2010 “Peace Wants A Piece of the Pie” Report
The Peace Alliance

For the sixth straight year, we rallied together for a successful Mother's Day action, showing our government that "Peace Wants a Piece of the Pie." Across the nation volunteers visited Senate and Congressional offices in support of our peacebuilding legislation. In Washington D.C., staff and volunteers mirrored the field visits by delivering pies and packets to over 40 offices. There was a definite interest in our work in D.C. -- groups were invited to have full sit-down meetings when they showed up to the office with pies and no appointment! All of this, coupled with over 10,000 letters and calls made in support of our initiatives, will undoubtedly get the message to our leaders that the necessary work of peacebuilding is a strong priority for our growing constituency. It is your continued commitment to this work that will inspire our leadership to take action on important peacebuilding issues.

The other good news we continue to hear from our teams in D.C. and from supporters around the country who visited offices is that, more-so than ever before, congressional staffers shared great interest and openness to the conversation we are promoting. In particular, a number of new Senators and Representatives expressed strong interest in the Youth PROMISE Act (HR 1064/S 435) and are giving serious consideration to supporting the legislation. We hope to see new co-sponsors in the coming weeks for both of our current legislative initiatives.

The letters and calls so many of you made, including through the Change.org petition, will certainly make a difference. Special thanks as well to Yoko Ono for urging her network on Imaginepeace.com to write Congress in support of our campaign! There is still time to sign our petition if you have yet to do so, generating a letter to all your Members of Congress and the President. Congressional office visits are still happening all week in different parts of the country. Your support can still be a big help!

We will keep you posted on any further activity that occurs as a result of our campaign. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date with our latest news.

With the deepest gratitude,
Matthew Albracht
Managing Director
The Peace Alliance

[Duchess Note: This year "New Yorkers for a Dept of Peace" created colorful cards with a Mother's Day theme, info on Resolution 14, and the original Mother's Day proclamation by Julia Ward Howe in 1870. These cards were sent to all 50+ New York City Council members. Urging them to become co-sponsors of R14 and push it towards a hearing. NYDoP's next "create a card" campaign will be for Independence Day in July.]