PYM Friends joined with Friends from different yearly meetings, schools, and organizations across the country for Friends Committee on National Legislation’s (FCNL) 2024 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., with opportunities to participate online as well. Friends visited congressional offices to lobby for blocking the sale of offensive weapons to Israel. These efforts reflected a collective spirit and dedication to creating meaningful change through lobbying.
FCNL offered workshops and discussions to build participants’ advocacy practices and their understanding of the key issues they were lobbying for. The Senate is expected to vote this week on a JRD (a type of legislation) that would end the US sale of six specific weapons. There is proof that these weapons have been used in strikes that killed thousands of civilians, including aid workers and journalists, in Gaza over the last year. About 25 Friends from PYM met with their senators to ask them to vote yes on the JRD. Included in that group were PYM’s appointed representatives to FCNL, the General Secretary and Westtown School students.
During this year’s meeting, Friends also celebrated a significant milestone as FCNL was awarded the 2024 US Peace Prize. This honor recognizes FCNL’s 81 years of dedication to peace advocacy, including its work to educate, build coalitions, and influence Congress to promote peace. Wesley Pinkham from FCNL shared the below announcement, which highlighted the organization’s recent efforts to call for a ceasefire and humanitarian access in areas of conflict. The award, accepted by FCNL’s General Secretary Bridget Moix, serves as a powerful testament to the ongoing work for peace and justice.
US PEACE PRIZE AWARDED
Wesley Wolfbear Pinkham, Sr. Visual Arts Manager at FCNL, shared the following email:
Dear Wesley,
For 16 years, the US Peace Prize has recognized and honored the most outstanding and prominent American antiwar leaders. We celebrate these extraordinary role models to inspire other Americans to speak out against war and work for peace. The 2024 US Peace Prize has been awarded to Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) “For Efforts Over 81 Years to Educate, Build Coalitions and Influence Congress to Stop Funding War and Nuclear Weapons.”
The US Peace Prize was presented on November 16, 2024, at the FCNL Annual Meeting by Michael Knox, Chair and Founder of the US Peace Memorial Foundation. In his remarks, Dr. Knox said, “We greatly appreciate the crucial work that FCNL is doing to end war, militarism, and nuclear weapons by educating the public, building coalitions, and lobbying Congress and the administration. For over eight decades, the Friends Committee has developed an impressive portfolio of antiwar actions. Most recently, demanding that the U.S. call for a Ceasefire in Palestine and Israel, de-escalation, and humanitarian access to Gaza. The US Peace Prize is a prestigious honor that will help call attention to and reinforce your important work for peace.”
The award was accepted by Bridget Moix, General Secretary, who responded, “On behalf of our board and staff, thousands of advocates around the country persisting for peace with us, and all those who have been part of FCNL’s work over the years, we are honored and grateful to receive this 2024 US Peace Prize. For over 80 years, FCNL has sought to be a clear and consistent voice for peace and justice on Capitol Hill. Receiving this prize is especially significant as we face escalating war in the Middle East, growing global violence and authoritarianism, and enormous threats to our own democracy here at home. A world of justice and peace for all people may seem a distant dream, but our Quaker faith and the powerful communities with whom we work every day sustain us in this ongoing struggle for the world we seek.”
See more details at: www.USPeacePrize.org.
The Foundation honors Americans who work for peace by publishing the US Peace Registry, awarding the US Peace Prize, and raising funds to build the US Peace Memorial in Washington, DC.
Thank you very much for your support.
Lucy, Medea, Margaret, Jolyon, and Michael
Board of Directors of US Peace Prize
