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The Sisters of St. Francis are hiring for three full-time positions within the Franciscan Peace Center and the Communications department. Please share with your networks!
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ACTIVE NONVIOLENCE AND PEACEMAKING |
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TAKE ACTION: No More Weapons to Saudi Arabia
President Biden claims to have halted U.S. participation and weapons sales to Saudi Arabia for "offensive" purposes. But the U.S. military continues to provide logistical information and spare parts for the weapons being used against the people of Yemen. And now the White House proposes a $650 million sale of supposedly defensive weapons to Saudi Arabia. RootsAction urges us to tell our lawmakers to end all weapons sales to Saudi Arabia. TAKE ACTION
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‘Ghost Guns’: Firearm Kits Bought Online Fuel Epidemic of Violence
They are untraceable, assembled from parts, and can be ordered by gang members, felons, and even children. They are increasingly the lethal weapon of easy access around the U.S., but especially in California where their proliferation has reached epidemic proportions. Over the past 18 months, ghost guns accounted for 25 to 50 percent of firearms recovered at crime scenes. The vast majority of suspects caught with them were legally prohibited from having guns. MORE
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Motives, Benefits, and Sacred Values: Examining the Psychology of Nonviolent Action and Violent Extremism
What motivates one person to engage in acts of violent extremism, while others choose to pursue change through nonviolent action? A new report examines the psychological and social dynamics of a nonviolent resistance group—Algeria’s Hirak movement—to attain a deeper understanding of these dynamics. It is hoped the research will help support paths away from violent extremism and to strengthen and sustain engagement in nonviolent action. MORE
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New Report Shows Impact of Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty on Nuclear Weapons Business
A new report has found that the number of banks, pension funds, asset managers, and insurance companies investing in the production of nuclear weapons has gone down in 2021, and shows significant drops in the shareholder values of investments in the 25 companies involved in nuclear weapon production around the world. MORE
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Vatican Secretary of State Calls For 'Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons'
Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, this week called for a "total elimination of nuclear weapons," which he described as "a moral and humanitarian imperative." His words echoed that of Francis, who during his November 2019 visit to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan — where more than 100,000 civilians were killed after the United States detonated atomic bombs — the pope called for "a world of peace, free from nuclear weapons." MORE
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Advocates To Democrats: Build Back Better by Giving the Undocumented Green Cards
Immigrant advocates are pushing for undocumented immigrants who were in the United States before 2010 to receive green cards. A current bill would give undocumented immigrants a work permit and a 10-year reprieve from deportation. But advocates say immigrants need a path to citizenship, not a temporary measure. MORE
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Record Number of Immigrants Funneled into Alternative Detention Programs
Since the beginning of 2021, the number of foreign nationals granted an alternative to immigration detention has grown from 86,000 to 136,026. This is the highest number of individuals enrolled in the program’s history. Instead, an electronic surveillance program is used that monitors immigrants in removal proceedings through a mix of home and field office visits, court tracking, and electronic surveillance. MORE
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US Citizenship Naturalizations Rebound After Pandemic Dip
Some 855,000 people became naturalized U.S. citizens in fiscal year 2021, the highest number in more than a decade. The record number of naturalizations came after pandemic-related office closures caused service disruptions. MORE
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TAKE ACTION: End Fossil Fuel Leasing
The Biden administration has just offered for sale more than 80 million acres of offshore drilling leases to the fossil fuel industry. Oil from this lease sale will take 15 years before the first gallons reach gas pumps — while locking us into decades of continued dependence on dirty fossil fuels. EarthJustice urges us to tell the Biden administration to overhaul the federal fossil fuel program and end new fossil fuel leasing. TAKE ACTION
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Fossil Fuel Lobbyists Have Larger Presence at COP26 Than Any Single Country
A coalition of watchdog groups estimated that fossil fuel industry representatives had a larger presence at COP26 than officials from any single country, a finding that further intensified environmentalists' concerns about the legitimacy of the high-stakes climate summit. After pouring over a 1,600-page United Nations list of approved COP26 attendees, an analysis showed at least 503 fossil fuel lobbyists were admitted to the summit in Glasgow, Scotland. MORE
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Negotiators Strike a Climate Deal, but World Remains Far from Limiting Warming
Diplomats from nearly 200 countries last week struck a major agreement aimed at intensifying global efforts to fight climate change. The new deal will not, on its own, solve global warming, despite the urgent demands of many of the thousands of politicians, environmentalists, and protesters who gathered at the Glasgow climate summit. The deal still leaves vulnerable countries far short of the funds they need to cope with increasing weather disasters. MORE
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EU Accuses Belarus of 'Trafficking' Migrants Toward Border
European Union officials have accused Belarus of state-sponsored "trafficking” of human lives by luring desperate migrants to the Polish border — the edge of the EU — where many are now stuck in makeshift camps in freezing weather. The West has accused Belarus President Lukashenko of encouraging migrants from the Middle East to travel to his country and sending them toward the EU to retaliate against sanctions imposed on the authoritarian regime. MORE
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Mississippians Can Report Suspected Human Trafficking on New Website
Mississippi has launched an anti-human trafficking website aimed at supporting victims and providing citizens with a way to report suspected trafficking. In 2020, there were 214 reports of suspected human trafficking in Mississippi; 210 were sex trafficking reports and eight were sex and/or labor trafficking reports. Of the cases, 202 victims were reported as being potential minors. MORE
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DRC’s Cobalt Mines: The Dark Side of the Green Transport Transition
Electric vehicles (EVs) are often presented as a solution for reducing carbon emissions, but a closer look at the green transport industry’s supply chains reveals some concerning trends for human rights. A recent investigation points to probable links between EV manufacturers and several industrial cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where workers face serious exploitation. MORE
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT |
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Ethiopia: Blocking Tigray Aid Harms Rape Survivors
The Ethiopian government’s blocking of aid, with health facilities in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region destroyed, is preventing sexual violence survivors from getting post-rape care. Human Rights Watch reports that the government’s effective siege of Tigray since June is doubly victimizing survivors by denying them critical medical and psychosocial – mental health – support. MORE
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Tennis Player Peng Shuai Missing After Accusing Chinese Official of Sexual Assault
Some of the world's top tennis players are raising concerns regarding the whereabouts of former doubles champion Peng Shuai after she accused a Chinese official of sexual assault. In a since-deleted post from Nov. 2 on her Weibo microblog, Peng alleged that former vice premier Zhang Gaoli coerced her into sex several years ago. Peng, 35, has not been seen in public or heard from directly since making the accusation. MORE
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HUMAN RIGHTS AND INCOME INEQUALITY |
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TAKE ACTION: Tax Billionaires to Pay for Essential Build Back Better Housing Programs
Essential housing provisions are at risk of being cut from the Build Back Better Act. Cutting housing vouchers for those most in need when America’s 700+ billionaires saw their wealth skyrocket by $2.1 trillion over the first 19 months of the pandemic makes no sense. The Coalition on Human Needs urges us to tell Congress to keep housing assistance in the Build Back Better plan and that we pay for it by making the rich and corporations pay their fair share. TAKE ACTION
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UN: Afghanistan Facing the ‘Worst Humanitarian Disaster We’ve Ever Seen’
The economic shock and resultant humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan are reaching unprecedented levels, with 23 million people facing acute hunger and 97% of the country's 38 million residents on the brink of poverty. Rising hunger and sinking temperatures will likely leave 3.2 million Afghan children suffering from acute malnutrition and one million at risk of death, the World Health Organization reports. MORE
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Julius Jones is scheduled to be executed on November 18 by the state of Oklahoma for the murder of Paul Howell. Please hold Julius, Paul, their families, and the people of Oklahoma in prayer. TAKE ACTION
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