CHICAGO -- With a United Nations treaty banning nuclear weapons now in effect, Illinois advocates for peace are renewing conversations about U.S. disarmament policy, through a panel discussion with experts last week and a car caravan for peace over the weekend.

Not a single nation with nuclear weapons ratified the international agreement, although more than 50 non-nuclear states did.

Laura Grego, senior scientist in the Global Security Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said non-governmental organizations and non-nuclear states have been frustrated with the lack of progress toward disarmament.

She argued many U.S. nuclear policies are artifacts of the Cold War, and could be changed to reduce the risk of accidental or unauthorized launches.

"The U.S. might not be ready to sign the ban treaty," Grego acknowledged. "It's really an effort to be creative about moving toward disarmament goals."

Grego pointed to a bill that would require a declaration of war by Congress before the president can order a nuclear-weapons launch, and added the U.S. should consider taking missiles off high-alert status and reserving their use exclusively for deterrence or response to a nuclear attack, in consultation with allies.

Tara Drozdenko, acting executive director of the Outrider Foundation, said there are many ways nuclear weapons and the military intersect with injustice.

She asserted weapons programs disproportionately impact marginalized communities, for example, uranium mining on the Navajo reservation has contaminated land and groundwater there, which has affected health outcomes.

"I think it's important for us to start reckoning with that, and re-articulating what it means to be secure," Drozdenko contended. "And also thinking about whose security we prioritize, and how we spend our money to make all Americans secure, not just some of us secure."

One of the first foreign-policy actions of the Biden administration is seeking to extend the New START treaty for five years, the last remaining nuclear-weapons treaty between the U.S. and Russia.


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This Saturday marks the International Day of Peace and the advocacy group Nonviolent Peaceforce is kicking off a series of family-friendly events in Midland.

The focus of the day is to encourage nations and individuals to resolve conflicts without violence. Nonviolent Peaceforce aims to inspire the Midland community through stage performances, the dedication of a "peace pole" and giveaways of a special book on fostering peace.

Judy Timmons, treasurer and historian of Nonviolent Peaceforce Midland, underscored the commitment to resolving conflicts through dialogue rather than violence, especially in light of the many conflicts playing out on the world stage.

"We have to listen to one another before we can bring about peace," Timmons urged. "We have to understand where the other person is coming from. You know, I think more than ever, we need to focus our efforts on peace and how we can promote peace in our everyday lives."

The International Day of Peace was established by the United Nations in 1981, initially intended as a day of ceasefire and nonviolence.

At the United Nations headquarters in New York, the U.N. Secretary-General will ring the Peace Bell to honor the day. This year's theme is "Cultivating a Culture of Peace." Timmons pointed out her group believes in teaching children the values of peaceful resolution. She noted prior to the pandemic days, they went into schools to teach anti-bullying, with a program called, "Be aware, play fair, show you care."

"We've taught over 1,100 area students how to recognize what is a bully, and why are they a bully?" Timmons explained. "And how you can befriend a bully, if you will."

Timmons added the organization is working on resuming school visits. Events worldwide include educational programs, peace walks, cultural performances and advocacy campaigns.

This week, protesters could outnumber delegates at the Democratic National Convention starting today in Chicago.

The demonstrators will include tens of thousands of advocates and opponents of U.S. support of Israel in the Hamas war in Gaza. One group, Jewish Voices for Peace, teams with Black and Palestinian organizers and supports peaceful protests.

Arielle Rebekah, media strategist for Jewish Voices for Peace, explained the longtime concern they believe is now fueling the Hamas conflict.

"Political leaders across the political spectrum have continued to prioritize their financial and political interests in the Middle East over Palestinian lives," Rebekah asserted. "This is not, you know, specific to any political leader. This is, like, pretty much across the political establishment, and this has been true for nearly a century."

Chicago officials have processed thousands of convention rally requests. Rebekah stated the group is aware the political establishment has animosity toward demonstrators but pointed out protesters are exercising their rights as citizens to be engaged in causes they believe in.

The convention handed another pro-Palestinian organization a setback last week. The Coalition to March on the DNC had asked for an extended route to accommodate the thousands of anticipated demonstrators but a federal judge denied the request, saying Chicago had met its legal responsibility by allowing protesters to march "within sight and sound" of the convention location.

Faayani Aboma Mijana, spokesperson for the coalition, said the requests of other pro-Palestinian groups are not being granted.

"We have these secondary demands around labor rights, police crimes, immigrant rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, women's rights," Mijana outlined. "Because we recognize that all these secondary demands are directly connected to the fact that the Democrats have gone 'all in' on this genocide. And while they are doing that, we're getting left behind."

Mijana pointed out the coalition marched at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. The group's website lists other causes, including more funding for jobs, schools, health care, housing and the environment, as well as the right to unionize and strike.

Plenty of political and social leaders are calling for unity and condemning political violence after this weekend's assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. However, a University of Nevada, Las Vegas sociologist said he is not too optimistic about the country's capacity to use this political moment to catalyze change.

Robert Futrell, professor of sociology at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, who studies social movements and social change, said while Saturday's event has every hallmark of a political and social turning point, he thinks it is unlikely to happen given the country's recent history.

"If we can't come together and imagine that a better world is possible without political violence and without guns kind of fueling that, helping to fuel that, I'm not sure that this one is going to turn the tide either, unfortunately," Futrell explained.

Futrell emphasized the question becomes, 'Can and will the U.S. find the political willpower to act and stem the tide on the various forms of violence plaguing the nation?' Recent research showed almost 7% of Americans believe the use of force would be "appropriate" to restore former President Trump to office. And 10% of Americans said political violence would be justified to prevent Trump from becoming president again.

Futrell noted conspiracy theorists have already started to alter the symbolic images from Saturday's fiasco. He has seen altered images of Secret Service agents smiling as the tragedy took place. According to Futrell, conspiracy theorists take a slight shred of evidence, altered or not, to create what he calls a "mythology" that fits preestablished ideas about how politics and power work, which he said added dangerous fuel to the fire.

"After the horror of 'there has been a shooting of a former president' goes past -- and we're probably already past that in some ways -- that the tales will get spun in the ways that seem politically beneficial to whoever's spinning them, be that the far right, the left," Futrell pointed out. "Conspiracists are really good at that."

Futrell added not everyone thinks about the power words hold and while he appreciates the immediate sentiment of unity, he encouraged everyone to reflect moving forward.

"We need to debate but debate on grounds that don't lead to deep tensions and hatred," Futrell advised. "I agree with all of that. I would ask folks to think about whether they individually, and we collectively, are doing that a week from now, a month from now, a year from now."

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.


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