October 16, 2009


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October 16, 2009

Dear friend of CODEPINK,

After Barack Obama accepted the Nobel Peace Prize, he said "This award--and the call to action that comes with it--does not belong simply to me or my administration; it belongs to all people around the world who have fought for justice and for peace."

We take this call to action very seriously -- just as Obama needs to work to earn this profound honor, so do we. You may not see it in the mainstream media, but CODEPINK has been out there every day, vibrantly visible and vocal for peace. On Sunday, we unfurled banners reading "President Obama: End Bush's Wars!" and "End the Afghan Quagmire" behind Tiger Woods at the President's Cup golf tournament. Thursday night, we capped off an amazing week of actions by hand delivering our petition with all of your signatures to President Obama himself, urging him to keep his promises for peace. You can see a slide show of our actions here. Be sure to also check out Medea Benjamin and Kevin Martin's trenchant article, "Premature Peace Prize or Call to Action?"

As we heed Obama's call to action--and encourage him to do so, himself --we also recognize and support the important work that others are already doing around the world for peace and justice. We especially honor the incredible women we met in Afghanistan who are standing up for women's rights in the face of unimaginable oppression. They are working for justice and change at a level that is almost impossible for us to comprehend. We want to give one group in particular, Women for Afghan Women, a peace prize of our own, and encourage you to donate $10 toward supporting their deeply necessary work.

Your $10 donation will pay for one of these vital services; $40 will accomplish all four items:

  • Food for one woman for 7 days
  • Medical care for one woman for one month
  • One dress for one woman
  • A young girl's school tuition for 15 days

When you donate through Facebook's America Giving Challenge, you are also giving CODEPINK a chance to win $50,000 -- money that will go toward nurturing further peace and change in Afghanistan and beyond.

There has been some controversy surrounding our trip to Afghanistan, based on an article that misrepresented our stance; for a clear-eyed view of the situation, and a true representation of our position, please read "On Afghanistan, We Need a Policy, Not a Macho Hissy Fit" by Yifat Susskind, Communications Director for MADRE.

Thank you for heeding the call to action,
Dana, Farida, Gael, Gayle, Janet, Jodie, Medea, Nancy, Paris, Rae, Suzanne, Tracy and Whitney

Photo credits: Jo Freeman
http://www.JoFreeman.com

LOCAL ACTION HIGHLIGHTS!
Thursday night Obama made his first appearance in San Francisco and CODEPINK was there to remind him to live up to his Nobel and end the wars! We joined a mass demo outside, and cofounder Jodie Evans was inside the fundraiser hand delivering the petition thousands of you signed for a responsible exit strategy from Afghanistan! See more here and the full video clip here!


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