WILPF NEWS
Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom
East Bay and San Francisco Branches
Work to Advance Peace, Justice and Human Rights
February 2026
EASY-TO-READ VERSION OF THE NEWSLETTER WITH PHOTOS
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“The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain – until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life.”
Jane Addams, 1860-1935
To join with your local WILPF activists, come to one of our monthly meetings of the East Bay and San Francisco branches. Our next meeting is Saturday, March 14 from 10am-noon. Reply to this email for details.
WILPF US LAUNCHES SCHOOL OF PEACE & FREEDOM
A VIRTUAL EVENT ON SUNDAY, MARCH 1 AT 1PM
Last year, National WILPF asked members to help define the events and spaces they wanted. Over and over, the message from members was the same, an intergenerational space where new and seasoned activists come together to share lived experience and build strategies together.
To launch the WILPF US School of Peace & Freedom, we have invited leaders across research, policy, education, and organizing to share their experience with us and the lessons they have learned. The issues they will address include:
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Legal observers and when you need them.
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Know your rights.
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Cross-generational power building
About Our Speakers:
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Isabel Belmonte: Scholar and researcher rooted in gender theory and political advocacy, bringing deep experience in gender-based violence prevention.
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Sofia F: Development Director at Mondoweiss and longtime advocate for Palestinian liberation, with expertise in program design and community organizing.
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Judith McDaniel: Professor and legal scholar specializing in gender studies and international human rights law.
After our speakers’ conversation, Judith will lead a teach-in on legal observers and Know Your Rights strategies — equipping us with tools to organize safely and effectively in today’s climate.
We hope you’ll join us and share the invitation with your people. If you have questions, please reach out to our Special Projects Coordinator, Lorena Rodriguez, at lorena@wilpfus.org.
This donation-based event supports WILPF’s national actions and cross-generational power building. For more information and to register, go here.
We hope you can join us: Saturday, March 21, 11 – 12:30. Your attendance is vital. Big or small, everything we do helps prevent a young person from making a decision they may regret (and often do). Please RSVP for this event.
LET CUBA LIVE!
Cuba Is Under Siege
On January 29, the U.S. government escalated its campaign of economic aggression, authorizing sweeping measures designed to cut the island off from fuel, the lifeblood of its energy system and public infrastructure.
Reports indicate Cuba may have as little as 15–20 days of oil reserves remaining. Without fuel, infrastructure fails, and people die. The most vulnerable — children, the elderly, and the disabled die first. We are already seeing reports of rising infant mortality, as medical systems strain under scarcity and supply constraints.
For more than six decades, the blockade has sought to break Cuba through economic strangulation. What we are witnessing now is a dangerous escalation. An attempt to weaponize collapse itself. Starving a population into submission is not diplomacy; it is a form of terrorism.
Mexico’s Role — And Why Your Voice Matters
The blockade is imposed from Washington. But its enforcement depends on isolating Cuba from the region. Mexico has the power to break that isolation. Continuing fuel shipments is not just solidarity; it is defiance.
As we organize to end Trump’s economic warfare, we must also stand with Mexican civil society in calling on their government to hold the line and refuse to yield to U.S. pressure.
This week, two Mexican ships carrying humanitarian aid arrived in Havana. A powerful reminder that solidarity is possible. But aid alone cannot keep the lights on in hospitals. It cannot run dialysis machines or ambulances. Without fuel, infrastructure fails.
At this moment, Mexico’s leadership matters. The historic relationship between Mexico and Cuba has long stood as a symbol of principled independence. Now is the time to put life before pressure. Add your name to the Letter of Appeal today
EXPLORE WILPF TODAY
Before Enlisting: https://www.BeforeEnlisting.org/
WILPF East Bay, P. O. Box 13083, Oakland, CA 94661
WILPF-SF, P. O. Box 590253, San Francisco, CA 94159
National WILPF www.wilpfus.org
International WILPF https://www.wilpf.org/
Peace Women https://www.peacewomen.org/
Reaching Critical Will https://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/