June 2024
To lift human life to a level where we have the capacity to govern ourselves and to live with one another and to create cooperation rather than war and violence is the great frontier for the 21st century and beyond.
The Rev. James M. Lawson Jr.
September 22, 1928 -- June 9, 2024
Webinar: Understanding the New Nuclear Arms Race: Views From Washington, Moscow and Beijing, TOMORROW, July 1, 2024, 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EDT, 9 am-10:30 am PDT.
This webinar delves into the multifaceted dimensions of the contemporary nuclear arms race, offering in-depth analyses from three of the world's nuclear powers. Experts will explore the motivations, defense policies, and diplomatic postures of the United States, Russia, and China, providing the audience with a comprehensive understanding of each nation's policies and perspective. Speakers include Dr. Sharon Weiner, Associate Professor, American University; Dr. Timur Kadyshev, Senior Researcher, Inst. for Peace Research and Security Policy; Dr. Tong Zhao, Senior Fellow, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; Dr. Zia Mian (moderator), Princeton Program on Science and Global Security. Presented by Physicists Coalition for Nuclear Threat Reduction. REGISTER HERE.
U.S. Conference of Mayors Adopts New Resolution, "The Imperative of Dialogue in a Time of Acute Nuclear Dangers"
At the close of its annual meeting in Kansas City, MO, on June 23, the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) adopted a new resolution, titled, "The Imperative of Dialogue in a Time of Acute Nuclear Dangers." This is the nineteenth consecutive year that the USCM has adopted resolutions submitted on behalf of U.S. members of Mayors for Peace. The USCM is the official nonpartisan association of more than 1,400 American cities with populations over 30,000. Resolutions adopted at its annual meetings become USCM official policy. The resolution's lead sponsor, Mayor Quentin Hart of Waterloo, IA, stated: "I am proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with Mayors across the globe as a member of the Mayors for Peace initiative that has led the way." READ MORE. Is your Mayor a member of Mayors for Peace? Find out and invite them to join!
Hearings in the 9/11 Case at Guantanamo Move Closer to Crucial Decisions on Admissibility of Key Government Evidence
In April and May, the 9/11 military commission at Guantanamo held its first-ever, five-weeklong pre-trial hearings. The accelerated pace of the proceedings clearly signals that the judge plans to make some significant rulings soon. The central issue in the hearings, which began in May of 2012, remains unchanged: SUPPRESSION, whether the prosecution may use information obtained by interrogators who questioned the defendants after they were tortured by the CIA. The proceedings included some stunning witness testimony bearing on the issue. The judge also made an unprecedented visit to the CIA black site at Guantanamo, presumably to see the interrogation room and determine how similar it is to rooms where post-CIA interrogations were conducted. He stated that the visit would be "beneficial for determining" how to rule on suppression. READ MORE.
Ukraine Convenes a Peace Conference, but Prospects for Peace Remain Elusive
On June 15-16, delegations from 100 countries attended a peace conference in Switzerland. The Russian and Chinese governments did not send representatives, and several countries chose not to sign the final communique. The Chinese and Brazilian governments issued their own paper on conditions for a Ukraine settlement. Meanwhile, the Russian government issued new, more expansive demands, including surrender of the still-unoccupied portions of the regions it claimed to have annexed in 2022. Organizations on the Left in Ukraine, the Russian Federation, and their diaspora issued a statement ahead of the conference, calling for the withdrawal of all Russian forces from Ukraine, opposing policies that would indebt Ukraine and impose a neoliberal economic agenda, and calling for a peaceful, ecologically sustainable reorganization of Europe.
Deepening our Understanding of the War and its Causes: UFPJ Ukraine Resources
In thinking about the war, it is useful to broaden our focus beyond the prevalent geopolitical narratives, to look again at the post-Soviet history of Ukraine, and to listen to voices from elements of the Left critical of the governments of both the NATO countries and the Russian Federation. The Ukrainian journal Commons recently published excerpts from Denys Gorbach's The Making and Unmaking of the Ukrainian Working Class: Everyday Politics and Moral Economy in a Post-Soviet City, exploring the shifting landscape of Ukraine's "oligarchic democracy": Part 1 and Part 2. Commons also considered the response of Finland's Left Alliance to the country's accession to NATO. In New Politics, Hanna Perekhoda discusses the role of Russian domestic politics in the Ukraine war. Find these and other resources at UFPJ's Ukraine resources page.
Gather and Build Your Capacity for Action: UFPJ Regional Member Group Gatherings
On May 25th the Great Lakes region held its second UFPJ Gathering. About 60 people registered and 45 people attended from Ohio, Wisconsin, and Chicago. Gaza was the focus of the Gathering with presentations about campus protests, how this is affecting Jewish activists, and possible legislative actions. After these presentations people spoke together in breakout rooms about what strategies would work best across the region. The Gathering was recorded. The recording is in two parts: the first part is here and the close of the meeting is here. A Regional Gathering is an excellent way for organizations to build momentum for collective action and build community as we are still cautious about meeting in person. If you are interested in holding a gathering in your region email info.ufpj@gmail.com.
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Webinar: Debunking Dangerous Deterrence Theory and Moving Toward Global Nuclear Weapons Abolition, July 9, 2024, 8:00 pm EDT 5:00 pm PDT
For too long, deterrence theory has been used as the legitimizing foundation for US and global nuclear weapons policy. Deterrence is rarely examined, let alone questioned, but it is often waved around like some verbal magic wand to justify extremely dangerous and exorbitant policies that threaten life on Earth. Speakers: Tadatoshi Akiba, former Mayor of Hiroshima, Japan; Professor Elaine Scarry, Harvard University, author of Thermonuclear Monarchy: Choosing between Democracy and Doom; Jackie Cabasso, Western States Legal Foundation, United for Peace and Justice, Mayors for Peace; and Emma Claire Foley, Defuse Nuclear War and Roots Action. Presented by Peace Action and the Campaign for Peace Disarmament, and Common Security. REGISTER HERE.
Golden Rule 2024 Pacific Northwest Voyage
The Golden Rule is a project of Veterans For Peace (VFP) that aims to advance VFP's opposition to nuclear weapons and war in a dramatic fashion. VFP has recovered and restored the original peace ship, the Golden Rule, that set sail in 1958 to stop nuclear weapons tests in the Marshall Islands and inspired the many peace makers and peace ships that followed. The reborn Golden Rule is sailing once more, to show that nuclear abolition is possible, and that bravery and tenacity can overcome militarism. Plans are progressing for a great voyage to the Pacific Northwest mid-July through late September! LEARN MORE. Many groups are organizing events, but there are many open dates for additional presentations - please send requests and ideas to vfpgoldenruleproject@gmail.com.
Nuclear Coercion: Dangerous and Illegal
Three organizations, Western States Legal Foundation (USA, and a UFPJ member group), Peace Depot (Japan) and Basel Peace Office (Czech Republic) have issued a statement condemning the repeated threats to use nuclear weapons by the Russian government. They warned that "amidst a war already involving extensive air bombardment and missile warfare, together with the use of new kinds of electronic warfare that intensifies the fog of war, a nuclear crisis would pose extraordinary dangers." The statement called on the Russian government "to cease its threats of nuclear use, and to issue assurances that it will not use nuclear weapons in the conflict with Ukraine," and for the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and NATO also to give assurances that nuclear weapons will not be used. READ MORE
Image source: Mil.ru Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
The Laws of War Strained to the Breaking Point: UFPJ Gaza Resources
The Gaza war has brought the laws of armed conflict into the headlines, while highlighting their ineffectiveness in reining in the violence of powerful states. Despite an order from the International Court of Justice to halt its Rafah offensive and a UN Security Council vote endorsing an immediate cease fire, the armed forces of Israel continue their assault. A panel of UN human rights experts has demanded that states and companies cease arms transfers to Israel, as such transfers "risk being complicit in serious violations of international human rights and international humanitarian laws;" arms suppliers have yet to announce a halt to shipments. A UN Human Rights Commission of Inquiry has concluded that both Hamas and Israel's government are responsible for war crimes. Find these and other resources at UFPJ's Gaza war resources page.
Image: Rousseau Diderot, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Listen to "The Hiroshima Survivor Who's Still Shouting for Peace"
When Setsuko Thurlow was a 13-year-old schoolgirl, she survived the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima. For decades, she has been a tireless, leading voice in the global campaign to abolish nuclear weapons, and now you can hear her incredible story in her own words. The BBC World Service has just released a two-part special, "The Hiroshima Survivor Who's Still Shouting for Peace," a truly moving and informative broadcast. For decades, Setsuko has warned governments that inaction is not an option: nuclear weapons must be totally eliminated if we are to ensure that no other city ever suffers the same fate as hers. Her powerful speeches have inspired countless people around the world to take action for disarmament, and she was of instrumental in achieving the adoption of the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. LISTEN HERE.
New Film: A Common Insanity: A Conversation with Daniel Ellsberg About Nuclear Weapons
Directed by Oscar-nominee Judith Ehrlich, this new film -- produced in memory of Daniel Ellsberg (April 7, 1931 -- June 16, 2023) -- illuminates the dangers of nuclear weapons as well as the political and economic forces that drive their existence. WATCH THE FILM FOR FREE. Powerful and concise in little more than half an hour, A Common Insanity provides never-before-seen footage of Daniel Ellsberg explaining what he learned as a nuclear war planner for the U.S. military, and as an independent researcher during the five decades after he revealed the Pentagon Papers. Click here to learn more about what is most likely to trigger a nuclear war and what will be necessary to prevent it.
Webinar recording -- Nuclear War: A Scenario, A Conversation with Annie Jacobsen
On May 29, some 500 people joined the Back from the Brink Campaign's virtual event, A Conversation with Annie Jacobsen, an inspiring evening of dialogue and education with a clear focus on what each of us can do to help prevent nuclear war. Annie Jacobsen, New York Times bestselling author of Nuclear War: A Scenario, was joined by panelists Archbishop John C. Wester (Santa Fe, NM), Eddie Laiche (high school senior and co-founder of Students for Nuclear Disarmament), and Dr. Ira Helfand (International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War). Nuclear War: A Scenario, describes in great detail the horrors of nuclear war and the many frightening aspects of current U.S. nuclear weapons policies and decision making. That knowledge motivates (and obligates) us to act. WATCH THE RECORDING. Find out what you can do HERE.
Nonviolence Activists Mourn the Death of the Reverend James M. Lawson, Jr.
UFPJ joins all nonviolence activists in mourning the loss of a guiding light of our movements, Rev. James M. Lawson, Jr. Lawson's commitment derived from a prophetic and liberatory interpretation of the gospels. "By the end of my high school years," he said, "I came to recognize that that whole business -- walk the second mile, turn the other cheek, pray for the enemy, see the enemy as a fellow human being -- was a resistance movement." He trained a generation of civil rights activists and was a principal organizer for UFPJ member organization the Fellowship of Reconciliation. He preached "that people should be treated equally and justly." Lawson's eulogy for U.S. Representative John Lewis insisted, "We will not be quiet as long as our nation continues to be the most violent culture in the history of humankind." READ MORE.
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