Peaceable Assembly Campaign: Phases of the Campaign

Download Campaign Phases in Word
Download Campaign Phases in PDF

PEACEABLE ASSEMBLY CAMPAIGN:
AN INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE & PHASES OF THE CAMPAIGN

Voices for Creative Nonviolence is initiating a nationwide Peaceable Assembly Campaign which seeks an end to the U.S. wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan and an end to U.S. support for the continued occupation of the Palestinian territories.

The national Peaceable Assembly Campaign further develops work initiated by close Voices friends and allies, (especially Nashville Greenlands in Tennessee), to whom this project is tied.

The Peaceable Assembly Campaign consists of three phases:

September 1 though January 10:

We will emphasize developing local campaign committees and establishing contacts with the offices of Congressional Representatives and Senators, thus laying the groundwork for lobbying efforts and town hall meetings, as well as participation in the “Days of Nonviolent Resistance” in January 2010. We will try to systematically build on relationships developed during previous campaigns, (e.g., The Occupation Project), to encourage involvement in this one, and also engage in coalition building with other national and local organizations.

During the first ten days of October, actions will be organized in Washington, D.C. to mark the eighth year since the U.S. invaded Afghanistan. Voices fully commits to assist in organizing for and participating in these actions.

Note: On September 8th, The House and the Senate return from a month long recess. On October 30th, Congress is scheduled to adjourn for two months.

In September, the Senate will most likely pass the FY 2010 Department of Defense (DOD) appropriations bill, with $130 billion for defense spending in Iraq and Afghanistan. The House and Senate will then appoint conferees to write a final DOD appropriations bill and will most likely pass this bill by the end of September or early October.

January 11th through January 19th:
Witness Against Torture

The Peaceable Assembly Campaign encourages participation in Witness Against Torture actions, pressing President Obama and Congress to close Guantanamo, Bagram and other detention facilities established as part of the so-called “war on terror” under President Bush and pressing for full U.S. compliance with all international treaties regarding the treatment of prisoners.

January 19th through February 2nd:
Days of Nonviolent Resistance at the White House

We invite and encourage you to join us in Washington, D.C. for two weeks of daily nonviolent civil disobedience / civil resistance at the White House to press for the complete end to the U.S. wars and military presence in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. We will also press for an end to U.S. support for Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories.

President Obama begins his second year in office on January 19th. It is a time to hold him and his administration accountable for continued U.S. military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan; to press for a just resolution of the conflict in Israel – Palestine; and to seek the closure of all detention facilities operated by the U.S. in the war formerly known as the global war on terror.

President Obama’s first State of the Union address will likely take place during this two-week period. This provides an opportunity to emphasize the shared responsibility of Congress and the President to end the wars and to provide full funding for reconstruction of public infrastructure in Iraq and Afghanistan.

By law, President Obama is required to submit his budget for Fiscal Year 2011 to Congress by February 2 (though Congress could extend the deadline). This budget will almost certainly include additional funds to wage wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan and to continue U.S. military operations in Iraq.

February through July 2010: Legislative Work

Congress will begin work on the budget for Fiscal Year 2011 (which begins on October 1, 2010). The first step will be the budget resolution, which sets broad legislative parameters for the budget. The second step will be crafting and passage of the various Authorization bills, which are policy statements of Congress that create the authority to appropriate funds for specific purposes (though funds are not actually appropriated at this time). The third step will be the crafting and passage of the actual appropriations bills in which Congress appropriates monies for specific purposes and states how the funds can be expended by the various agencies.

In March, Congress will most likely pass the budget resolution act, stating how much Congress expects to expend and what the sources of revenue will be. Before the end of April, various departments, including the DOD and the Dept. of State will submit budget justification materials to Congress.

The time frame for passage of the Defense Authorization Act for FY 2011 is most likely during April – May, 2010. The Armed Services committees of the House and the Senate craft this bill. It authorizes the DOD (and other agencies/departments) to carry out certain activities and attaches a dollar amount to each activity, but it doesn’t say “write the check.”

The Congress will most likely vote on the DOD Appropriations bill in late June or mid-July, 2010. The appropriations bill says, “OK, money has been authorized for a program, now here’s the checkbook, start writing the checks.”

This will be the time to engage in legislative work in our home Congressional districts and states. The months from February through July will be an essential time to do legislative work in our home Congressional districts and states. As the appropriations bills begin to work their ways through Congress, the Peaceable Assembly Campaign will engage in both legal and extralegal (nonviolent civil disobedience/civil resistance) lobbying efforts to obtain commitments from Representatives and Senators to:

*actively support and vote for measures which will eliminate any further funding for the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan,

*provide full funding for efforts to rebuild the public infrastructure in these countries, and

*substantially increase funding for refugee aid organizations,

*Support the goal of disarmament by ending all military assistance to Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the Gulf States and defense establishments of other countries.

Note: Congress will likely be in recess February 22 – 28

Please be in contact with us to participate in this organizing effort to end war and to redirect our country’s wealth towards fulfilling the Common Good both here in the United States and around the world.