September 11^th Coalition for Just and Peaceful Initiatives

Background:

Pacem in Terris facilitated the creation of the September 11^th Coalition for Just and Peaceful Initiatives in response to the horrific terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Activities and Purpose:

Since that time the Coalition has held educational events, public witnesses, and citizen campaigns urging international diplomatic solutions rather than unilateral military ones to the problem of global terrorism. It has been a consistent humanitarian voice against the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and for effective nation building and reconstruction of both countries through U.N. and international governmental and nonprofit agency cooperation rather than military occupation.

Position on Iraq Situation:

We regret that our efforts, in concert with those of many other people around the world, were not sufficient to prevent the war in Iraq or to counter the fear-mongering that was used to scare the public into acquiescence. Our hearts go out to the families of all of the U.S. and Coalition service people and Iraqi civilians who have died in this unnecessary war. The best way that we can support our troops is by bringing them home in a staged withdrawal by turning over the administration of Iraq and international peacekeeping to the United Nations which can oversee the creation of an authentic Iraqi-led and supported government.

About our Coalition:

• We are a community of diverse people seeking just and peaceful initiatives in response to the events of September 11.
• We share a vision of global peace characterized by justice, human dignity, respect, and compassion for all people.
• We embrace the victims of the terrorist attacks, their families, and others affected by any resultant discrimination.
• We commit ourselves to reducing injustices that breed rage and vengeance, including division, hatred and violence.
• We urge our leaders to act with compassion and humanity in framing principled initiatives that include:
  • Reaching out for the support and power of the global community including its many peaceful processes, venues, alliances and international laws;
  • Avoiding loss of innocent life through indiscriminate and escalating military activity;
  • Supporting and providing international humanitarian aid;
  • Improving domestic security without sacrificing civil liberties and freedoms; and
  • Supporting and providing leadership to the conviction that all governments should act in a positive manner to promote human rights, individual freedoms and economic opportunity.

 The Coalition for Just and Peaceful Initiatives has initated a new project of counter-military recruitment.  We need volunteers to help.  Here's the scoop:

Counter-Recruitment Project in Delaware

Volunteers needed to help with project

The September 11^th Coalition for Just and Peaceful Initiatives, a project of Pacem in Terris, has initiated a counter-recruitment project. Our mission will be to act to protect the privacy of high school students in our community and to counteract the special privileges the military has been enjoying with their predatory recruiting.

Among other things, we will be contacting the high schools in our local school systems to convince them to protect the privacy of students who take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). In 2006, more than 600,000 school children took the ASVAB and all the results, including personal information, were forwarded to military recruiters. The military refuses to publicly admit the ASVAB is a valuable recruiting tool. Instead, the ASVAB is marketed through schools as a “career exploration program” frequently without mentioning its affiliation with the military. A little known option exists that allows school officials to preclude test data from winding up in the hands of military recruiters.

These are some questions we want answers to, as part of our project:

• Do the recruiting vans come to your high school?
• Is the ASVAB mandatory? Is Option 8 selected?
• What JROTC text are you using? What's in it?
• Are your schools allowing students to opt out of lists going to the
  military?
• Are your schools giving adequate notice to parents and students regarding
  the opt-out?
• Do your schools allow alternative literature to be placed next to military
  literature?
• What kind of access are military recruiters allowed in your schools?
• Is the access by the military greater than the access allowed college recruiters (The law calls for the same
  access)?

Here’s how you can help:

1 – If you have a child in the Delaware school system, in high school or soon to be in high school, and you would be willing to send a letter (which we will provide) to your school, send an email to depaceminterris@gmail.com or call Sally at 302-656-2721.

2 – Join our counter-recruitmentcommittee. Please get in touch with us (same email and phone number as above). We will be having our first meeting sometime in February.

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