Join Us Next Wednesday for Congress Feedback and Discussion

You and others can use our new flyer, created by the DISARM Committee, to inform graduating engineering students about the alternatives to – and downsides of – the attractive job offers they get from the weapons-manufacturing industry.

Still energized by the 35th Triennial Congress? Do you have more you would like to discuss or comment about, but did not have time to say it during the Congress? Here’s an opportunity. Join us.

WILPF US is Hiring an Executive Director! Your input on qualifications is requested

This pop-up gathering is part of our efforts to restart our flagship branch in Chicago, back where everything began for WILPF. 

Come hear our guest speakers: Our Congress organizers will share program details for WILPF’s upcoming Congress and former WILPF US President, Mary Hanson Harrison, will speak about the importance of WILPF.

Join our post-Mother’s Day Zoom event Everyday Activist: Libby Frank with author Heather Shafter

The history of our Chicago WILPF branch is closely tied to the stories of our nation. You won’t want to miss this dynamic presentation about real stories of immigrants then and now. 

And only online. Our strategy is to alternate between digital-only (like this issue) and a print/digital issue (like the Fall/Winter 2023 issue.) 

On April 29, WILPF US invites you to attend a webinar honoring trailblazer and women’s rights icon Shirley Chisholm. 

WILPF has existed for over 100 years, but do we have the capacity, skills and diversity of leadership to sustain the organization beyond 2050?

Join Us for the Good News from WILPF at the Commission on the Status of Women at the Open Jane Addams Branch

2024 is a critical year! WILPF Needs Your Support — Now More Than Ever!

The WILPF US Congress is coming – Wednesday, May 29, through Sunday, June 2 – and you can be a vital part! Find out how you can help, on screen or behind the scenes. Don’t be left out; contact us now!

This Wednesday, March 20, we welcome all WILPF members to join us at the monthly Jane Addams Branch “event”! That’s the third Wednesday of each month, always at this same time:

WILPF US Virtual Congress. Final request for proposals due Tuesday, March 26!

Take 75 minutes for an experiential zoom focusing on activists’ self-care and relaxation for the Spring Equinox.

Join us to hear from three more “Jane Addams Twins”. Inspiring women, following in the activist footsteps of Jane Addams!

WILPF’s flagship Chicago Branch holds second virtual organizing event.

How will you and/or your branch celebrate the third anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons? 

The Nominations Committee is pleased to announce the results from our Election. 

Starting this month, the Jane Addams Branch opens to all WILPFers its third-Wednesday meeting each month, for special national presentations and programs plus WILPF updates! As a special feature for this and the next three months, “Jane Addams Twins of Today” will present. 

Although the horrific consequences for the populace from massive Israeli bombardments of Gaza have resumed, we can take daily action. 

This webinar, presented by the Domestic Prisoners of War Issue Committee of WILPF is for all members who are concerned about matters related to domestic abuse. 

WILPF US calls for an immediate ceasefire and talks that address root causes and include all parties.

The world needs resources and we have them to give. Tell Congress to Release SDRs – “Special Drawing Rights”:

Take 90 minutes for an experiential zoom focusing on activists’ self-care and relaxation for the equinox

March in NYC to Call on President Biden: Accelerate Climate Action!

The "Gathering" is a virtual meeting held in the year when there is no International or National Congress, so ALL WILPF US members can learn about the structure of this wonderful organization.

As we wind down LGBTQ+ month highlighting working toward a more diverse and welcoming community of peace seekers, we will continue to do it for the eleven more months!.

City officials in Atlanta, Georgia are trying to build a massive police compound in the Weelaunee Forest. The compound will be used to train police forces from around the world to practice militarized tactics for urban warfare. Its development would destroy a forest known as one of Atlanta’s “lungs” during the climate crisis.

For over three centuries, banks have been consolidating their power by extracting interest from people, businesses, governments and the planet. This power helps to explain why politicians and governments bend to their will.

Representative Omar will not be silenced! Act now to add her voice to the House Budget Committee.

Join demonstrations, vigils, marches, or online webinars taking place across the USA
In celebration of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) January 20–23

Our WILPF Board members remind you about the upcoming opportunity to hear and share views on matters related to racial justice, diversity, and intersectionality in national WILPF — in our WILPF structures, communications, outreach, and other activities and practices.

There’s still time to make a difference in the elections!

Introduction to the Work of Domestic Prisoners of War, WILPF's Newest Issue Committee

This issue covers a wide range of the important work WILPF US is doing in the world to advance peace and justice and to care for humanity and the earth. Whether it’s a new issue committee on domestic violence, an eye-opening trip to Cuba, WILPF’s many unique projects and collaborations happening around PFAS, or smart and comprehensive analyses of sanctions and of the abortion rights struggle, the authors here combine reflection and action.

Statewide VT Public Banking Forum and why it matters for YOUR State

Become part of our herstory: Nominate another member or “apply” yourself to run for the WILPF Board!

VERMONT Money Matters and Public Banking Forum. Women trained as advocates for local public banking efforts are gaining strength in Vermont. WILPF US has been planting these seeds. Your attention and support can help them grow!

You – or someone you recommend – can help WILPF achieve a better world, with full rights for women, racial and economic justice, and the political, social, and psychological conditions which support peace, freedom, and justice for all.

Questions have been raised about why the Black Liberation Caucus (BLC) is not recognized by WILPF US.

November 8 General Election Candidate Survey on PFAS. Do you know how much your candidates for the November 8 general election know about per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)?

WILPF US seeks a virtual clerical assistant with excellent Excel skills, to help with data analysis in our fundraising efforts. Is that you – or someone you know?

On Thursday, August 18, WILPF offers a special session with multiple perspectives on the first ever virtual International WILPF Congress. Join the WILPF US Delegation and Americas Representative at this event, substituting for the August One WILPF Call.

Whether or not you are participating in the International WILPF Congress, you can join us on July 13 for a special opportunity to learn more about International matters and WILPF US participation at the International Congress.

Join Us July 5: PPC Rally & Weekend Events. Review and Future Involvement Planning

Many of us will attend the Poor People's rally in DC and related Code Pink events to build our power and influence for peace. Assembling a compelling force against the war economy is a major part of the PPC. Isn't the 50% military cut long overdue? Let's be a power that cannot be ignored and must be heard.

In response to possible U.S. Supreme Court decision, WILPF US affirms reproductive rights and embraces joint statement comparing the status of women’s choice in the U.S. and Cuba

Be on the lookout for our Spring appeal in your mailbox or donate at this link. In a time of contrasts, as I write to you, we celebrate the appointment of the first Black woman Supreme Court justice, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. At the same time, Roe v. Wade’s future is at stake and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with the threat of nuclear war, is concerning us all.

Commemorate the Poor People's Campaign with branded T-shirts and buttons!

Military Bootprint: Climate Crisis and Actions for Environmental Justice in the Bayview/Hunters Point Community

Support the Poor People's Campaign rally in DC on June 18!

The 33rd WILPF International Congress is set to take place virtually and online, July 16–24. The U.S. Section will be represented by four delegates and four alternates. You are invited to apply to represent WILPF US at the Congress. 

In honor of Women’s Herstory Month, the Building Branches from the Inside Out Initiative is offering a special session on leadership development:

Organize for and Join the Sunday, March 6, International Day of Anti-War Actions

WILPF's solidarity action with the Poor People's Campaign begins with an energizing virtual kickoff!

WILPF US Urges Its Members to Take Actions Regarding the Situation Along Ukraine’s Borders

U.S. militarism in the Ukraine, racial justice in the U.S., the threats to voting rights, and more – what can WILPF do? 

Congratulations to Phillip Cole, Darien De Lu, Jennifer Bailey, and Dianne Blais! These four candidates won their election to the WILPF US Board.

The WILPF Cuba and the Bolivarian Alliance Committee will meet on Monday, January 10 at 5 pm Pacific, 6 pm Mountain, 7 pm Central, 8 pm Eastern. All WILPF members who are interested are invited to attend this meeting.

WILPF US 2022 Solidarity Actions. Vote Now For Your Preference

This month, listen in to a special Program Committee meeting, to meet and hear from our new Electronic Communications staff person, John Sepulvado!

You’re invited to join us this month as we once again feature the Before and After Conversations in the half-hour prior to and after the Program Committee meeting:

Send Us Your Suggestions to Shape Our 2022 ONE WILPF Calls

Take two actions for Climate Justice, Women + Peace: 1) Tell Congress to Reduce U.S. Military Greenhouse Gas Emissions. 2) Register for the November 21st Report-Back by WILPF Members at COP 26 in Glasgow

Vote Now – by November 29 – in the WILPF US Board Elections!

WILPF US is alarmed at the proposed 2021 federal legislation on the military draft and its expansion to include women. On Armistice Day, November 11, 2021, we encourage broad support for HR 2509, the Repeal Selective Service Act.

Tell Congress: Condemn Israel’s Criminalization of Palestinian Human Rights Organizations

On Tuesday, November 2, the Earth Democracy Committee is hosting the monthly Program Committee meeting 

COP 26 – The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference. Join a local event on Friday, November 5 and Saturday, November 6: Fridays for Future Climate Strike and Saturday Global Day of Action for Climate Justice.

The Earth Democracy Issue Committee urges WILPF members to be informed about the military effects on climate and to share that information with others. We must move the money, from destructive military expenditures to addressing the climate crisis and other human needs! Register for just this session of the Transition US Summit, or you're welcome to join for more sessions of the two-week Summit.

With active membership working on a variety of concerns, you are urged to learn more and choose where to be part of the renewed Advancing Human Rights issues committee. The next full-committee meeting will be on Wednesday, September 29 – starting at 5/6/7/8 PM in the different US time zones.

On Friday, September 24, join FRIDAYS for FUTURE. This Worldwide Youth Climate Strike for Intersectional Climate Justice unites many issues and people and focuses on the most effected peoples and areas. #UpRootTheSystem

CHALLENGE THE UN. Oppose the corporate capture of the UN Food Systems Summit on Thurs., Sept. 23!

Responding to Help Those in Dire Straits. We have all watched in shock the debacle taking place in Afghanistan, as the Taliban has rapidly moved into all of the major cities and towns there, filling the vacuum left when U.S. forces pulled out. Now we must speak up for our sisters and brothers in Afghanistan. We demand diplomacy – not invasion, occupation and attempts at military domination.

Public Banking initiatives are advancing around the country. Your help NOW could move public banking forward.  

We are looking forward to seeing you tonight and tomorrow. Lots of good information and lots of good attendance by WILPF WOMEN SUPPORTING WILPF WOMEN!

Come to Congress and Celebrate WILPF. Monday, August 9–Sunday, August 22. Dolores Huerta featured in opening program on August 9

The virtual WILPF US 34th Triennial Congress

Take Action to Support Cuban Self-Determination and Survival! Call on Biden administration to keep its word! It is the height of hypocrisy for the Biden administration to claim support for human rights and democracy in Cuba while keeping in place the 60-year old U.S. blockade against Cuba.

Come and meet the challenge of change with WILPF members as we seek out solutions together! We envision this Congress as soul-searching, making new pathways into the ending of the “system of white dominance of exploitation and violence,” as Paul Kivel puts it.

Special Event: Pre-release viewing of the film The New Corporations: The Unfortunately Necessary Sequel. Organized through a special arrangement with the film’s writer and director!

Join in educating and activating ourselves, other WILPFers, and the public around important issues – working with branches across the country.

A generous WILPF member had offered to match all donations received by June 22nd, but now she has agreed to extend the match deadline to July 9th.

WILPF US calls on members to TAKE ACTION. We deplore the violence and apartheid of Israel against the Palestinian people.

Speak up to support the New York City Council resolution to Move the Money to Human Needs!

On Tuesday, May 4, we hope you’ll join in the monthly Program Committee meeting. This meeting is, specially, open to all WILPF members.

Apply now to be a part of a Nation-Wide WILPF Book Study and Discussion Group — Uprooting Racism: How White People Can Work for Racial Justice 

As a followup to our successful webinar, “AFRICOM and Human Rights in Africa”, we offer this webinar in the context of the militarization of the African continent by AFRICOM. The “Africa Command” handles U.S. military operations in Africa and maintains military relations with 53 countries on that continent. AFRICOM is planning its biggest military training exercise yet for this coming June: AFRICOM Lion.

On Sunday, March 21 – the day before World Water Day – Earth Democracy is offering a webinar to introduce you to our newly designed website. This redesigned Military Poisons website exposes the connections between the military and PFAS contamination of our water, food, and bodies.

Public banking initiatives in Massachusetts are advancing fast. Your help NOW, as a Massachusetts resident, can help move critical legislation forward. Join the Boston WILPF Branch’s zoom meeting to learn details about how you can support this legislation and why it matters. Hear from Massachusetts Public Banking experts.

Ask Your Questions about WILPF in the Before and After Conversations! You’re also welcome to hear about WILPF US issue work by listening in to the Program Committee meeting in between.

Support a ‘Marshall Plan for Moms’. As the pandemic has uncovered the inequities in our economic system, we’re seeing how the most essential workers are the lowest paid and least valued. Please take two actions now to help address these inequities:

Have you taken time to read the new Winter/Spring Issue of our Peace & Freedom magazine? And don’t miss the Thursday, February 18, webinar with article author, Gloria McMillan!

The Valentine’s Day Campaign for Police Accountability intends to spread a message of hope. Sign on to let the Peace Economy Project carry your name and message to your legislators! If the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and Michael Brown have taught us anything, it is that we need a change to the laws that govern police authority.

Hear directly from our distinguished sisters in WILPF Lebanon: The Lebanon Section, established in 1962, has played a pivotal role in formulating WILPF policy statements on the Middle East for nearly 60 years. Lebanon today is challenged by the effects of war, political instability and government corruption.

Ask Your Questions about WILPF in the Before and After Conversations! You’re also welcome to hear about WILPF US issue work by listening in to the Program Committee meeting in between.

Publicizing and Supporting the January 22 Start of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. This eALERT and the four resource guides it points you to describe this new important new treaty and why we are celebrating it coming into effect. The US Government has only denigrated the TPNW and tried to get the ratifying countries to rescind their ratifications (but none have).

Millions of Yemenis are at risk!  Be part of world-wide actions to say No to the War in Yemen!

Join us Tuesday, January 5, to ask questions, share ideas, and talk with other WILPFers nationwide, at a new time: one hour before and/or one hour after the Program Committee meeting call. You’re welcome to call in before the likely 2-hour committee meeting. The open-to-all call is at 4 pm Pacific Time / 7 pm Eastern Time – and/or stay for an hour afterward, starting at 7 pm PT / 10 pm ET.

WILPF US celebrates the commitment to voting shown by more people than ever before in the US. We especially thank those people of color — Blacks, Latinxes, and others — who made the positive difference in many contests and who turned out to vote in the face of long lines, the pandemic, and the threat of polling place violence.

Join a WILPF Watch Party to view together “The Laundromat" and then discuss how we can address the issue of corporate fraud and offshore tax-sheltering

Are you feeling increasingly concerned about the US commitment to Choose Democracy? Whoever you are, whatever your age or situation, you can take action! Yes! Even if you’re protecting your health by staying home in these difficult times, you can help Hold the Line for democratic elections and Protect the Vote!

What if President Trump carried out his threats and refused to accept a loss in the Nov. 3 election? What are you — what are we — prepared to do to mobilize against a possible post-election coup d’état and a move toward fascism?

Are you interested in Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, or other social media? You can learn how to better use social media to tell WILPF stories – and expand your political influence!

WILPF’s Women, Money & Democracy Committee is co-sponsoring with our partner organization An Economy Of Our Own (AEOO) two free Zoom webinars in October.

For September 21, the concluding day of WILPF's Season for Solidarity, turn on a candle in your window and tune in with many others, partnering to celebrate the enduring power of activism! It's a film event: 100 Cities, Music, One Night for Peace: We Are Many! 

Join us Tuesday for the open-to-all-members Program call. Learn about and get involved in the recently adopted WILPF US Call for Peace.We will share other Program-related information and ask for your ideas and commitment.

Join Online Rally and Webinar. The past months of the Black Lives Matter Movement have confirmed once again: The only way to challenge our racist, militarized system is with the power of people demanding system change.

Election 2020 — Facts Not Fear: What YOU Can Do, now & later. On our latest ONE WILPF Call, our expert speakers recommended actions and tools to defend voting rights and an accurate vote count. Read about multiple suggestions for actions, along with links for learning more.

How can you and your branch connect as a group while being safely socially distanced?

Hear about the effects of the July 16, 1945 secret Trinity test on the people downwind from the area. Learn how New Mexico has become the most nuclear-contaminated state in the country, with uranium mining, nuclear research facilities, and nuclear waste storage! Speakers: Tina Cordova, a founder of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium (TBDC) and Joni Arends is Co-founder and Executive Director of Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety (CCNS)

Do you know a WILPF member whose commitment, passion, and energy would make her/him a valuable national board member? Now is the time to put your best foot forward!  This is a crucial year!  This year's elections offer an unusual opportunity to choose among a number of open board positions for terms ranging from one to three years.

Join Phyllis Bennis on the 75th anniversary of the creation of the United Nations Charter. Bennis is author of  Calling the Shots: How Washington Dominates Today's United Nations. Also speaking is Blanche Wiesen Cook, author of the three-volume biography, Eleanor Roosevelt.

The Mass Poor People's Assembly and Digital March on Washington. Saturday, June 20, 2020! From Washington State to Florida, Burlington, Vermont to the border, people are coming together to confront the interlocking evils of systemic racism, poverty, ecological devastation, militarism and the war economy, and the distorted moral narrative of religious nationalism.

Statement on the Murder of George Floyd and the Calls for Change. WILPF stand in solidarity with the protestors of police brutality and systemic racism calling to defund the police, because Black Lives Matter. No one should have to suffer the heavy emotional and physical burden of generations of inequality, constant oppression, discrimination, and trauma

Please contact your Senators and Representatives to oppose Israel's plan to annex 30% or more of the Palestinian West Bank. Annexation amounts to an act of aggression, forbidden by international law

This open-to-all-members Program meeting is for branch members and at-large members. Attend and gather information to help with planning for short- and long-range activities!

Take Action During the Week of Memorial Day. A Time to Remember the Costs of War. This week WILPFers can take action to support peaceful diplomacy and stop war! WILPF US endorses the Global People's Movement special days of action to end sanctions and build global solidarity to end war, May 24-31.

Join us for a Zoom webinar on nuclear issues and the Kings Bay Plowshares 7! Martha Hennessy,  a member of the Kings Bay Plowshares 7, their lawyer Bill Quigley, and fellow Catholic Worker and NukeWatch activist John LaForge speak about nuclear issue criminal trials and their efforts to use the Necessity Defense.

On Sunday we honor mothers. In this pandemic period, WILPF honors all mothers and women nationwide who have lost their lives to COVID-19, including 88 (mostly female) nurses, as of this writing…. now we see clearly those who have been hurt the most. This hurt is not just because of the virus, but because of the social structures in which it has taken hold – structures characterized by gender, racial, and ethnic discrimination plus economic and political disparities. These people and communities are the ones who must be at the table, to propose solutions

A recent national webinar drew hundreds of people and advised holders of federal student loans how to apply for delayed payments during the pandemic. But any student with a loan from a bank, private lender or their university finance office is just out of luck!

The topic of the webinars, Building a Better World with Sustainable Development Goals, may be unfamiliar. Yet the two webinars on Friday, 4/17, and Tuesday, 4/21, will help answer key questions. How do we counter the increasing impoverishment -- rather than development -- for much of the world's population occurring in this pandemic time?

This weekend, without leaving your home, you can attend a plenary and/or another session of the International Conference for the Normalization of US-Cuba Relations! 

While environmental groups are pointing out the chemical and manufacturing companies that have contaminated our drinking water, WILPF is focused on Exposing the Pentagon: The Hidden Polluter of Water.

Speak out for news coverage of the Venezuela Embassy Protectors trial and the issues surrounding it, especially related to international law!

With the approval of the second Bylaws amendment, giving the national board some limited flexibility in scheduling the WILPF US Congress, I can now confirm: Our next Congress will take place in the summer of 2021. (That will be in the same year as the International WILPF Congress, planned for Australia.) We now move forward, based on that Bylaws change; please respond to the items below.

California has the highest number of current and former military bases in the country, and  those bases — whether still open or closed down -- have left a deadly legacy of toxic land and water contamination. The action tour in March focuses on just one family of toxic chemical compounds, called PFAS, used currently on military bases. WILPF is urging you to join us in supporting this project.

Please take time to see this movie and offer our handout to moviegoers.  Let's get out the word about our project on The Pentagon: Exposing the Hidden Polluter of Water -- and about the Department of Defense's responsibility for the drinking water crisis and health crisis on bases and in surrounding communities.

Please contact your Congressional representative to assert that the US should respect the national sovereignty of the Bolivian nation and should not intervene politically or militarily.

Women's International League for Peace and Freedom is uniting with NuclearBan.US, Code Pink, and World Beyond War on a National Call-in Day to promote the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Pat Elder is creating a project website (see http://miliarypoisons.org) and a database of California military base profiles, with a history of contamination and searchable by town and zip code. Pat will create a tool kit on how to do this kind of research. We'll continue to gather information and want to engage directly with those affected to highlight the conditions in these communities.

The Public Banking bill, AB 857, is now officially on California Governor Newsom's desk. To make the Public Banking Act into law in California, we have one final step. [We succeeded! The bill is now law!]

Is your branch or community planning an event for Keep Space for Peace Week? We'd like to know!

WILPF's membership is growing, and our influence is on the rise. Board participation helps move WILPF forward.  Nominate or run for one of the open positions.

Call your representative today. Yes on AB 857!  [We succeeded! The bill is now law!]

We, national WILPF US leaders, write in support of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and its State Chairperson, Maureen Taylor, to invite you, WILPF members from Michigan and nearby states, to an important event.

Members of the House of Representatives and the Senate are back in their home districts for summer recess until September 9. Possibly, they may be called back for a special session of either branch to consider urgently needed gun legislation. Already, the House has passed HR 8 -- Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019.

Take action this weekend to support Senator Hontiveros and others jailed in the Philippines for their struggle for justice and decency! Join us in this emergency mobilization for her: Call your representatives and/or help get out the message on social media.

It would be wonderful if Iowa WILPF members, with signs, could attend one of the three still open IOWA AARP candidate fora to ask a climate justice question!  All five fora will be live-streamed at  DesMoinesRegister.com. So, please wear your new WILPF US sash or hold up your People and Planet before Profit or WILPF US banner.

Call your Senators to ask them to oppose any attack on Iran: 1 202 224  3121. (Ask to be connected to your Senator.) Many Senators already strongly oppose any such aggression. Despite Trump's contention that he doesn't want to go to war with Iran, recent incidents suggest that is what he intends.

With your help in making phone calls, we defeated the big banks in the California State Assembly. Now the Senate is considering AB 857, the Public Banking Act. We're in the final home stretch to get AB 857 to Governor Gavin Newsom to be signed into law. Help us get to the finish line and free California from Wall Street's stranglehold.  [We succeeded! The bill is now law!]

On our July 13-28 Nuclear-Free-Future trip through California we will collect messages, petitions, photos and videos to take with us to Hiroshima. Invite us to stop by!  

June 4, watch climate justice history be made in Portland, Oregon! Might all fossil fuel expansion operations in the US stop until the end of the Supreme Court trial on Juliana v. United States?

Call your State Assembly member now and ask for a "YES" Vote for Public Banking -- AB 857! [We succeeded! The bill is now law!]

Your short calls can make the difference to get CA 857 through its first Assembly Committees! This is the public banking bill that does so much good and that we told you about in the April 8 eAlert. [We succeeded! The bill is now law!]

Assembly Bill - AB 857 is now in the California State Assembly. Please join in getting this bill through the three Assembly committees (see below), into the State Senate and signed by Governor Newsom. Already, the California Banking Association and others are lobbying against this bill! [We succeeded! The bill is now law!]

WILPF US calls on our WILPF members and all peace-loving people to demand that the US stop intervention in Venezuela and the region and respect the sovereign rights of the Venezuelan people to determine their own future.

WILPF US and the WILPF US Cuba and Bolivarian Alliance Issues Committee calls on our members and supporters to contact your Congressional representatives and to organize support for actions happening nationwide to oppose the Trump administration's attempts to overthrow the democratically elected government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.