ACTIVE NONVIOLENCE AND PEACEMAKING |
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TAKE ACTION: Stop War Profiteering - Ban Members of Congress from Trading Defense Contractor Stocks
Members of Congress have at least 108 investments in 16 major defense contractors, including all of the top 10 companies by defense revenue. In fact, at least 47 members of Congress and their spouses own up to $6.7 million worth of defense contractor stocks -- stocks that see massive returns during wartime. Take It Back urges us to sign their petition to demand a total and complete ban on all defense stock trading by members of Congress. TAKE ACTION
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Creativity Abounds: Nonviolent Cities in 2022
The Nonviolent Cities Project connects local communities who want to end violence and promote nonviolent solutions in their towns and cities. In 2022, local organizers are working on a wide range of projects. From community gardens to address hunger and food deserts to efforts to divest city funds from weapons and fossil fuels, Nonviolent Cities Project organizers are actively building the big vision of a nonviolent community. MORE
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Why America Overlooks Those Most Hurt by Gun Violence: ‘Black People Are Seen as Expendable’
In the first year of the pandemic, homicides throughout the US increased by 30%. As usual, the impact of the rise in violence has been most felt in America’s Black and brown communities. Homicides in 2020 were concentrated among Black Americans who, despite making up 14% of the population, represented more than half of the 2020 victims. And yet media coverage of the gun violence crisis still rarely acknowledges Black and Latino men as its primary victims. MORE
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Trust But Verify: How to Get There by Using Next-Generation Nuclear Verification and Warhead Dismantlement Techniques
The next generation of arms control agreements may require new verification tools to achieve ambitious objectives, such as including all nuclear weapons—deployed or non-deployed, strategic or non-strategic—and nuclear warhead dismantlement. Physics can play a key role. MORE
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US Defense Secretary Being Regularly Briefed on Any Potential Russian Nuclear Moves
The US military is keeping a constant watch on Russia's nuclear arsenal as the war in Ukraine continues and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is being briefed two or three times a week by the top US general who oversees US nuclear weapons and defenses, according to multiple defense officials. The sources stressed it is still unlikely that Russian President Vladimir Putin would use any kind of nuclear weapon and one of the sources put the chances of use at around 1%. MORE
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Why The Ukraine War Does Not Mean More Countries Should Seek Nuclear Weapons
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many observers have concluded that the war offers a clear demonstration of the benefits of a nuclear arsenal. Nonproliferation expert Jeffrey W. Knopf writes that we should not be so quick to embrace this lesson. MORE
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TAKE ACTION: Welcome All Refugees
The suffering that comes from war and violence doesn't discriminate, and neither should our immigration system. The Interfaith Immigration Coalition urges us to raise our voices to advocate for a compassionate response to all people seeking safety. TAKE ACTION
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U.K. Plan to Fly Asylum-Seekers to Rwanda Draws Outrage
Britain announced a deal with Rwanda last week to send some asylum-seekers thousands of miles to the East African country — a plan it said would stop people-smugglers sending desperate migrants on treacherous journeys across the English Channel. U.K. opposition politicians and refugee groups condemned the move as inhumane, unworkable, and a waste of public money, and the United Nations said it raised "a number of human rights concerns." MORE
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Caught In Feud Between Texas and White House, Migrants Arrive in Washington, D.C.
Texas officials have begun busing migrants who have been processed and released by immigration officials to Washington, D.C., part of Gov. Greg Abbott's protest against U.S. border policies. The trip was voluntary, but the migrants felt it was the only way to get out of Texas. MORE
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TAKE ACTION: Support Environmental Justice for People Who Live in “Cancer Alley”
In St. James Parish, Louisiana, the air is choked with life-threatening pollution from massive petrochemical plants crowding the riverside community. Area residents have lost so many loved ones to the unhealthful air that they now refer to the region as “Cancer Alley.” The Sisters of St. Francis and Rise St. James urge us to sign a petition to help prevent additional plants from being built and further endangering the lives of the people who live there. TAKE ACTION
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Climate Change Will Transform How We Live, But These Tech and Policy Experts See Reason for Optimism
It’s easy to feel pessimistic when scientists around the world are warning that climate change has advanced so far, it’s now inevitable that societies will either transform themselves or be transformed. But as two of the authors of a recent international climate report, there is also reason for optimism. MORE
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Infuriating Climate Activists, Biden Expands Oil Drilling on Public Land
In a move that could help temper high gasoline prices, President Joe Biden is bringing back leases for oil and gas drilling on federal land -- a reversal of a 2020 campaign promise that has angered climate activists. The administration plans to put 144,000 acres of land up for lease in nine states immediately as Biden faces massive pressure to boost oil production in the U.S. amid soaring prices partly from the war in Ukraine, what Biden calls "Putin's price hike." MORE
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Forced Labor Has Become A “Profitable Venture” for the Chinese Communist Party
Human rights activists have appealed to the U.S. government to be strict in its enforcement of the ban on products made with forced labor in the Uyghur region. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which is set to go into effect in June, will shift the burden of proof to U.S. companies for products linked to the region. MORE
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U.S. Child Trafficking Victim-Turned-Lawyer Tells Story of Hope
Antonio Salazar-Hobson was the 11th of 14 children living as migrant farmworkers in Arizona. At age four, he was kidnapped by his neighbors, sexually abused, and eventually trafficked at a California holiday guest ranch. As a teen, he became connected with Cesar Chavez, who took Antonio under his wing and positively changed the trajectory of his life. MORE
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT |
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Landmark Forced Marriage & Sexual Violence Bill Passes in Indonesia
Last week, Indonesia finally passed a long-awaited sexual violence bill that finally outlaws forced marriage in the country, “signaling a new beginning” in Indonesia. The bill includes hefty prison sentences for physical sexual abuse crimes, assault, and harassment and also addresses forced marriage and child marriage. This is a momentous piece of legislation that had been stuck in the legislature since 2016, due in part to conservative resistance. MORE
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New Study Explores Intimate Partner Violence as Precursor to Suicide
Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a precursor to 6.1% of all suicides, according to a new study. Most available research on IPV and suicide focuses on homicide-suicides, which is when an individual kills another person before taking their own life. This study was about the role of IPV in single suicides, which is when a suicide is not connected to other violent deaths. Single suicides are the most common type of fatal violence in the United States. MORE
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HUMAN RIGHTS AND INCOME INEQUALITY |
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Soaring Crude Prices Make the Cost of Pretty Much Everything Else Go Up Too Because We Almost Literally Eat Oil
The price of oil has been spiking in recent weeks in response to the war in Ukraine. Of course, this has pushed up the cost of gasoline. But it’s less well understood how rising energy prices leak into the prices consumers pay for toys, electronics, food, and almost every other product you could think of. Energy is becoming one of the main causes of inflation. The latest data shows prices are rising at an annualized pace of 7.9%, the highest in 40 years. MORE
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Unaffordable Insulin Endangers Lives
The US government’s failure to ensure equal and affordable access to insulin violates the right to health for people with diabetes and regularly leads to tragic consequences for many of them. Exorbitant insulin prices and inadequate health insurance coverage can cause people to pay high out-of-pocket costs for insulin, contributing to dangerous and potentially lethal medicine rationing disproportionately affecting socially and economically marginalized groups. MORE
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Oscar Smith is scheduled to be executed on April 21 by the state of Tennessee for the murders of Judy Smith, Jason Burnett, and Chad Burnett. Please hold Oscar, Judy, Jason, Chad, their families, and the people of Tennessee in prayer. TAKE ACTION
Carl Buntion is scheduled to be executed on April 21 by the state of Texas for the murder of James Irby. Please hold Carl, James, their families, and the people of Texas in prayer. TAKE ACTION
Melissa Lucio is scheduled to be executed on April 27 by the state of Texas for the murder of Mariah Alvarez. Please hold Melissa, Mariah, their families, and the people of Texas in prayer. TAKE ACTION
Richard Moore is scheduled to be executed on April 29 by the state of South Carolina for the murder of James Mahoney. Please hold Richard, James, their families, and the people of South Carolina in prayer. TAKE ACTION
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