Category Archives: DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION

Pittsburgh : Black leaders seek ‘city of peace’

. . DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION . .

An article from the Post Gazette

A month ago, a group of African American lawmakers announced an initiative to curb the wave of gun violence and violent crime throughout Allegheny County.

The group, which calls itself the Black Elected Officials Coalition, announced it would begin a series of community events to promote peace in the streets. Democratic state Rep. Ed Gainey, who represents Lincoln-Lemington and is favored to win the Pittsburgh mayoral race next week, acted as the primary spokesman for the group, raising dramatically the expectations for the BEOC’s access to resources and cooperation across bureaucracies.

Mr. Gainey said the lawmakers, in cooperation with partners in government, the nonprofit sphere and law enforcement, would work together with at-risk young people to “create a city of peace” and promote a culture of nonviolence. This is a tall order, but not an impossible one, especially when elected officials are willing to stand behind their work with their names and reputations attached.

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Question related to this article:
 
How can culture of peace be developed at the municipal level?

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Even before BEOC was formed, Pittsburgh City Councilman Ricky Burgess, whose district includes Homewood, East Liberty and Garfield, had been working with Councilman Daniel Lavelle, whose district includes Downtown, the Hill District and Oakland, on the Stop the Violence Trust Fund.
 
Both councilmen are deeply involved in the effort to give $9 million to the Center that CARES, a Hill District nonprofit that deploys a dozen outreach workers to seven neighborhoods where most of the violence has been centered. All studies show that early intervention before neighborhood beefs escalate is the key to curbing conflicts.

This initiative will be one part of the strategy that these elected officials will lean on in the coming years. What BEOC proposes goes far beyond the usual “throw money at the problem and hope for the best.” These are elected officials who understand the nature of the problem and are heartbroken by the disappointing results of previous efforts.

This is too important to be left to law enforcement to figure out. The BEOC believes it has the empathy and motivation required to make this initiative a game changer.

Others on the coalition are Allegheny County Council members Olivia Bennett and DeWitt Walton and state Rep. Jake Wheatley, D-Hill District.

For their willingness to put their names and reputations on the line, the Black Elected Officials Coalition deserves our respect and appreciation. If the coalition succeeds, it will help Pittsburgh to serve all of its people, including those formerly without hope and left to settle scores on their own, in the streets.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, North America

2021 Nanjing Peace Forum successfully concluded and released the “Nanjing Peace Consensus”

. . DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION . .

An article from Teller Report

On October 26, the 2021 Nanjing Peace Forum, which lasted for 3 days, closed. With the theme of “Harmony and Coexistence: Peaceful Coexistence with Nature” this year’s Peace Forum, it discussed in depth “How man and nature can live in peace”.


Getty Image

The “2021 Nanjing Peace Consensus” was released at the closing ceremony, sending an invitation to the world to “build a community of life on earth”.

Xia Zehan, the representative of UNESCO to China, said in his concluding remarks that active peace must include environmental protection, not only for mankind, but also for all life on earth : “We can build a global peace of sharing, mutual benefit and stability in the future.”

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Question related to this article:
 
How can culture of peace be developed at the municipal level?

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This Nanjing Peace Forum conducted a lively and in-depth discussion on the natural environment and human destiny, sustainable development goals and green investment, environmental challenges and youth actions, global green recovery and good business, peace actions and international practices. The “2021 Nanjing Peace Consensus” was passed.

Liu Cheng, head of the Chair of Peace Studies at Nanjing University, and the youth representative Isabel jointly read the “2021 Nanjing Peace Consensus”.

Qin Changwei, Secretary-General of the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO, delivered a closing speech. He suggested that everyone quickly translate the results of this forum into practical actions to promote the noble cause of peace for the benefit of all mankind : “We must seize the day, quickly transform the results of this forum into practical actions, and earnestly implement the “2021 Nanjing Peace Consensus”, starting from me, starting from daily, starting from our own work, bravely exploring, and constantly innovating , Design for peace, work for peace, implement the concept of protecting nature and promoting the harmonious coexistence of man and nature, and encourage more people to join the noble cause of promoting world peace and benefiting all mankind.”
　
Finally, Li Qi, vice chairman of the Nanjing Municipal Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, announced the successful conclusion of the 2021 Nanjing Peace Forum, sending the voice of Nanjing to peace-loving people around the world: “Here we extend an invitation to the world, and welcome more friends who are committed to peace building to join in the construction of Nanjing International Peace City. Let us work together to promote science and technology, education, humanities, innovation and other fields to connect, communicate, and communicate with the world. Mutual sharing.”

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, East Asia

Mexico: Initiative to create the Law of Culture of Peace for the state of Zacatecas presented in the Legislature

.. DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION ..

Un artículo de La Jornada Zacatecas (translation by CPNN)

Deputies from the parliamentary fractions of Morena, the Encuentro Solidario Party (PES), the Green Ecologist Party of Mexico (PVEM), the New Alliance Party and the Labor Party (PT) have presented an initiative to create a Culture of Peace Law before the 64th Legislature of the state of Zacatecas. This needed to address the causes of violence and to guarantee human rights in a transversal and sectoral manner.


Photo from a previous CPNN article on culture of peace in Zacatecas

In their explanatory statement, they indicated that “The State assumes the commitment to guarantee and respect all human rights, and, above all, the right to a dignified life, free from violence, based on solidarity, tolerance and respect.” For this reason, they pointed out, work must be done to ensure the safety of citizens, as well as to promote peace and harmony and to strengthen a responsible social fabric. This can lead to changes that address the social, cultural, economic and political.
causes of violence.

There are various factors that directly affect the manifestation of violence within these areas, the initiative assured, such as lack of education, poverty, gender inequality, lack of decent job opportunities, social inequalities and unattended antisocial behaviors, which have as a consequence family violence, gender violence, child sexual abuse, organized crime, armed movements and the constant violation of human rights both by individuals and by authorities.

In Zacatecas, it was pointed out, despite the prevention actions, violence continues to grow exponentially, therefore, they considered, a normative body must be legislated and created that permanently articulates public policies as a means of solution to the problem posed. Therefore, the deputies point out, the objective of proposing an initiative by which a Law of Culture of Peace is issued for the state of Zacatecas, in order to regulate actions that promote, develop and implement multisectoral and inter-institutional public policies that generate conditions for the full enjoyment of the human right to peace and the promotion of a positive peace in our entity.

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(Click here for the Spanish original of this article)

Questions for this article:

Is there progress towards a culture of peace in Mexico?

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The legislative proposal is aimed at the creation of a State Program that foresees the necessary actions to achieve the implementation of the culture of peace, detecting, attending to and eradicating any manifestation of violence; as well as it seeks to generate the conditions for a full enjoyment of the human right to peace.

The proposed law aims to promote a policy of peace and non-violence through the establishment of a Municipal Council for the Culture of Peace or in the existing dependencies in the municipalities with their respective adjustments, seeking to restore the fabric social and fostering communities of peace. This Council and / or agency would actively participate in the elaboration of the State Program, contributing their opinions and suggestions, proposals and demands on the culture of peace.

“All actions within the law are aimed at complying with what is established in international conventions and treaties, as well as being coordinated with international organizations for the prevention of violence of all its types and a correct implementation of the culture of peace, achieving implement positive peace throughout the state ”, they specified.

For this reason, the need for it to work in a transversal and multisectoral manner, and to seek to address the causes of violence and inequalities, and to guarantee human rights in its actions. Likewise, they concluded, its importance lies in the fact that it makes it possible to understand conflict and peace situations, creating the opportune areas of action so that the new generations, through education, are guided by respect for human rights, dignity, and on all that practice the culture of peace in their day to day, creating new forms of coexistence based on respect, tolerance and solidarity.

The initiative was signed by Armando Delgadillo Ruvalcaba, Priscila Benítez Sánchez, Sergio Ortega Rodríguez, Susana Andrea Barragán Espinosa, Víctor Humberto de la Torre Delgado, Violeta Cerrillo Ortiz, Imelda Mauricio Esparza, Anali Infante Morales, Ernesto González Romo, Maribel Galván Jiménez, members from the National Regeneration Movement Parliamentary Group, Zulema Yunuen Santacruz Márquez and Roxana from the Muñoz González Refuge, from the PES, Georgia Fernanda Miranda Herrera from the Green Ecologist Party, Soralla Bañuelos de la Torre, from Nueva Alianza, José Xerardo Ramírez Muñoz, Ana Luisa Del Muro García and José Luis Figueroa Rangel, from the PT Parliamentary Group.

(Editor’s note: In related developments, Soralla Bañuelos, mentioned above among those proposing the initiative, has also made a plea for a program to exchange war toys for educational toys, arguing that “If we want a healthier childhood, that develops better, we have to work even on the type of toys that are given to them.” Also, the national organization, Comnapaz Mexico, has installed a chapter in Zacatecas, which will support the legislation for a culture of peace, saying that “education is the vaccine that the country requires at this time.”)

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, Latin America

The programs of Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum to reduce violence in Mexico City

.. DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION ..

An article from Infobae

The Head of Government of Mexico City Claudia Sheinbaum, through her Twitter account, has emphasized the social programs that she has implemented during her mandate to improve security conditions.


(Photo: Twitter / @ ClaudiaShain)

The president explained that “security is also the result of social justice, that is why we address the causes of violence with programs that allow access to education, culture and sports.”

She also emphasized the projects that have been the foundations of her government in the capital of the country: the Points of Innovation, Freedom, Art, Education and Knowledge (Pillars), Yes to disarmament, yes to peace, Inside the Neighborhood and Wellbeing for Girls and Boys, My Scholarship to Get Started.

What are social programs to reduce violence?

Barrio Adentro (Inside the Neighborhood)

The program aims to help girls, boys and adolescents in the Historic Center. It consists of going house to house in the neighborhoods where a high number of criminal acts and violence are concentrated.

The Head of Government mentioned that “it is very important to know about this comprehensive intervention that we are going to carry out in the city center. Obviously it will take all health measures. It addresses the difficult situation that many children and adolescents experience in the particular area where the ‘Barrio Adentro’ program is being carried out.”

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(Click here for the Spanish original of this article)

Questions for this article:

How can culture of peace be developed at the municipal level?

Is there progress towards a culture of peace in Mexico?

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The four fundamental axes of this project are: incorporating minors into social programs and government support, the second is training and education, cultural, recreational and sports activities and the fourth point is prevention actions and monitoring of needs that are seen in each of the properties.

The Pillars

The Points of Innovation, Freedom, Art, Education, and Knowledge are intended for the Mexico City Government to develop a better society that implements freedom for young people. The program is present in the 16 municipalities.

The fundamental axis of this program is to give young people access to their rights. The project helps people who did not have access to education including those who were involved in criminal practices and did not have opportunities to return to school. Classes of different knowledge are given such as theater, dance, cooking, computing, biology, astronomy, music, robotics, electricity, painting, photography, plumbing, writing, and business entrepreneurship , among others.

Wellbeing for Girls and Boys. My Scholarship to Get Started

The scholarship program for basic education helps to eliminate some of the conditions that generate inequality in educational services. In this way the government contributes to guaranteeing equal opportunities, the right to education, as well as the eradication of social discrimination due to socioeconomic problems.

Yes to disarmament, yes to peace

The eradication of weapons is the main driver of this government project. It highlights the strategy against violence by preventing accidents and loss of life.

In different parts of the city there are modules so that people who possess weapons can exchange them for cash.

The Ministries of Government and Citizen Security of Mexico City and National Defense are in charge of destroying the weapons that are delivered in each module.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, Latin America

France: The best mayor in the world is in Montpellier, it is Philippe Rio, mayor of Grigny

. . DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION . .

An article and video by Le Mouvement

This Wednesday, October 13, in the council chamber of the Town Hall of Montpellier, the first national forum of the AFCDRP (Association of Mayors for Peace, France) took place, in the presence of its President Philippe Rio.


[VIDEO] Philippe Rio, Mayor of Grigny, Vice-President of the Greater Paris Sud agglomeration and President of AFCDRP-Mayors for Peace France

Working in a factory at age 16, before getting an education at Sciences Po, Philippe Rio became mayor of Grigny in the first round in 2014, as again in 2020. Last September, he was chosen as best mayor in the world by the London association “ City Mayors Foundation ”to reward his management of the Covid crisis, and his fight against poverty in his city. His mantra is the same as that of Nelson Mandela: “Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world.” But he adds an important clarification:” education for a culture of peace. ”

AFCDRP? The AFCDRP-Maires pour la Paix France is the French Association of Municipalities, Departments and Regions for Peace. It represents the French branch of the international network “Mayors for Peace,” including: Mayors for Peace. A movement founded by the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In 1991, the organization was registered as an NGO with special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

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(Click here for the French version of this article)

Question related to this article:
 
How can culture of peace be developed at the municipal level?

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Question to Philippe Rio: How can cities weave a true culture of peace? You were elected best mayor in the world thanks to your management of the Covid crisis, and your fight against poverty.

Philippe Rio: The “Mayors for Peace” aim to contribute to the establishment of world peace, by arousing the interest of the citizens of the world for the total abolition of nuclear weapons, through close solidarity between its member cities. And also: by aiming to solve vital problems, such as famine and poverty, the plight of refugees, human rights violations and environmental degradation. Worldwide, 8,047 cities are members of “Mayors for Peace. ”

“The fate of the City”

We must “look further” to organize “the fate of the City. “Joseph Mayoral, mayor of Granollers in Spain explains it thus:” we have to install a new type of governance based on proximity […] the only possible way is a dialogue with our citizens. “One of the processes for successfully disseminating the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) for safe and resilient territories: the 17 goals to be achieved by 2030 to save the world.

“A small piece of land which must try to work in its own way for the problems of the big Earth”

Montpellier is now a member of “Mayors for Peace”, the tree that survived the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, a Ginkgo biloba was planted to symbolize this belonging. Michaël Delafosse marked the city’s attachment to “this very important network,” with “the awareness that the metropolis of Montpellier is a small piece of land which must try to work in its own way for the problems of the great Earth. We are facing the challenge of climate change, and when big cities enter into transition decisively, they can mitigate the great peril that we encounter in the 21st century. We must work collectively, so that actions go beyond words and speeches.

(Editor’s note : A video of the entire forum is available here and a longer interview with Mayor Rio is available here.)

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, Europe

Mexico: Saltillo promotes the culture of peace

.. DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION ..

An article from El Siglo de Torreon (translation by CPNN)

The present administration headed by Manolo Jiménez, through the DIF system has replicated the theme of the culture of peace throughout the city, achieving a positive focus so that, with the daily actions of citizens, they reflect a peaceful way of life, and they reject the cycles of violence and negativity.

Taking into account the above, we are working on the Mano Cadena program whose main objective was to create, implement and disseminate preventive strategies for conflict resolution that promote a culture of peace.

In this way, collaboration agreements were signed with the Judicial Branch, the Attorney General’s Office and the Secretary of Education of Coahuila for the creation and implementation of school and Municipal Mediation Centers in the Community Centers.

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(Click here for the Spanish original of this article)

Questions for this article:

How can culture of peace be developed at the municipal level?

Is there progress towards a culture of peace in Mexico?

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With the support and advice of Facilitators belonging to the Judicial Branch, the Attorney General’s Office and the DIF Saltillo, more than 138 information and awareness talks have been given on the subject of alternative justice, 30 workshops were held on Peace Circles, activities of pacification as 70 peace lotteries, and 160 “Peace Craftsmen” recognitions were awarded to male and female teachers.

Three university forums on Alternative Justice were held with 187 participants, four Peace Congresses with more than two thousand participants and a thousand School and Community Mediation Manuals were created, edited and printed in collaboration with the Attorney General’s Office, the State Judiciary de Coahuila, the Ministry of Education, Empresa Constructora de Paz, AC, and Grupo Educativo Inglés de Saltillo SC

In addition, more than 50 training courses-workshops in community, school and alternative justice mediation have been given to more than 1,800 participants, community representatives, teachers, and 88 of both have been certified as mediators and mediators before the Judicial Branch of the State of Coahuila.

In the present administration, three School Mediation Centers were opened in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Community Mediation Centers located in Community Centers, in collaboration with the Judicial Power, within which the Public Defenders provide their services to the community, fruit of the collaboration agreement made with the State Institute of Public Defender, within the framework of the “Convenio Mano-Cadena”.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, Latin America

“Week for Peace 2021” Initiative for the consolidation of peace in Colombia

. . HUMAN RIGHTS . .

An article from Area Cucuta

The increase in femicides, domestic violence, murders against social leaders and the growth of poverty, indicates that the struggle in Colombia to achieve a healthy territory is still a challenge. For this reason, it is important that between September 5 and 12, version 34 of the “Week for Peace” will be held. The initiative of peace-building organizations of Colombian civil society, has, since 1987, made visible the daily effort of people , collectives and institutions that work in the construction and consolidation of peace, the redignification of the victims, the care and respect of life in and from the regions of the country.

The initiative invites people to find ways of reunion and solidarity for reconciliation with life and biodiversity. It includes the participation of the Truth Commission, National Secretariat for Social Pastoral, United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia, Center for Memory, Peace and Reconciliation (CMPR), Redepaz, Universidad Javeriana, the National Network of Regional Development Programs and Paz (Redprodepaz) and for the fourth consecutive year Compensar, among other organizations. The slogan is “The Truth we can !”
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(click here for the article in Spanish.).)

Question related to this article:

Truth Commissions, Do they improve human rights?

Can festivals help create peace at the community level?

What is happening in Colombia, Is peace possible?

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According to statistics from the Database of Collective Actions for Peace (Datapaz) of the Center for Popular Research and Education (CINEP / PPP), this is the month that historically presents the highest levels of mobilization and that between 1987 and 2016, most of the mobilizations (86%) were oriented to the promotion of peace. For this reason, this year it emphasizes the practices developed by individuals, groups, families, social organizations and communities, focused on truth and reconciliation. It shows how people organize themselves to re-signify and overcome the factors that generate violence, enable peaceful coexistence and commit all the actors in the conflict and civil society in improving the living conditions of the community.

“We are convinced that reconciliation is the best way to rebuild the social fabric, in a year impacted by the pandemic and by historical social demands. For this reason, in order to make visible the different collective initiatives of integral well-being that are had, Compensar is committed to the development of the country with different programs to attend early childhood in rural territories, complementary school days in Bogotá, Soacha, Caparrapí, Yacopí, La Palma and La Peña or programs for the elderly in Caparrapí. In this way, it will be possible to consolidate a culture of peace ”, assured Margarita Añez, director of Compensar’s Welfare and Social Development Unit.

In this line, the Week for Peace aims to describe the main tasks of peacebuilding and defense of human rights that must be promoted at the moment in the country, in accordance with the moment of legitimate social protest that Colombia is experiencing, the The Covid-19 pandemic, the final report that the Truth Commission has been preparing, and the progress and difficulties in the implementation of the Peace Agreement, both in public institutions and in civil groups of ex-combatants, victims and society in general. .

In this way, it will be recognized as a process that requires commitments and agreements, which are woven in a differential and multiscale way from the different social, community and territorial processes committed to the defense of human rights, human dignity and the comprehensive implementation of the agreement. of peace, having as a fundamental axis the work carried out by the Truth Commission.

Thus, the formation of a more equitable society will be achieved for the construction of a plural, participatory and lasting peace, with a view to national reconciliation.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION, HUMAN RIGHTS, Latin America

Toumodi, Ivory Coast: Community leaders trained in the culture of peace

. . DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION . .

An article from Abidjan.net

Heads of village, community and associations of women and young people of the department of Toumodi participated, Wednesday, September 1, 2021, in an awareness-raising workshop on the culture of peace and living together initiated by the National Program for Social Cohesion (PNCS).


© AIP By DR (Click on image to enlarge)

Questions related to this article:

How should elections be organized in a true democracy?

Can a culture of peace be achieved in Africa through local indigenous training and participation?

“For us, it is about sensitizing communities to the culture of living together in order to contribute to the consolidation of peace through the establishment of community income-generating activities”, explained the director general of the PNCS, Arsène Kouassi.

Toumodi is one of the six localities in the country chosen to host these workshops, because of the violence that punctuated the last presidential elections there. “Toumodi has had difficult times, but tensions have eased now. This workshop will help us build trust between populations,” explained the third deputy mayor, Célestin Sialou.

(Click here for the original French version of this article.)

Africa, DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION

United States Conference of Mayors Calls on the United States to Welcome the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and to Act Now to Prevent Nuclear War and Eliminate Nuclear Weapons

DISARMAMENT & SECURITY .

An article from Pressenza (reprinted by permission)

At the close of its 89th Annual Meeting, held virtually due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, on August 31, 2021, the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) Executive Committee unanimously adopted a bold new resolution Calling on the United States to Welcome the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons [TPNW] and to Act Now to Prevent Nuclear War and Eliminate Nuclear Weapons.


The resolution calls on the United States government “to welcome the Treaty as a positive step towards negotiation of a comprehensive agreement on the achievement and permanent maintenance of a world free of nuclear weapons.” It continues: “The United States Conference of Mayors welcomes the June 16, 2021 Joint Statement by President Biden and Russian President Putin in which they ‘reaffirm the principle that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought’; and calls on the Biden Administration to reduce nuclear tensions through intensive diplomatic efforts with Russia and China, and to actively pursue a verifiable agreement among nuclear-armed states to eliminate their nuclear arsenals in conformity with requirements of international law preceding the TPNW by decades.”

Observing that, “according to a report by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, in 2020, the nine nuclear-armed states spent $72.6 billion on nuclear weapons, with the U.S. leading at $37.4 billion, or $70,881 per minute,” the USCM resolution opens with a stark warning from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists:

WHEREAS, on January 27, 2021, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced it is keeping the hands of its Doomsday Clock at 100 seconds to midnight, the closest we’ve ever been to global annihilation, stating: “By our estimation, the potential for the world to stumble into nuclear war-an ever-present danger over the last 75 years-increased in 2020,” and noting: “the existential threats of nuclear weapons and climate change have intensified in recent years because of a threat multiplier: the continuing corruption of the information ecosphere on which democracy and public decision-making depend…[T]he COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call.”

The USCM resolution underscores that “tensions between the United States and Russia and between the United States and China have increased dramatically, with flashpoints in Ukraine and Taiwan that could potentially spawn nuclear confrontations.”

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Question related to this article:
 
Can we abolish all nuclear weapons?

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The USCM expresses its concern that “President Biden’s budget request for Fiscal Year 2022 increases military expenditures by $11 billion and extends funding for all nuclear warhead and delivery system upgrades in his predecessor’s budget, as well as its massive investment in the nuclear weapons infrastructure, to project nuclear weapons research, development, production, and deployment well into the 21st century, in violation of United States disarmament obligations under the 1970 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.”

The USCM resolution reports that “the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) entered into force on January 22, 2021, prohibiting the development, acquisition, possession, use or threat of use of nuclear weapons for those countries that have ratified it.” But it points out that, “while the TPNW represents the total repudiation of nuclear weapons by most of the states that do not possess them, the United States, the eight other nuclear-armed states and almost all of the countries under the U.S. nuclear umbrella boycotted the negotiations and have not joined the treaty.”

The USCM makes several concrete policy recommendations in its new resolution:

“call[ing] on the Biden Administration to fully incorporate United States obligations regarding non-use and elimination of nuclear weapons under international law into its forthcoming Nuclear Posture Review”;

“call[ing] on the President and Congress to cancel the plan to replace the entire U.S. nuclear arsenal with enhanced weapons and to redirect funds currently allocated to nuclear weapons and unwarranted military spending to address decades of inaction on infrastructure, poverty, the growing climate crisis, and rising inequality”; and

“call[ing] on the President and Congress to elevate arms control and disarmament as a federal priority by reestablishing the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency.”

As recognized in the resolution, “Mayors for Peace, founded in 1982 and led by the Mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, is working for a world without nuclear weapons, safe and resilient cities, and a culture of peace, as essential measures for the realization of lasting world peace;” and “Mayors for Peace has grown to 8,043 cities in 165 countries and regions, with 219 U.S. members, representing in total over one billion people.”

Noting that, “The United States Conference of Mayors has unanimously adopted Mayors for Peace resolutions for sixteen consecutive years,” the USCM “urges all of its members to join Mayors for Peace to help reach the goal of 10,000 member cities.”

The 2021 USCM resolution was sponsored by Mayors for Peace U.S. Vice-President Frank Cownie, Mayor of Des Moines, Iowa, and co-sponsored by Nan Whaley, Mayor of Dayton, Ohio and current President of the USCM; Steve Benjamin, Mayor of Columbia, South Carolina and past President of the USCM; Patrick L. Wojahn, Mayor of College Park, Maryland; Roy D. Buol, Mayor of Dubuque, Iowa; J. Christian Bollwage, Mayor of Elizabeth, New Jersey; Jon Mitchell, Mayor of New Bedford, Massachusetts; and William Peduto, Mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The United States Conference of Mayors  is the official nonpartisan association of more than 1,400 American cities with populations over 30,000. Resolutions Adopted at annual meetings become USCM official policy.

Click here for the full text of the resolution.

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, DISARMAMENT & SECURITY, North America

58 Years After Historic Rally, Thousands March on Washington for Voting Rights, DC Statehood

. HUMAN RIGHTS .

An article by Julia Conley from Common Dreams (licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). to republish and share widely)

A summer marked by rallies, motorcades, and pressure campaigns targeting lawmakers standing in the way of voting rights legislation culminated on Saturday in the 2021 March on Washington, where thousands demanded that Congress pass far-reaching measures to protect and expand the right to vote. 
Demonstrators traveled  from across the country to mark the 58th anniversary of the historic 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

As groups including the Poor People’s Campaign, Stand Up America, and Public Citizen have for months, thousands of protesters called on Congress to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and to eliminate the legislative filibuster to do so if necessary.

The  For the People Act  would grant statehood to Washington, D.C.; ban partisan gerrymandering; implement automatic voter registration for federal elections, and take other major steps to expand voting rights.
 

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Questions related to this article:

The struggle for human rights, is it gathering force in the USA?

How should elections be organized in a true democracy?

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The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would restore full anti-discrimination protections to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
 
Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, co-chair of the Poor People’s Campaign, was among  those who spoke  at the event—officially  called  “March On for Washington and Voting Rights”—as well as Reps. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) and Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.), relatives of the late Rep. John Lewis, and family members of George Floyd.
 
Addressing the crowd about statehood for Washington, D.C., Barber said the district’s nearly 700,000 residents have “been robbed” for more than 200 years.
 
“I didn’t say a thief came in,”  said  the reverend. “A thief is different than a robber. A thief is sneaky. But a robber takes your rights right in front of you.”
 
While right-wing Democrats including Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) are threatening the passage of far-reaching voting rights legislation with their support for the filibuster and claims that the bills are too “partisan,” Republican state legislators have  introduced  more than 360 bills restricting the right to vote, and dozens are moving towards passage. 
 
Speakers including the Rev. Liz Theoharis, who co-chairs the Poor People’s Campaign with Barber, connected ongoing attacks on voting rights to the climate emergency, economic justice, and the recent actions of the right wing-led Supreme Court—which gutted the Voting Rights Act in 2013 and this week  blocked  the Biden administration’s extended eviction moratorium.

“We must protest, we must rally, we must organize and mobilize and sit in and stand up,” said Theoharis. “Not just for a day. Not just for a summer. But until all people are housed, until all people are fed, until all people earn a living wage.”

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION, HUMAN RIGHTS, North America