WILPF NEWS
Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom
East Bay and San Francisco Branches
Work to Advance Peace, Justice and Human Rights
JANUARY 2021
JANUARY 6, 2021
Like — probably — all of you, I’m watching and listening to the events unfolding in DC. Many of us have previously participated in nonviolent demonstrations, at which the police presence was far larger and far more armed than what appears to have been the case in DC.
Now, may (finally) be the time — with the Democrats shortly to take control of both houses of Congress, with some of the Congressional “ReTrumplicans” possibly shocked back to some sense of the dangers of the current situation, with the President inciting an insurrection among extremists, many armed — now is the time for Congress to impeach and convict the President based, simply, on the Georgia call and aiding and abetting.
Certainly, my legal basis for impeachment may be questionable, but I hope it’s clear: It’s time! It’s time to protect the US and the world from further irrational behavior and action on the part of the soon-to-be-former President. Will it happen? (What will happen?) These are unusual times (I hope!). It looks likely, and disturbing, that we’ll see an increase in Right wing violence over the next several years; the forces that have been set loose will not disappear in a puff of cloud. Clear and (at least somewhat!) ethical action now can help rebuild a public consensus on what is acceptable behavior for politicians.
I want to be clear: I see a huge difference between the random acts of looting (by unknown individuals, opportunists — very likely not connected to the demonstrators) that occurred upon the occasion of political protests and the armed attacks by demonstrators on the seat of government. I believe it’s largely true that, in both cases, anger was a motivating force. However, in the former case, the anger was in response to objectively demonstrable circumstances (covered widely, even on the corporate news); in the latter, the anger has been deliberately ignited and enflamed by elected officials based on lies — also covered widely on the corporate news.
These are times that test our commitment to diplomacy and conflict resolution. How do we make peace in this world?
Yours for understanding, education, and — most difficult — compassion,
Darien De Lu, WILPF US President
JANUARY 15, 2021
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968
JANUARY 22, 2021
NUCLEAR WEAPONS BECOME ILLEGAL IN 50+ COUNTRIES
To recognize and celebrate the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons going into effect, there will be events happening around the world. the WILPF US website has lots of information about the Treaty as well as ways you can get involved. Other organizations that are sponsoring national and international events and actions are ICAN, World Beyond War,, and TriValley CARES. To learn more details about the Treaty and its ramifications around the world, go to Unfold Zero. Take one or more of these actions:
– Write Letters to the Editor or to President Biden, emphasizing the existential threat that nuclear weapons pose and the need for the United States to lead the way to a nuclear-free world. Ask your City Council members to write a resolution in support of the UN Treaty.
BEFORE ENLISTING PROJECT HIGHLIGHTED
ON FEBRUARY 11TH ONE WILPF CALL
Our Before Enlisting group will be the focus of the One WILPF call on Thursday, February 11 at 4pm. We will be talking about the work we have been doing in high schools to give students the full picture of military life, and provide them with alternatives to consider before they make a decision to join the military. Our presentation will include 2 videos, talks by one of our vets, a psychotherapist who works with clients who suffer from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and MST (Military Sexual Trauma), a retired teacher who has been going into high school classrooms with the vets, and a counter recruitment activist who also works on the GI Hotline. We will also be sharing what we have been doing during the pandemic to create an on-line program that can be used virtually by high school teachers.
We hope you can join us. If you haven’t been on a One WILPF call, you will need to pre-register for the call. You will receive a reminder a couple days before the call and again on the day of the call. You will dial in on your phone and then you should also use the link to join the call on your computer, so that you can see the videos.
A VIRTUAL VALENTINE’S DAY CELEBRATION
Sunday, February 13th 12-1:30 pm
We are looking forward to February 13th as an opportunity to reconnect with our members and invited friends, talk about our proud history. celebrate the Treaty banning nuclear weapons coming into force, and share what we are doing locally and nationally. We sincerely hope you can join us to celebrate WILPF and to learn how everyone can get involved in the work ahead in 2021.
Here’s how to join the event. We will be sending you a special email invitation in early February with a Zoom link. The Subject Line will be: You’re Invited to a WILPF East Bay/San Francisco Celebration on February 13th. Keep an eye out for your invitation and we’ll hope to see you on the 13th.
EXPLORE WILPF TODAY
Local branch web pages
www.WILPFEastBay.org or www.WILPFSF.org
WILPF East Bay
P. O. Box 13083, Oakland, CA 94661
WILPF-San Francisco
P. O. Box 590253, San Francisco, CA 94159
https://www.facebook.com/WILPFEastBaySanFrancisco/
National WILPF www.wilpfus.org
International WILPF: www.wilpf.org
PEACEWOMEN and REACHING CRITICAL WILL
CALL FOR PEACE
