Updates & More!

Please Take 3-5 Minutes!  Help the national campaign to get TPNW mentioned in the media between June 15 and 20 

The DISARM Committee is asking all WILPFers to help flood three major news outlets with letters to the editor and feedback between June 15 and 20. The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) is getting short shrift in our national newspapers, National Public Radio and TV cable news channels.  Help change that!

How do we get the TPNW described much more frequently in news reports? The Nuclear Ban Treaty Collaborative (NBTC)—of which WILPF is a member—has created a national campaign to make this happen. The strategy is to focus all our coordinated media efforts on three of the top media outlets in the US: The New York Times (NYT), National Public Radio (NPR), and CNN. The goal is not necessarily to get as many letters published as possible. Rather, it is to send in hundreds of letters and comments calling for these three outlets to cover the TPNW, and to send their reporters to Vienna for the First Meeting of States Parties of the TPNW June 21-23.

The NBTC has set up an easy to use webpage with links to the feedback webpages of CNN and NPR, and the NYT email address to write to. From this website you can download talking points and language to use when writing a Letter to the Editor for the NYT, NPR, or CNN. You can copy and paste from the talking points provided, and modify them in your own voice.

To provide your feedback to CNN or NPR, you’ll go to their websites. At the CNN webpage choose “Editorial Feedback” and then “General Political Feedback”. The NYT can be emailed directly.

The TPNW is the best tool that we have to pave a clear pathway to the elimination of nuclear weapons. Now is the time to make our voices heard! After you have submitted your messages to any or all 3 outlets, please fill out the form on the right hand side of the webpage so the NBTC can keep track of how many messages have been sent.

Thank you for helping WILPF make a strong showing in this national campaign!

“Delayed” Poor People’s Campaign Watch Party!

For all those that cannot be in DC in person on Saturday, June 18^th for the Poor People’s Campaign rally, we will offer a virtual group viewing of the recorded event.

Together we will watch the recording of the rally after it has ended, stopping to discuss the content of particular parts of the program. Participants will also be able to interact in the chat.

This WILPF Zoom event will start on Saturday June 18^th at noon PDT (1 pm MDT, 2 pm CDT, 3 pm EDT).

Follow this link to register.

International Day of Action for Peace in Ukraine: June 25

It’s up to us to push for an end to the war in Ukraine!

So— this is the call to you! Working with your branch or with other peace allies in your community, please organize now for educational activities to take place on June 25 in your community. 

We’re all aware of the terrible toll in deaths, displacement of people, worsening of the global hunger crisis. Destruction is augmented by environmental toxins as well as the huge carbon footprint of the war, and the worsening climate crisis. If not ended through diplomatic means, the war could continue for years. Already, the fighting in the Donbas has continued since 2014. The U.S. government seems to be more interested in weakening Russia than in ending the devastating consequences of the war, including the loss of life in Ukraine.

Recommended approaches include writing letters to the editor of newspapers and flyering in local, well-trafficked places. You can print and distribute this helpful flyer from Nation Builder. They also have an informative FAQ resource you can print and hand out.

Also, consider holding informative rallies and vigils—especially at Congressional offices from June 21-30. Plan now for meetings with members of Congress, where you can emphasize the benefits of diplomacy and the costs of the continued war (again, see the FAQ for key points).

If you want to collect hard-copy signatures, you can print this petition from CODEPINK.

WILPF is part of a coalition that includes local, national and international groups across four continents. Plan now to be part of this unified response by peace-loving people around the world: Say No to War in Ukraine and Yes to Negotiations and Peace!

Please see this website for further information and post the details of your event on it.

June is the time to influence your Congressional Reps to vote AGAINST the NDAA

Every year the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is debated in the House and Senate Armed Services Sub-Committees, and the language of their amendments to the President’s budget sets military policy and the maximum dollar amounts that can be spent on a multitude of “defense” projects.

Between June 6th and mid-July is when the 2023 NDAA is being developed, so now is the time to write to your Representative and Senators to tell them the NDAA budget is much too large, and you want them to vote against the NDAA and substantially cut military spending.

Please click here to read more and to see sample sentences that you can use to help you craft your letters. You can also read a new analysis and background statement on the Ukraine crisis here.

Register Today for the International Congress

Making Connections: Environment, Social Justice and Demilitarisation for Feminist Peace

A week of collective decision-making and discussion for a future of feminist peace

Learn more about the International Congress, register and pay for your ticket here (at the bottom of the page).

WHEN? July, 16 - 24 2022 This year’s agenda consists of formal decision-making meetings on the weekends (July 16-17 and July 23- 24), and workshops, networking, and debate sessions during weekdays (July 18-22).

WHERE? Online via Canapii There will be a special orientation to Canapii for early registrants in June, and more throughout the month. There will be a quick video tour of the Canapii platform given by our Congress Event Coordinator, Valerie. Congress delegates will also be invited to attend a number of orientation sessions in June.

Interested in attending Congress? Then secure your ticket now!  Registration is $15, or more to support other WILPFers’ attendance.

Jennifer Bailey Returns as Program Chair

At the June Program Committee meeting, organized by the Disarm Issue Committee, the committee welcomed back returning Program Chair Jennifer Bailey after a five-month break. With the new chair now in place, the Program Committee is likely to be changing its meeting schedule. For those WILPF members who are not yet Program Committee members and who might want to participate in future evening meetings as observers, please inquire with Jennifer Bailey by emailing her at ProgramChair@wilpfus.org. Please use the same email address to contact Jennifer Bailey about any other Program Committee matters.

The Themes of Our Times: Suggest Yours

Ending the Before/After Meetings, Possibly Moving to a Monthly Half-Hour

How do we cope with the daily horrors from our news updates?

Perhaps, like me, you’d welcome a chance for some empathy, a chance to take time to recall positive and successful responses to shock. The traumatic news today is stressful, and we can be mutually encouraging through sharing positive communications!

I’ve wrapped up the Before and After meetings, which had been before and after the monthly Program Committee meetings. It’s likely that the Program meetings will shift away from occurring monthly, so I’m considering a new way to talk and connect with WILPF members.

Would you like to suggest or comment on a theme for one of these possible monthly half-hour conversations? What do you think of this new approach?

If you’d like to suggest themes for these conversations, please email me.

Or, just to let me know you’re interested in such a monthly event, please contact me to say so.

Darien De Lu, President@wilpfus.org