• CAMPAIGN FOR A GLOBAL BAN ON WEAPONIZED DRONES
    The use of weaponized aerial drones over the past 21 years has led to killing, maiming, terrorization and/or displacement of millions of people in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, Mali, Niger, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Western Sahara, Kurdish regions, Ukraine, Russia, and other countries. Numerous detailed studies and reports regarding casualties resulting from the deployment of weaponized aerial drones indicate that the majority of people killed, maimed, and displaced, or otherwise harmed, have been non-combatants, including women and children. Entire communities and wider populations are terrorized, intimidated and psychologically damaged by the constant flight of weaponized aerial drones over their heads, even when they are not struck by the weapons. The United States, China, Turkey, Pakistan, India, Iran, Israel, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine are manufacturing and/or developing weaponized aerial drones, and a growing number of countries are producing smaller, inexpensive single-use loitering munitions, known as “suicide” or “kamikaze” drones. Some of these countries, including the United States, Israel, China, Turkey and Iran are exporting weaponized aerial drones to an ever-increasing number of countries, while manufacturers in additional countries are exporting parts for weaponized aerial drone production. The use of weaponized aerial drones has included numerous violations of international human rights and international humanitarian law by states and non-state armed groups around the world, including violations of international boundaries, national sovereignty rights and UN agreements. The materials necessary to build and arm rudimentary weaponized aerial drones are neither technologically advanced nor expensive so that their use is proliferating at an alarming rate among militias, mercenaries, insurgencies and individuals. A growing number of non-state actors have conducted armed attacks and assassinations using weaponized aerial drones, including but not limited to: Constellis Group (formerly Blackwater), Wagner Group, Al-Shabab, the Taliban, the Islamic State, Al-Qaeda, Libyan rebels, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, Boko Haram, Mexican drug cartels, as well as militias and mercenaries in Venezuela, Colombia, Sudan, Mali, Myanmar, and other countries in the Global South. Weaponized aerial drones are often used to prosecute undeclared and illegal wars. Weaponized aerial drones lower the threshold to armed conflict and can expand and prolong wars, because they enable attack without physical risk to ground and air force personnel of the weaponized drone user. Apart from the Russian-Ukrainian war, most weaponized aerial drone strikes so far have targeted non-Christian people of color in the Global South. Both technologically advanced and rudimentary aerial drones can be weaponized with missiles or bombs carrying chemical weapons or depleted uranium. Advanced and rudimentary weaponized aerial drones pose an existential threat to humanity and the planet because they could be used to target nuclear power plants, of which there are hundreds in 32 countries, primarily in the Global North. Due to the reasons stated above, weaponized aerial drones constitute a tool for violating the integrity of national and international law, thus creating an expanding circle of enmity and increasing the likelihood of internecine conflict, proxy wars, larger wars and escalation to nuclear threats. The use of weaponized aerial drones violates basic human rights as guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976), particularly with respect to the rights to life, privacy and fair trial; and the Geneva Conventions and their Protocols (1949, 1977), particularly with respect to its protection of civilians against indiscriminate, unacceptable levels of harm. Global Campaign to Ban Weaponized Drones war Initiated: May 1, 2023 Initiating Organizers Ban Killer Drones, USA CODEPINK: Women for Peace Drohnen-Kampagne (German Drone Campaign) Drone Wars UK International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR) International Peace Bureau (IPB) Veterans for Peace Women for Peace World BEYOND War Global Ban on Weaponized Drones Endorsers, as of May 30, 2023 Ban Killer Drones, USA CODEPINK: Women For Peace Drohnen-Kampagne (German Drone Campaign) Drone Wars UK International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR) International Peace Bureau (IPB) Veterans for Peace Women for Peace World BEYOND War West Suburban Peace Coalition World Can’t Wait Westchester Political Action Committee (WESPAC) Action from Ireland Quaker House of Fayetteville, North Carolina Nevada Desert Experience Women Against War ZNetwork Bund für Soziale Verteidigung (Federation of Social Defense) InterReligious Task Force on Central America (IRTF) Disciples Peace Fellowship Ramapo Lunaape Nation Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality – Dr. Daisy Khan International Sanctuary Declaration Campaign Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security The Baltimore Nonviolence Center Westchester Coalition Against Islamophobia (WCAI) Canadian Sanctuary Network Brandywine Peace Community National Council of Elders Beloved Community Center Flowers and Bombs: Stop the Violence of the War Now! Council on American Islamic Relations, New York Chapter (CAIR-NY) Concerned Families of Westchester Shut Down Drone Warfare International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War
    1,236 of 2,000 Signatures
    Created by Ann W.
  • Publish the Ratified ERA to reverse Dobbs & gain Equality
    It is 2023. Equal Rights for ALL, including 50.5% of the population who are women, is self evident. Abortion will only be protected on the legal basis of equality, not privacy, as Dobbs demonstrated. Any codification of abortion, reproductive rights, contraception, same sex marriage by Congress will quickly prompt legal challenges. It will arrive to SCOTUS and be reversed, on the new basis of "Dobbs" based on privacy, not equality.
    9 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Eileen M.
  • President Biden: Publish the Equal Rights Amendment NOW!
    The fight for the E.R.A. has been a long road, but for the first time in history we are at the finish line and need Biden to push us over. As of 2020, the E.R.A. has met all Constitutional requirements to become an official amendment-- all necessary states have ratified the ERA.​​ As part of finalizing the E.R.A. we need President Biden to publish it now! We are so close to having equal protections enshrined-- We owe it to our feminist ancestors to finish and finally win this fight! ​ We demand equality. We are born equal, it is time our Constitution reflects it. From abortion rights to equal pay and Black maternal health, our communities are on the line. Send a letter to Biden now and tell him to Publish the Equal Rights Amendment
    1,272 of 2,000 Signatures
    Created by RJ T.
  • No packages restrictions for New York prisoners
    We all deserve a second chance in life. New State Department of Correction is wrong to take inmates rights away. They deserve to get their Mail/Packages. Join in and voice your opinion and lets fight this corruption in these prison's. Eastern Correction Facility is mistreating inmates, violating their constitutional rights as human beings. This is wrong in everyway these inmates are paying for the crimes they committed. Why take their Mail/Packages away? Please lets fight for what is right not for what is wrong.
    124 of 200 Signatures
    Created by Desmond H.
  • Release Julian Assange
    This isn't about Assange, this is about a misbehaving government. When the government is caught doing bad things the first response is to attempt to discredit the person who exposed those acts. It's the government and its representatives that need to be charged, not the whistleblower -- but you already know that, you just don't want to be reprimanded. We need to have oversight of our government and we need to be thankful for those that show our government acting at their worst; that means the last thing we want to do is try to scare those that want to attest to the government’s behavior. Finally, Julian is not an American citizen and you have no jurisdiction over him to have him imprisoned or to charge him with any crimes.
    16 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Todd C.
  • Reject 'Disgraceful' Rahm Emanuel for Japan Ambassador
    Emanuel has a long record of being extremely undiplomatic, abrasive and contemptuous of humane values. His record as mayor of Chicago, where his administration oversaw the coverup of the horrific police shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, is especially troubling. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) tweeted after news of Emanuel's selection broke: "Rewarding Rahm Emanuel's cover up of Laquan McDonald's murder with an ambassadorship is not an act that reflects a value of or respect for Black lives.” Top diplomatic posts should only go to individuals with ethics, integrity, and diplomatic skills. Emanuel possesses none of those qualifications.
    153 of 200 Signatures
    Created by David Z.
  • President Biden, Close Guantanamo!
    In February 2021, President Joe Biden’s aides launched a formal review of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay. We ask that this process be sped up to close a shameful historical chapter marked by torture, sexual abuse, cruel and unusual punishment -- all of which have tainted U.S. standing at home and abroad. Funding commitments in the American Rescue Plan would solidify the closure of the facility. Reuters reported: “Aides involved in internal discussions are considering an executive action to be signed by Biden in coming weeks or months, signaling a new effort to remove what human rights advocates have called a stain on America’s global image.” Asked whether Biden would shut the high-security prison located at the Guantanamo Naval Station by the time his presidency ends, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters: “That certainly is our goal and our intention.”
    1,274 of 2,000 Signatures
    Created by Muslim D. Picture
  • Civilianize U.S. Army's Criminal Investigative Div. for investigation of Sexual Assault Allegations
    For decades, both female and male survivors of sexual assault in the military have had their allegations disbelieved and dismissed by their superiors in their chain of command. In addition, many survivors who have made reports of assault have been bullied and threatened by their perpetrators without intervention by the chain of command. Women service members have especially been brutalized. Most victims do not report the violence out of a well-based fear of retaliation. Many military careers have ended because of the failure of the chain of command to take allegations seriously and to properly investigate and punish those responsible. The U.S. Army culture is incapable of effectively handling allegations of sexual assault and too often the chain of command prevents proper adjudication of such serious charges. After the Navy's Tailhook sexual assault scandal two decades ago, the Navy Investigative Service (NIS) was changed into the Naval Criminal Investigative Service with a civilian director and the entire investigative structure civilianized. That Navy civilian structure stands in stark contrast to Army Criminal Investigative Division (CID), which is led by military police officers who are not criminal investigators. Army CID is also distinct from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, which is not totally civilianized but does have investigative agents leading the organization. The Provost Marshal General of the U.S. Army General Donna Martin said CID has not had “significant structural change” in 20 years, “and yet we have had significant, quadrupling cases of sexual assault.” It is critical that the Army has professional civilian investigators to investigate military sexual assault charges and take the investigations out of the hands of those in the military chain of command of the perpetrators. Veterans For Peace https://www.veteransforpeace.org/ Service Women's Action Network https://www.servicewomen.org/ Austin orders new steps to curb sexual assault while panel studies the problem https://bit.ly/2Qf4ExT Should the military continue to be allowed to police itself on sexual assault? Retired general and Pentagon weigh in. https://bit.ly/3tA0Qpi Spc. Vanessa Guillen case could be Army CID’s ‘Tailhook scandal’ https://bit.ly/3bWp4nR Remove Prosecution of Sexual Assault from Military Chain of Command https://bit.ly/3r1RxNj
    1,665 of 2,000 Signatures
    Created by Ann W.
  • Do Not Extend $1 Lease on 23,000 acres of Hawai'i State Lands in Military Pōhakuloa Training Area
    The U.S. military wants to extend the lease on the State of Hawai'i property as it provides access to the 110,000 acres of adjacent U.S. government-owned land at the largest U.S. military firing range. The Army calls the 132,000-acre range on Hawaii island the “Pacific’s premier training area.” Pōhakuloa Training Area (PTA), with a 51,000-acre “impact area,” is used heavily by Hawaii-based and visiting international military forces. It is the largest live-fire range in Hawaii and supports full-scale combined arms field training from the squad to brigade (approximately 3,500 soldiers) level. The Army set a 40-day public "scoping" period for the Environment Impact Statement (EIS). Written comments should be submitted via the EIS website at 808ne.ws/357ek2V. Hawaiian cultural practitioners Clarence Ku Ching and Mary Maxine Kahaulelio filed suit against the Hawai'i State Department of Land and Natural Resources in 2014 claiming the state breached its trust duties by failing to enforce the lease. Four years later, State Circuit judge Gary Chang ruled in 2018 in Ching and Kahaulelio’s lawsuit (Ching v. Case) that the DLNR failed to care for the Big Island property, lacking inspections over the first nearly 50 years of the lease. Judge Chang said that the state has a duty to "mālama ʻāina" and called two DLNR inspection reports “grossly inadequate” and ordered the state to develop and potentially execute a plan to obtain adequate funding for a compre­hensive cleanup of the land. After Judge Chang’s order, DLNR said that as the landlord of the property, it would work with the Army to develop a formal inspection, monitoring and reporting process, which has been virtually non-existent. However, the Hawaii Supreme Court overturned part of the order. Hawai'i State organizations that support this petition are: Hawai'i Peace and Justice; Veterans for Peace-Chapter 113-Hawai'i; Cancel RIMPAC Coalition; Golden Rule Anti-Nuclear Sailing Ship: Women's Voices Women Speak; Malu Aina Center for Non-Violent Education and Action; Peace Action-Maui; National and International Organizations that support this petition: World Beyond War; Peace Action; Popular Resistance; Background Links: VIDEO: Mauna Kea Observatory Directors Give Update https://www.bigislandvideonews.com/2019/08/25/video-mauna-kea-observatories-directors-give-update Hawaii Has Failed To Take Care Of Pohakuloa https://www.civilbeat.org/2019/08/hawaii-has-failed-to-take-care-of-pohakuloa/ Ching v. Case Ruling https://law.justia.com/cases/hawaii/supreme-court/2019/scap-18-0000432.html
    9,907 of 10,000 Signatures
    Created by Ann W.
  • Release Steven Hibbler From A Life Prison Sentence Due To An Unfair Prosecution Immediately
    Steven Hibbler, has been serving a life sentence in the Michigan Department Of Corrections since 1995 for a shooting he did not commit. Although an affidavit and testimony under oath from a person involved in the shooting pointed to Steven’s innocence, he was convicted of this crime and has been denied a retrial due to the justice system's failures. These failures include but are not limited to: * The first day of trial it was brought to the court's attention by an anonymous caller that one of the jurors knew the family and had a potential relationship with the deceased's daughter. Yet the judge never questioned the juror and allowed him to stay on the jury. * During the trial, the prosecutor openly admitted to the judge that, while they had a theory that Steven shot the deceased, they did not know whose shots caused the death. *Both Steven's trial attorney and appellate attorney admitted their ineffectiveness when it came to Steven's case and conceded that they made "mistakes" that could have affected the outcome of Steven's legal proceedings. Now, after two and a half decades, there has been a new development in Steven's case that brings about renewed hope. We have learned of exculpatory evidence that the prosecutor intentionally withheld from Steven's attorneys in a desperate effort to railroad Steven. The prosecutor who handled Steven's trial had knowledge that the key eyewitness in his case had previously testified to seeing and knowing the name of the person who shot and killed the deceased. The person he named was not Steven. Fortunately, this new information is currently being reviewed by the Michigan Attorney General's Conviction Integrity Unit, which has the power to investigate and reverse this wrongful conviction. While under the knee of injustice, Steven has managed to completely transform his life. He is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in sociology and has also collaborated with The Yale School of Art. He is a published poet and an accomplished artist whose artwork has appeared in the October 2019 edition of The Harper's Magazine as well as several art exhibits and installations. Steven is a member of The Michigan Theory Group, an Inside Out Prison Exchange Program alumni group that trains professors and instructors from around the world in critical pedagogy. He is also a co-creator and facilitator of the Inside Out Theory Group's Restorative Justice curriculum and program. Over the years, Steven has developed the core belief that we are all interconnected as human beings and can change the world around us by doing one good deed at a time. Steven Hibbler needs your help to affirm his innocence. After twenty-five years of wrongful imprisonment, he deserves immediate justice. Please sign this petition to encourage the CIU to thoroughly investigate his case. Please also get in touch with the Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel at: Email - [email protected] Phone: 517-335-7622 Fax: 517-335-7644 or send direct mail to: G. Mennen Williams Building 525 W. Ottawa Street P.O. Box 30212 Lansing, MI 48909 Detroit Office Cadillac Place, 10th Floor 3030 W. Grand Blvd., Ste 10-200 Detroit, MI 48202 Phone: 313-456-0240 Fax: 313-456-0243 In addition please send emails and make phone calls to the following state representatives: Governor - Gretchen Whitmer General Telephone Number: 517-373-3400 Opinion Telephone: 517-335-7858 Fax: 517-335-6863 Email: [email protected] Address: State Capitol P.O. Box 30013 Lansing, MI 48909 Lt. Governor - Garlin Gilchrist II Phone: 517-373-6800 Attorney General - Dana Nessel Phone: 517-373-1110 Address: G. Mennen Williams Building 7th Floor 525 W. Ottawa St., Lansing, MI 48933 Email: [email protected] Legislators/Senators - Senator Aric Nesbitt - District 26 Phone: 1-866-305-2120 Address for all Senators: Michigan Senate State Capitol Building Box 30036 Lansing, MI 48909 United States Congressman - Justin Amash Phone: 616-451-8383 Address: 110 Michigan NW #460 Grand Rapids, MI 49503 State House Representative - Steven Johnson -72nd District Phone: 517-373-0840 Email: [email protected] State Information Center at 517-373-1837 Please send an email to [email protected] for additional information.
    2,216 of 3,000 Signatures
    Created by Raven H.
  • Grant Refugee status for unarmed civilians in the Gaza strip
    More innocent Gaza residents will die from starvation, lack of air and from drinking contaminated water which might lead to the annihilation of the population of the Gaza strip. We need to start an emergency airlift to take many unarmed civilians from the Jabilya refugee camp in the Gaza strip.
    6 of 100 Signatures
    Created by Ola A.
  • Bangladesh Must End Internet Ban in Rohingya Refugee Camps
    The Rohingya have suffered decades of systematic persecution in their home country of Myanmar. They have been denied citizenship, freedom of movement, access to education and health services. They have been subject to land confiscations, arbitrary arrests, forced labour, extortion, torture, rape, mass killings, the destruction of whole villages and other forms of collective punishment. Myanmar military clearance operations have forced more than 800,000 Rohingya to flee over the border to Bangladesh since August of 2017. Myanmar stands accused of genocide against the Rohingya at the International Court of Justice. The Myanmar government disputes the allegations and has failed to create conditions that would enable the Rohingya to return safely to their homelands. Bangladesh now provides shelter to approximately 1 million Rohingya. Rohingya have relied on mobile phone and internet access to communicate these abuses to the rest of the world. This access has also provided lifelines to families fleeing from attrocities. In September 2019, mobile phone and internet restrictions were brought in by Bangladesh for Rohingya genocide survivors in the refugee camps. The Bangladesh government’s internet blackout and phone restrictions at Rohingya refugee camps are currently obstructing humanitarian groups from addressing the COVID-19 threat. The shutdown is risking the health and lives of over a million people, including nearly 900,000 refugees in Cox’s Bazar and the Bangladeshi host community by hindering aid groups’ ability to provide emergency health services and rapidly coordinate essential preventive measures. Aid workers and community leaders rely on WhatsApp and other internet-based communication tools to coordinate emergency services and share important information in the camps. The shutdown prevents effective dissemination of coronavirus information as well as impeding aid workers’ ability to conduct “contact tracing” to contain transmission of the virus. Rohingya survivors also need to use the internet and mobile phones to maintain links with home and contact family members with whom they have been separated from due to the genocide. It is also their only means to access news and information. The internet is the primary source of education for youth in the camps, who have severely limited access to formal schooling. The internet and phone restrictions must therefore be permanantly lifted.
    2,978 of 3,000 Signatures
    Created by Shabnam M.