S. support for this war, which the International Court of Justice ruled was plausibly a genocide. Phyllis Bennis's new book, Understanding Palestine and Israel, cuts through the noise and delivers clear, accessible answers to the most pressing questions about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that many have never had the opportunity to ask, in an easy to read, FAQ-style format. You can read excerpts from the book here.
WEBINAR RECORDING: Women in Conflict Zones
On March 19, an important webinar amplified the voices of women who have been affected by conflict around the world. "Women in Conflict Zones," sponsored by World BEYOND War, Southern Anti-Racism Network, International Peace Bureau, Convention for Pan-Africanism and Progress, and CODEPINK, endorsed by 40 organizations including UFPJ, shed light on the profound impacts of war on women and children and served as a call to action for global solidarity in ending violence and fostering peace. Women from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Belarus, Mozambique, Nigeria, Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, and Syria highlighted the physical, emotional, and social tolls that armed conflicts impose on women and children, and discussed initiatives and efforts being undertaken within their communities to promote safety, healing, and long-term peace. Watch the recording.
Rebuilding the Anti-Nuclear Weapons Movement Together in the Pacific Northwest: In-person Conference April 11 - 12
The United States is expected to spend nearly $2 trillion on nuclear weapons over the next few decades. Arms control treaties have been abandoned, and we are growing closer to nuclear war by the day. This two-day conference, hosted by Washington Against Nuclear Weapons, and endorsed by dozens of organizations in the region, will feature field experts, panels, and workshops dedicated to educating the public and reviving the movement to abolish nuclear weapons in the Pacific Northwest. Keynote speakers include Dr. Ira Helfand, Back from the Brink Campaign, Dr. Lee Tae Jae, Korean Association of Atomic Bomb Survivors, Lilly Adams, Union of Concerned Scientists, and Ivana Hughes, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. In-person, April 11-12, Seattle First Baptist Church, 1111 Harvard Ave Seattle, WA. This is a free event. Learn more and register here.
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