 December/January 2004-2005
American Friends Service Committee Peacework Magazine Sara Burke, Pat Farren, Founding Editor 2161 Massachusetts Ave. Telephone number: Fax number:
pwork@igc.org Peacework has been published monthly since 1972, intended to serve as a source of dependable information to those who strive for peace and justice and are committed to furthering the nonviolent social change necessary to achieve them. Rooted in Quaker values and informed by AFSC experience and initiatives, Peacework offers a forum for organizers, fostering coalition-building and teaching the methods and strategies that work in the global and local community. Peacework seeks to serve as an incubator for social transformation, introducing a younger generation to a deeper analysis of problems and issues, reminding and re-inspiring long-term activists, encouraging the generations to listen to each other, and creating space for the voices of the disenfranchised. Views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily of the AFSC. |
United for Peace and Justice Unity Statement We, the members of United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ), stand opposed to the "pre-emptive" wars of aggression waged by the Bush administration; we reject its drive to expand US control over other nations and strip us of our rights at home under the cover of fighting terrorism and spreading democracy; we say NO to its use of war and racism to concentrate power in the hands of the few, at home and abroad. We come together to turn the tide, to overwhelm war with peace, and oppression with justice. We hold that sovereign nations have the right to determine their own future, free from the threat of "pre-emptive attacks" and "regime change," military occupation, and outside control of their economic resources. We call for new foreign and domestic policies based on the peaceful resolution of disputes amongst states; respect for national sovereignty, international law, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the defense and extension of basic democratic freedoms to all; social and economic justice; and the use of public spending to meet human and environmental needs. We seek to build a broad mass movement for peace and justice composed of all who are threatened by the new war program. We envision UFPJ as a movement-building coalition that coordinates and supports the work of existing groups and builds linkages and solidarity where none exist. We will link the wars abroad with the assaults at home, and US militarism with the corporate economic interests it serves. We will work to make the peace movement a strong ally to movements for social and economic justice in the US and abroad. We will pay special attention in all aspects of our work to the inclusion and leadership of constituencies bearing the brunt of the war's impact at home, such as people of color, youth, women, and workers. We will be proactive in addressing internal power dynamics within our movement, especially regarding issues of race, class, gender, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, nationality, disability, cultural heritage, or ethnicity.
We will work for peace and justice through
nonviolent means. We will strive to embody in our day-to-day work
the values we espouse and the world we seek to build.
United for Peace and Justice National Assembly
February 18-21, 2005
The goals of this movement-building event are to establish our strategies and priorities for 2005; to elect the steering committee and strengthen UFPJ organizationally; and to deepen ties between our groups and strengthen our movement culture. The National Steering Committee has created an Assembly Planning Committee that is working on logistics as well as drafting an agenda, establishing procedures for submitting proposals, and developing processes for decision-making. For more information, visit www.unitedforpeace.org. Our Resistance Continues: Protest the Inauguration of George W. Bush On Thursday, January 20, 2005, George W. Bush will be inaugurated as president of the United States. For the millions of us who stand for the values of peace and justice, it is a moment to renew our commitment to resist the Bush Administration and its deadly policies of war and greed -- and to show Bush, and the world, that our movement is energized, mobilized, and determined to keep fighting back. The United for Peace and Justice coalition urges everyone who can to converge in Washington, DC on January 20. We encourage you to participate in the creative, powerful protest activities being organized by two groups: the DC Anti-War Network (www.dawndc.net) and Turn Your Back on Bush (www.turnyourbackonbush.org). We also urge groups around the country to organize local protest and educational events on January 20, to provide opportunities for all those who can't make it to Washington to take a public and visible stand for peace and justice and to invigorate our movement of resistance in every corner of the United States. Be sure to list your activities on the UFPJ web site calendar at www.unitedforpeace.org/events
UFPJ also encourages everyone to wear a white
ribbon on January 20, no matter where you are, to honor the tens
of thousands of civilians and more than 1200 US servicepeople
who have died in Iraq. We also honor all of the people in our
own communities and around the world who have died as a result
of the Bush administration's policies. 
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