News and Media
WRL at 95: Redefining our Base, Building our Power
At Ninety-Five, the War Resisters League Tries New Tactics “We’re acknowledging the many ways militarization shows up in our lives and neighborhoods.” by Eleanor J. Bader | October 24, 2018 Read on The Progressive When educator Jesse Wallace Hughan founded the War Resisters League in 1923 in the wake of WWI, her focus was on ending armed conflict. Ninety-five years…
Honduran Migrant March: A Refugee Crisis caused by US Policy and US Partners
WRL endorses the Honduras Solidarity Network’s statement in solidarity with the Honduran Migrant Caravan. Read their statement below and support all asylum seekers. “On October 12, 2018, hundreds of women, men, children, youth and the elderly decided to leave Honduras as a desperate response to survive. The massive exodus that began in the city of…
WRL Endorses Call to Reject War Criminal Kissinger from NYU Event
War Resisters League endorses call by NYU student activists demanding NYU cancel event hosted by war criminal Henry Kissinger. Read the statement and endorsing organizations below. “The illegal we do immediately, the unconstitutional takes a little longer.” Henry Kissinger, 1975 For over half a century, Henry Kissinger has stood as the morally reprehensible poster…
A Message from Movement Elder, Mandy Carter
Dear Community, I graduated high school in the summer of 1966 in Central New York during the tail ends of the Civil Rights Movement and during the height of the U.S.-led wars in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. That summer, almost 400,000 men were drafted. Having lived and been raised in two orphanages and a foster…
Building Anti-colonial Power – 1 Year After Hurricane Maria
Dear Primxs, A year ago today, the deadliest U.S.-based natural disaster – Hurricane Maria – devastated the island of Puerto Rico, home to over 3 million people. The hurricane shattered an already unstable infrastructure, crumbling from almost two centuries of parasitic U.S. colonialism. 3,000 people died because of an explicit strategy to keep aid from…
Meet WRL’s new National Organizer, Tory Smith
Dear Troublemakers, On January 19th, 2003, I was a high school student in Washington D.C., huddled against the wind in a massive crowd all holding up signs declaring we were against the illegal war that was about to start. I didn’t have a full understanding of the history that lead our empire up to that…
Meet WRL’s New Field Organizer, Yuni Chang
Dear Community, My parents were born in Seoul in the fresh aftermath of Japanese colonialism and the Korean War. Before the U.S. split the peninsula with the creation of a border at the 38th parallel, my grandmother waded across rivers in secret, with newborns in tow, so that her family in the north would have…
A Death in the Family: David McReynolds, Pacifist, Socialist, Ailurophile
As WRL reflects on David’s life and legacy, heading into our 95th year of radically resisting war, we’re humbled and grateful for the kind of politic David brought to our movement + organizational spaces. To make a gift to WRL in David’s honor, click here. To write a message of remembrance for David in our 95th Anniversary…
David McReynolds (1929 – 2018)
UPDATE: Hear the presentations from the Memorial for David McReynolds here. The memorial was held on Saturday, December 1 at 12 PM – 3 PM at Judson Memorial Church in New York. Scroll down for links to more articles about David. Early Friday morning, August 17, socialist, photographer, and lifetime War Resisters League member David…
The New Antimilitarism: Our AMC Reportback
Hey community, It’s been a few weeks since you helped us get folks out to Detroit for the Allied Media Conference to attend our workshop Liberate the Skies: The New Antimilitarism – thanks for helping us get folks there! The first of its kind at the AMC, the workshop was an intentional space for us…
Resisting Occupation: A Teach-In on Kashmir
War Resisters League is proud to announce and report back from the first of WRL’s Zone’s of Forgotten Conflict teach-in series. We were honored to partner with the South Asia Solidarity Initiative, to hold up resistance to India’s occupation of Kashmir and to have Kashmiri scholar activists Hafsa Kanjwal and Mohamad Junaid as guest speakers,…
WRL Endorses Statement of Unity by Korean Americans and Allies on the Historic Inter-Korean Summit and the U.S.-North Korea Summit
The full statement and endorsement is below and can also be found here. Since the historic April 27 summit between the leaders of North and South Korea at Panmunjom, longstanding tensions and war threats on the Korean peninsula have given way to the promise of peace and reconciliation. Soon, another historic summit, between the United…
Conscientious Objection is a Human Right!
As long as there has been war, there’s been those who are willing to fight and those who actively refuse to take part. Today, on International Conscientious Objector Day, we uplift all who refuse military enlistment morally, politically, spiritually, or otherwise. Throughout history conscientious objectors (COs) have been persecuted around the world for their actions, from petty fees to imprisonment, exile…
WRL is Hiring a New Organizing Team!
The War Resisters League seeks to hire two passionate and dedicated individuals to make up its core programmatic team. The National Campaigner and the Field Organizer will work together to coordinate, develop, and implement WRL programmatic work, including building campaigns to fulfill WRL’s mission and strategic priorities. We are seeking two experienced and committed grassroots…
Resist Militarism: Lessons from Mexico & Cross Border Solidarity
The People’s Human Rights Observatory is an initiative of grassroots and popular organizations in Latin America, the Caribbean and Palestine that seeks to monitor, document, disseminate, promote and demand the protection of Latin American communities Human Rights, Democracy and Social Justice from a perspective of constructing and deepening of resistance, rebellion, memory and popular power….
March for Our Lives: Demilitarize!
As energy builds across the country for March for Our Lives mobilizations tomorrow, WRL calls on all anti-militarists to push the narrative of gun control to full disarmament! Once again, as our country recoils in outrage after another mass shooting at Great Mills High School in Maryland, as family and friends of Stephon Clark demand justice…
Activists protest Saudi Crown Prince’s visits to US cities, call on elected officials to oppose US role in Saudi war on Yemen
Protestors told de Blasio to denounce prince visit; told Schumer & Menendez to immediately commit to vote to end US support for Saudi war on Yemen CONTACTS: New York, NY: Isaac Evans-Frantz, 347-756-1896, actioncorps.nyc [at] gmail.com Washington, DC: Ariel Gold, 510-599-5330, ariel [at] codepink.org Tuesday the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, is meeting with…
Act Now: Stop Fueling War in Yemen
Today marks 15 years since the U.S. invasion of Iraq. While we rally in the streets to demand accountability for the violence visited upon Iraqis for more than a decade, our collective responsibility to dismantle militarism wherever it roots, in whatever form it takes, cannot be ignored. That’s why, as we look towards a future…
WRL Joins Human Rights Coalition To Blast CIA Torturer as Trump’s Pick for CIA Head
Human Rights Coalition Blasts CIA Torturer as Trump’s Pick for CIA Head March 15th, 2018 – Washington, D.C. A coalition of human rights groups working to close the Guantanamo Bay prison and end US torture condemns President Trump’s nomination of Gina Haspel for Director of the CIA. Haspel’s documented involvement in torture should absolutely disqualify…
WRL supports the “Movement Technologist Statement”
Movement Technologist Statement We work with information technology. Some of us are movement technologists — people who bring their political commmitment to developing technology and tech capacity for social justice organizations and communities. Others are movement activists who use technology in our work. We were among over 50 technologists and organizations of…
Bill Koehnlein Presente!
OBITUARY WILLIAM W. KOEHNLEIN (1949-2017) ANNOUNCEMENT: Celebrating the Life of Bill Koehnlein Saturday, March 24, 2018 Saint Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery Parish Hall 131 East 10th Street (at Second Avenue) New York, NY 10003 1:00-4:00pm William (Bill) W. Koehnlein, life-long peace and social justice activist, organizer and educator, died in Manhattan on November 19, 2017, after…
#YemenCantWait Rally: 28 Orgs Rallied Today at Schumer & Gillibrand’s Office to End US-Backed Blockade & Bombing
MEDIA CONTACT: Isaac Evans-Frantz, Action Corps NYC Organizer, 347-756-1896, actioncorps.nyc [at] gmail.com (actio) #YemenCantWait Rally Draws 28 Organizations and Reps from Schumer, Gillibrand Offices “I long for the day when Yemen is free of war and destruction and where the Yemeni people can live in peace. It is incumbent on the UN and all nations to call…
JOB OPENING at National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee
JOB OPENING at National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee The National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee (NWTRCC) is looking for applicants for its Coordinator position, to start May 2018. NWTRCC, founded in 1982, is a national coalition of organizations and individuals who work together to support, coordinate, and publicize war tax resistance efforts. The Coordinator…
Visions for Solidarity with Yemen
As I write this message to you, I am also responding to voicemail messages describing heavy aerial bombardments near my family’s home in Sana’a, Yemen. Alongside devastating blockades, this is the daily reality for 27 million Yemenis forced to live through the horrors of a U.S.-backed, Saudi-led war. At the same time, these messages remind…
Sanaa Review: Ray of Light from Yemen
While Trump escalates long-standing US complicity in the catastrophic war on Yemen through its arming of Saudi Arabia and more, we are deeply inspired by the launch of مجلة صنعاء “Sanaa Review“: an e-zine by Yemenis that cuts through silence and distortion, bringing us the brilliance of independent Yemeni journalism, art and thought now. This media work…
Joanne Landy, Presente!
Joanne Landy, a visionary that inspired so many of us striving for a world free of war and oppression, died October 14 in Manhattan. She was 75. Joanne – whose imagination rejected the binaries that so often limit our political work – spent a lifetime engaged in a “neither East nor West” critique of Cold War politics. She was a co-founder…
Negotiate, Don’t Escalate!
Yesterday North Korea fired a ballistic missile at Hokkaido Island– the first missile of its kind to fly over Japan amidst rising global tensions. Meanwhile, US and South Korean military exercises continue while Trump renews threats of escalation, fueling an all too costly arms race. As the international community calls for diplomatic solutions, today we turn…
Just out! Article by WRL Organizers Ali Issa & Tara Tabassi
Published July 6th 2017 on The New Inquiry No SWAT Zone: Resisting Police Militarization Under Trump By Tara Tabassi and Ali Issa A volunteer screams in pain as Hollywood-grade prosthetics litter a football field strewn with body parts and gore. A “Muslim man” just fired from his job returns to his office as…
Sanctuary Cities Beyond Militarism
This past weekend, thousands across the country mobilized in airports, in defiance of the executive order “Protecting The Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States”, popularly known as the #MuslimBan. From taxi drivers and Yemeni business owners striking to lawyers, translators and protesters flooding arrivals halls, it was exhilarating. At the same time,…
“What’s Next”? We Hope More Nonviolent Campaigns!
“What next?” The big question after our weekend of resistance. Movements are made of large demos, lobbying and grassroots campaigns. But nonviolent actions are most effective as part of nonviolent campaigns and we need build our skills to build campaigns. We need tools to organize campaigns. Our “Handbook for Nonviolent…
MEDIA ADVISORY: Activists Call on DOJ to End Widespread Teargas Torture in US Prisons before Trump Inauguration
MEDIA ADVISORY For immediate release 1/6/17 Conect: Ali Issa, Organizer, War Resisters League Cell: (718)310-9968 ali [at] warresisters.org () warresisters.org Activists Call on DOJ to End Widespread Teargas Torture in US Prisons before Trump Inauguration New testimony from 21 states – backed by a petition signed by 13,000 – reveals the breadth of…
Shared Space, Shared Vision!
Dear Friends, I’m Sky Hall, a member of WRL’s National Committee, sustainer at WRL, and neighbor to WRL as a member of the AJ Muste Institute’s staff union in our new shared office space. In this year of transitions—some exciting and others foreboding on a presidential scale—WRL bid farewell to our beloved home of…
Are You Antiwar?
Dear Friends, I’d be quick to tell you that I’m queer. HIV positive. Puerto Rican. But antiwar? This past February, yearning for a political home rooted in social justice, I found the War Resisters League. As an intern with WRL I branded the launch to WRL’s No Swat Zone campaign. I spoke at a press…
Shoe-Throwing Still Gets No Love In Iraq: An Interview with Dhurgham al-Zaidy
Shoe-Throwing Still Gets No Love In Iraq: An Interview with Dhurgham al-Zaidy by Ali Issa Reprint from Medium on 12.15.16 “I cannot leave the square. Whatever al-Abadi or anyone else says . . .” Dhurgham al-Zaidy, Friday, 5.27.16 This past Summer, Baghdad’s Tahrir square was once again filled with tear gas. Protesters escaping the toxic fumes have…
War in the Age of Trump?
Dear Friends, Normally, WRL takes no stance on electoral politics. As we watched the field of candidates narrow to two enthusiastic friends of war-making and militarism over the past year, we are now just beginning to learn how the President-elect will go about unleashing the kind of violence that ruptures the lives of entire countries,…
Reinvigorating the Peace Movement
Dear Friends, My name is Ana Conner, and I’m a fundraiser at Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice. I’m also a volunteer and monthly sustainer at WRL. Specifically, as someone who is a part of the movement and works to secure funding for social justice, I’m calling on you to join me in supporting WRL. Here’s…
December of Dissent: Dare to Demilitarize!
— placeholder — — placeholder — This December, we’re raising $20,000 to end war! Here are a few reasons to give this year. Click the images to read more, and check out for weekly updates! We’re 93 years young. We’re prepared to struggle and win. We’re…
Thanks to all who gave this #GivingTuesday!
Thanks to all who participated in #GivingTuesday, helping WRL to raise $4,455 for nonviolent resistance! Just days after Donald Trump was elected President of the United States, large nonprofit organizations saw an outpour of support. The ACLU reported just over $9 million in donations. Planned Parenthood received 200,000 separate contributions. The Trevor Project collected…
Open Letter to the U.N. Security Council on the Government of Iraq’s NGO Shelter Policy
October 2016 U.N. Security Council United Nations, New York, U.S.A. Open Letter to the U.N. Security Council on the Government of Iraq’s NGO Shelter Policy CC: UNAMI, OHCHR, OCHA, UNDP, UNFPA, UN Women, SGRG-SVC Office (Arabic Version) النسخة العربية (Kurdish Version) دانه يا كوردي Print friendly version (English) Your Excellencies, The undersigned nongovernmental organizations…
Bahrain Watch: “Stop the Shipment!”
Bahrain Watch: Leaked Document Shows Massive New Tear Gas Shipment Planned for Bahrain Bahrain’s police forces have fired “canisters directly at protesters and conducting nighttime bombardments of residential areas. Since 2011, 39 deaths may be attributable to the misuse of tear gas by police. Now, a leaked document, apparently a tender from the Ministry of…
On the Ground in Turkey: Repression Gets Personal
After the mass escalation of anti-government protest this past late May in Turkey, events there have fallen out of the headlines. But mobilization and repression continue. This past November 23rd for example, the Turkish police cracked-down hard on a teacher’s demonstration in Ankara called for by the progressive union Eğitim-Sen against the privatization of schools….
Facing Tear Gas Happy Hour in Austin!
MonkeyWrench Books in Austin is hosting War Resisters League organizer Kimber Heinz‘s talk about the Facing Tear Gas’ campaign against Urban Shield. Facing Tear Gas works towards ending the militarization of police and the industry that profits from police repression. It connects the dots between US support for the criminalization of dissent globally to those…
STOMP (STop Oppressive Militarized Police) Coalition forms in Boston
A new coalition of groups against militarization forms in Boston and announces community event. From their facebook page: “STOMP, STop Oppressive Militarized Police, aims to bring together activists and communities struggling against the wars on drugs, immigrants, dissent, and terror to mobilize and build cross-movement dialogue about the militarization and federalization of our local police…
5/4: Bostonians Host Speak Out Against Militarized Police
MEDIA ADVISORY For immediate release: April 30, 2014 (Wednesday) Contact: Kimber Heinz, Facing Tear Gas campaign Cell: (919) 666-7535 kimber [at] warresisters.org http://facingteargas.org One year after the police lockdown of Watertown following the Marathon bombing, Bostonians who live and work in neighborhoods and communities facing SWAT raids and surveillance will testify at a “speak out”…
noSWATzone Condemns Albuquerque Police Repression
April 1st, 2014 – WRL’s noSWATzone campaign condemns in the strongest terms the Albuquerque Police Department’s heavily militarized response to protests against police brutality this past Sunday night, March 30th. We also share in the protestor’s shock over the APD’s March 16th shooting of James Boyd – the 23rd such killing by the APD since 2012 according to the Associated…
Solidarity With Occupied Ferguson
“No violence, just justice.” – Lesley McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown. August 13, 2014 War Resisters League condemns the ongoing militarized lockdown and attack against the community of Ferguson, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri. We are saddened and outraged over the murder of 18-year-old Michael Brown by Ferguson Police, this past Saturday, August 9th….
Press Release: In the Wake of Ferguson, Bay Area Groups Call for an End to Police Militarization
For Immediate Release Contacts: Ali Issa, War Resisters League, ali [at] warresisters.org Rachel Herzing, Critical Resistance, rachel [at] criticalresistance.org BAY AREA COMMUNITY GROUPS CALL ON OAKLAND TO STOP POLICE MILITARIZATION AND URBAN SHIELD AT THE MARRIOTT A new Bay Area coalition has formed to pressure the Marriott to stop an annual international SWAT training and…
Press Release: Bay Area Victory and Rally to Stop Urban Shield and Police Militarization
For Immediate Release Contact: Ali Issa, War Resisters League, ali [at] warresisters.org, (718)310-9968 BAY AREA COALITION PUSHES URBAN SHIELD OUT OF OAKLAND FOR NEXT YEAR, BUT FIGHT AGAINST POLICE MILITARIZATION EXPO AND TRAINING CONTINUES Bay Area groups rally to call on Alameda County Sheriff’s Office to Stop Urban Shield and all police militarization after successfully organizing…
Hey, Mayor de Blasio: Peace, Not Police!
Version of letter published in NY Daily News on 6.5.15 Dear Mayor de Blasio, As you and your office prepare to finalize the city’s budget, I urge you to reject NYPD Commissioner Bratton’s controversial request to fund 450 new paramilitary cops to his department. You have previously stated that you believe NYPD staffing levels to…
Action Alert: Call to #StopITOA
ACTION ALERT: CALL STONEGATE NOW To #StopITOA Charles Baptist, General Manager of the Stonegate Conference & Banquet Centre Ask to speak with Charles Baptist or leave him a voice mail. Sample script: “My name is [name] from [city] and I am appalled that the 2016 “Illinois Tactical Officers Association” will be taking place…
Press Release: Activists Lockdown Chicago Streets to Denounce Islamophobic & Hyper-Militarized SWAT Training
#StopITOA Coalition disrupts business as usual in downtown Chicago on first day of Illinois Tactical Officers Association Conference More on the 2016 campaign here ************************************************************************************************************* **** Press Release **** For Immediate Release Press contacts: Debbie Southorn: 971.227.3829, dsouthor [at] gmail.com Tara Tabassi 917 971 2498 tara.tabassi [at] gmail.com…
Media Advisory: Community Groups Rally in Chicago to Denounce Islamophobic & Hyper-Militarized SWAT Training
**** Media Advisory **** For Immediate Release Press contact: Debbie Southorn: 971.227.3829, dsouthor [at] gmail.com () Community Groups Rally to Denounce Islamophobic & Hyper-Militarized SWAT Training Coalition calls on Stonegate & Cook County DHS To End Relationship with Illinois Tactical Officers Association in Chicagoland. WHAT: The #StopITOA coalition,…
SOA Watch Encuentro at the Border
Oct.7-11: Converge on the US/Mexico Border War Resisters League is endorsing the SOA Watch Convergence at the Border and we encourage you to join the October 7-11 vigils, protests and workshops at the Eloy Detention Center, in Tucson, and in Nogales, Arizona/ Sonora at the border wall. Visit the convergence webpage for more information: http://SOAW.org/border…
NC Elections 2016 – Statements of Candidates
Statements of Candidates * = incumbents For information on the NC Elections and how to vote, go to our NC Elections 2016 information page. Jerica Arents (Midwest) Jerica Arents teaches in the Peace, Justice, and Conflict Studies program at DePaul University in Chicago, IL. Her ongoing interests center on racism and its connection to state…
“Against the Battalions in Blue” – New Piece by Skanda Kadirgamar
(originally published in truthout on August 31st, 2016) Police violence is at the heart of a perpetual crisis in the United States. Today military-grade equipment and training is broadly available to officers. Such developments are especially distressing given the impunity American police have always enjoyed when terrorizing or attacking racialized communities. The tendency to wage…
Call for submissions // noSWATzone Zine
Call for Submissions for No SWAT Zone: a zine on resisting police militarization Send Submissions to: tara [at] warresisters.org Calling all activists and organizers resisting police militarization around the world: -How you are impacted by policing and/or war? -Are you leading a campaign against domestic or international militarization? -Are you building alternatives to…
Applications Open: 95th Anniversary Bilezikian Internship
Want to work with one of the oldest and most dynamic antiwar and antimilitarist organizations? Want to build your existing skills and learn to connect organizing with grassroots fundraising? Want to hone your organizing and fundraising skills? Apply to WRL’s 95th Anniversary Bilezikian Internship! WRL works on an array of antimilitarist projects including counter-recruitment work…
WRL Supports Black & Palestinian Solidarity
As an organization dedicated to peace, justice and nonviolent liberation, the War Resisters League stands firmly in solidarity with the Movement For Black Lives’ newly released Vision for Black Lives Platform. The Vision for Black Lives is an important, comprehensive analysis and policy platform rooted in dozens of organizations’ work across the country. The Black…
Opposing CATO’s Fear-Mongering Trainings!
War Resisters League condemned in the strongest terms Symposium on Islamic Terrorism held on August 24th and 25th in San Diego, hosted by the California Association of Tactical Officers (CATO). The epitome of a growing culture of fear increasingly relied on by policing, this symposium featured infamous anti-Islam conspiracy theorist Ryan Mauro as their top presenter. Ryan…
WRL Condemns Baton Rouge Police Department Repression
War Resisters League condemns in the strongest terms the Baton Rouge Police Department’s heavily militarized response to protests against the murder of Alton Sterling by BRPD this past Tuesday, July 5th. We stand with protesters in demanding justice after the brutal murder of Alton Sterling by BRPD on July 5th, the very police department known for…
Lawrence (Larry) Egbert, Presente!
June 9, 2016 Lawrence Deems Egbert, Jr. Husband, Father, Friend Presente! Lawrence Deems Egbert, Jr., M.D., M.P.H., a resident of the Hampden neighborhood of Baltimore, died of a heart attack Thursday evening, June 9th. He was the oldest and the longest-surviving of the three sons of Lawrence D. Egbert, Sr. and Lyn Forsyth Egbert. He is…
Press Release: UASI Fuels Police Militarization
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts: Tara Tabassi cell (917) 971-2498 || tara [at] warresisters.org Stephen McNeil cell (415) 350-9305 || SMcNeil [at] afsc.org June 13, 2016 CIVIL LIBERTIES, HUMANITARIAN AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS CALL FOR MAINTAINING PRESIDENT’S CUT TO URBAN AREA SECURITY INITIATIVE (UASI) UASI Fuels Police Militarization New York, NY, Chicago, IL, and San…
Letter to House Committee on Appropriations: Cut UASI funding!
**MEDIA ADVISORY HERE** Below is a letter to the House Committee on Appropriations as they debate the new budget– including a proposed cut by President Obama. Today, WRL is joined by thirty-three other civil liberties, religious, and peace and social justice groups called on the House Appropriations Committee to maintain the President’s cut to Urban…
Protest Gov. Cuomo’s Anti-BDS Executive Order!
As members of the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, we stand against Gov. Cuomo’s anti-BDS executive order & urge all to take the following action steps laid out by the US Campaign: Governor Cuomo and the opposition are desperate to stifle the growing movement for Palestinian rights. On Sunday, June 5th, on…
Media Advisory: Civil Liberties, Humanitarian and Religious Organizations Call For Maintaining President’s Cut to Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI)
+ + + FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts: Tara Tabassi cell (917) 971-2498 || tara [at] warresisters.org Stephen McNeil cell (415) 350-9305 || SMcNeil [at] afsc.org May 25, 2016 CIVIL LIBERTIES, HUMANITARIAN AND RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS CALL FOR MAINTAINING PRESIDENT’S CUT TO URBAN AREA SECURITY INITIATIVE (UASI) UASI Fuels Police Militarization New York, NY…
Bob Fitch, Presente!
April 29, 2016 Bob Fitch, PRESENTE The activist-photographer whose iconic images of actions and activists helped shape for four decades this country’s, and indeed the world’s, perception of the great social movements of our era, died April 29 at 76. And because he freely shared his work with the social movements he documented—including WRL—his iconic…
Michael Ratner, Presente!
May 11, 2016 Michael Ratner, PRESENTE The fight for justice without borders lost a heroic leader when visionary human rights lawyer Michael Ratner died too soon on May 11. He was 72. For more than four decades, Michael led the Center for Constitutional Rights as it expanded the protections of the U.S. Constitution to citizens…
James Haughton, Presente!
April 17, 2016 James Haughton, PRESENTE Text excerpted from Sam Roberts memoir published May 5, 2016 in the New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/06/nyregion/james-haughton-who-fought-racial-barriers-in-building-trades-dies-at-86.html James Haughton, Who Fought Racial Barriers in Building Trades, Dies at 86 James Haughton, a civil rights advocate who aggressively challenged racial barriers to hiring at construction sites in the 1960s and ’70s…
Open Letter to Hillary Clinton on Counter-Terror Funds
War Resister’s League’s Tara Tabassi just published this letter on citylimits.org! “We need it, we need it! I want it!” Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, referring to federal homeland security funding for New York during a Saturday sit-down with reporters and editors from The Daily News Open Letter to Hillary Clinton on…
Kunduz Hospital Bombing = War Crime
The War Resisters League stands with Afghans United for Justice as they condemn the Kunduz hospital bombing as a war crime, and call for an independent investigation into the U.S. airstrikes on this Afghanistan hospital. “The human cost of this war crime continues beyond the October 3 airstrike. The whole city of Kunduz is now without…
WRL moves to 168 Canal Street!
After five decades, WRL’s national office has a new home! War Resisters League 168 Canal Street, Suite 600 New York, NY 10013 (We hope to move into the new space in late June.) Last month, we celebrated our history at 339 Lafayette… We packed and moved our things… And honored the spirits of…
Liz Proefreidt, Presente!
April 29, 2016 Elizabeth Proefriedt, sister, friend and activist PRESENTE It is with many tears and mourning hearts, that we announce the passing of our dear friend Sister Liz Proefreidt, longtime peace activist. Liz was a dynamo of love, generosity, faith, commitment to peace and justice, music, poetry, and service, a courageous inspiration to all…
Daniel Berrigan, Presente!
April 30, 2016 Daniel Berrigan, Uncle, Brother, Friend, PRESENTE A statement from the Family of Father Dan Berrigan, SJ This afternoon around 2:30, a great soul left this earth. Close family missed the “time of death” by half an hour, but Dan was not alone, held and prayed out of this plane of existence by…
Media Advisory: Groups Decry Notorious Islamophobe to Address NY State SWAT Teams This Week
+ + + For Immediate Release April 26, 2016 Contact: Ali Issa, War Resisters League, ali32123 [at] gmail.com, (718)310-9968 Ursula Rozum, Syracuse Peace Council ursula [at] peacecouncil.net, (315) 414-7720 COMMUNITY GROUPS FROM ACROSS NY STATE HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE TO OPPOSE MILITARIZATION OF POLICE AND SYRACUSE PD PARTICIPATION IN VERONA SWAT EXPO Groups decry extreme anti-Muslim…
Facing Tear Gas: Chemical Weapons Abuse in US Prisons
Facing Tear Gas: Chemical Weapons Abuse in US Prisons by YaliniDream Multiple letters from Mount Olive Correctional Complex (MOCC) in West Virginia, report at least 5-7 imprisoned people are sprayed by tear gas, pepper spray or other chemical agents each week. First-hand testimonies refer to the guards’ lax references to the frequent use of these…
Stop NYTOAC!
Every year in Verona, New York, hundreds of SWAT officers gather at NYTOAC to “talk shop” with major arms dealers and Islamophobic ideologues. Let’s block it and shift resources where they belong: our communities’ needs! For a recent article by Naomi Dann of Jewish Voices for Peace + Ali Issa of WRL, Read here! …
Gloria Williams, ¡presente!
Gloria Williams, 1950-2016 Gloria Williams, longtime WRL stalwart and former National Committee member, writer, journalist, and videographer, committed pacifist and indefatigable fighter for social justice, died February 29 in Iowa City after a long illness. She was 65. Gloria wrote about the threat of genetically engineered food and about the detainees at Guantanamo. She…
Not another #Feministfail
Happy International Women’s Day! Hi! We are members of the New York City chapter of AF3IRM–a national organization of women engaged in transnational feminist, anti-imperialist activism. Join AF3IRM & War Resisters League today as we celebrate our herstories and engage in a collective retelling of history to include women, queer, and trans community members. As we…
25 Years Since: Standing with Amiriyah
25 years ago today a tragedy took place: The U.S. bombing of the Amiriyah Shleter in Baghdad. To mark this day, and look towards a world where such violence is not possible, we join members of the Iraqi Transnational Collective in spreading the following reflection, art, analysis and action. Resisting Amnesia: 25 Years After the Al Amiriyah…
Military Surveillance: We Are Coming For You!
War Resisters League is proud to join our comrades in A.J. Muste Institute, Campaign to Bring Mumia Home, Iraq Veterans Against the War, National Lawyers Guild, Granny Peace Brigade and Time’s Up in a legal challenge to the military’s spying of antiwar activists in the Pacific Northwest. For more information, read the National Lawyers Guild’s…
Support #Justice4Rasmea Today!
Our comrades in the Rasmea Defense Committee are calling for support! Rasmea Odeh, a long time immigrant rights leader and Arab community organizer is currently facing imprisonment and deportation. Join the War Resisters League in circulating this call, and help us amplify Rasmea’s fight against politically motivated charges today! Learn more about Rasmea’s case here,…
On MLK Day: A Special Message from Arun Kundnani
On this MLK day, let us recall Dr. Martin Luther King’s deepest legacy. He understood that denouncing the violent extremism of young, angry men in the ghettos could not be done without hypocrisy unless one also condemned the far greater violence of the U.S. war machine in Vietnam. When governments decide political problems can be…
9 Tips for Muslims Who Want To Make Social Change
War Resister’s League’s very own Uruj Ehsan Sheikh just published on www.muslimmatters.org! 9 Tips for Muslims Who Want To Make Social Change We are in a historic moment. Renewed Islamophobia has emerged in the mainstream. GOP candidates’ anti-Muslim rhetoric and an upsurge of hate crimes against Muslims have gone unabated. The Syrian and Iraqi refugee…
Terrorism and Trump: New Challenges for Social Justice Organizations
by Bob Wing and Max Elbaum originally published on Znet, 12.23.15 “The wake-up call is right there in the front page headline of the Dec. 11 New York Times: ‘Poll Has Trump Gaining Ground on Terror Fear.’ [ . . . ] Understand that the fight against racism cannot be won just by struggling around domestic…
Police Militarization Comics
Needing some cartoon-style popular education to start the conversation on police militarization, its federal funding and the militarization of emergency services? Check out these two that our friend and cartoonist comrade Ethan Heitner drew for War Resisters League, as part of the Stop Urban Shield work! Check out Ethan Heitner’s blog Freedom Funnies…
27th Annual Raffle for Resistance Winners!
We’re excited to announce the winners of our 27th Annual Raffle for Resistance! This year’s raffle items are a collection of powerful art highlighting political artists whose works nourish movements for peace and liberation telling stories of resilience, struggle for liberation and connect contemplation and action across communities. Congratulations to all the winners! Grand…
Ibrahim Abdil-Mu’id Ramey Presente
IBRAHIM ABDIL-MU’ID RAMEY: AN APPRECIATION (May Allah ta’Ala forgive him all his sins and grant him the highest of Jannah) By Matt Meyer Ibrahim Abdil-Mu’id Ramey (Clayton), who passed away yesterday, Friday, 11th of December 2015, was a dynamic speaker, fine writer, and keen strategic thinker – but he devoted most of his adult life…
Press Release // International Solidarity Action with Syrian & Iraqi Refugees & Muslims
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Over 800 New Yorkers Rally for HUMAN RIGHTS TRUMP OPPRESSION, International Solidarity Action for Syrian and Iraqi Refugees, and Muslims CONTACT: Linda Sarsour: lindasarsour [at] gmail.com (917) 306-3323 Jamila Hammami: jamila [at] qdep.org (347) 496-8490 Over 800 New Yorkers Rally for HUMAN RIGHTS TRUMP OPPRESSION, International Solidarity Action for…
Sojourn to Justice: Action Report from Guantanamo
From November 22nd through December 1st, a delegation of 14 members of Witness Against Torture–WRLs sibiling organization including three members of WRL–returned to Cuba and brought their demand to shutdown Guantanamo Bay straight to the U.S. naval base and detention center. It’s hard to believe that just 10 years ago, 25 people walked to…
Give the Gift of Peace!
As you plan your gift giving, be sure to visit the WRL store. We’ve got calendars, hats, t-shirts, buttons, books, DVDs, organizing tools and more! 90 Years of Revolutionary Nonviolence: WRL Perpetual Calendar Published in honor of our 90th Anniversary, this beautiful calendar chronicles the 90 year history of WRL with historical notes, posters and…
Week of Action: Countering the Militarisation of Youth!
This week is the 2nd International Week of Action Against the Militarisation of Youth. Join the War Resisters International with nonviolent actions this week and stand against the many ways young people are engaged in wars all around the world! Check out #YouthAgainstWar hashtag on social media and follow WRI on Twitter and Facebook for further updates. Here…
Celebrate GI Resistance on Veteran’s Day
With fifty new troops being deployed to Syria, wars continuing all over and military bases firmly rooted in 662 locations worldwide, we, as antiwar activists we ask ourselves: “What is the human cost?” Occupied people prevented from self-determination due to mass violence and 22 U.S. veteran suicides per day are the systematic and inevitable costs of militarism….
Ending Police Militarization, One City at a Time
Ending Police Militarization, One City at a Time Published on Truthout on Tuesday, 29 September 2015 00:00 By Ana Conner and Tara Tabassi Oakland police participate in Urban Shield training in October 2012. (Photo: San Leandro Privacy / Flickr) Urban Shield, the world’s largest SWAT training and war-weapons expo, was held in September in California’s…
International Activists in Seoul to #StopWarBiz
A letter from our National Organizer, Tara Tabassi: The arms trade is global, but so is our resistance! “Stop. Arms. Trade!!”— the chant is still ringing in my ears as I return to the 339 Lafayette office to see my War Resisters League family after two weeks in Seoul. After repping War Resisters League at…
Remembering Vera B Williams, 1927 – 2015
WRL mourns the passing of Vera B. Williams (1927-2015), award-winning writer, illustrator, and activist, Vera was a longtime member of WRL, serving on the board and creating illustrations for our Peace Calendars and many other materials. Vera, we celebrate your life and remember you always as a comrade in peace. Rest in Power! We’ll post…
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Against All Odds: Press and Coverage
Praise for Against All Odds: “The thesis of Against All Odds: Voices of Popular Struggle in Iraq, should be obvious. But in fact it is revolutionary, at least for people like me, who came up in the U.S. anti-war movement in 2003 and continue to be inundated with media and political images of Iraq as solely a…
Upcoming “Against All Odds” Events
Upcoming Events: Coming Soon . . . Don’t see an event near you? Invite Ali Issa to speak in your community or on your campus by e-mailing: Ali [at] warresisters.org Past Events: Against All Odds: A Night Celebrating Iraq, featuring the Narcicyst June 25th, 2015 – Alwan for the Arts,…
Massive Protest Wave in Iraq Challenges Sectarianism
Latest piece on the protest upsurge in Iraq by WRL’s Ali Issa: “Since a new wave of protest in Iraq — the largest in decades — has forced the Iraqi government to finally begin acknowledging the fundamental problems with the now 12-year-old quota system, Iraqis across sectors and at the grassroots are striving to chart…
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