Kwanzaa; #DefendTheSacred; Reverence for Life
Tuesday, December 29th, 2020
We hope that you are enjoying the remainder of this special season. There is still time to catch Buffalo Kwanzaa’s nightly virtual celebrations at 7pm; see all of their social media platforms (@buffalokwanzaa).
We also hope you are taking some time to rest and recharge for the work ahead of us in 2021. This includes the WNY Women’s March 2021 on January 16th! For everyone’s safety, this year’s event will be on Zoom and include breakout rooms with special discussion topics, feature guest speakers, music, and more! Interested in being a co-sponsor? Email assistant@wnypeace.org. Please check our website and social media accounts for this year’s themes, to register, and more details to come!
Please check out the upcoming Talking Peace episode featuring LASC member Bill Jungels – and possibly Tom Potts, D.D.S. – on their work in Chiapas, Mexico along with Heidi Jones on White supremacists in anti-maskers’ clothing. (And don’t miss Bill and Tom’s presentation next week at the ROCLA/LASC event where they’ll further discuss Chiapas.) Also featuring guest co-host (and newly appointed Gender Justice Task Force Chair!) Talia Rodriguez, J.D. Tune in tomorrow via Facebook live or on WBNY next Monday – full details on each below.
We’re also honored to announce that the WNY Peace Center is becoming the home of the Witness Against Torture program. We will be fundraising for them as they will fall under our 501(c) 3 umbrella due to the closing of the Washington Peace Center. Please see information on their upcoming events below.
In this season that reminds of us of the reverence for life and defending the sacred, we need to be strongly rooted in firm non-violence. Not pacifism, but assertive, strong truth and love. This is a dangerous time in our nation when white supremacists and fascists are getting veiled encouragement from the highest level. Appeal to your strengths that we will stand up when and where we need to, even at a national scale.
CALL TO ACTION: Call MN Governor Tim Walz at 651-201-3400 to urge him and other officials (e.g., Congressman Keith Ellison) to stop Line 3. Visit the Water Protectors website for information on needed donations and coming out to put your body on the line to protect Mother Earth, the waters, and the creation. Donations (physical items and/or monetary) also gratefully received at Burning Books (420 Connecticut St, Buffalo, 14213 – open daily, 11am – 7pm) or to Nekanehsakt’s PayPal. #DefendTheSacred #WaterIsLife
Please see details and much more – including special and regularly scheduled events this week – plus campaigns, fundraisers, and more at wnypeace.org, on our Facebook page, Twitter (@wnypeace), and Instagram (@wnypeace)!
Peace, thanks, solidarity, and yes – love!
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3
UPCOMING SPECIAL EVENTS
Find more details and additional special events on our Event Calendar at
WEDNESDAY, 12/30
~7:15 PM – Talking Peace taping. On Facebook Live. Talking Peace taping with host Vicki Ross, WNYPC Executive Director and co-host Talia Rodriguez, J.D., WNY Gender Justice Taskforce Chair. At the moment, the show is being pre-recorded, so graciously by Think Twice Studios! 1st hour with guest Bill Jungels: work of the Latin American Solidarity Committee (LASC); Bill’s work in Chiapas; LASC/ROCLA event on 1/6; Tom Pott’s work; Zapatistas; role of women in the struggle in Chiapas and here, Women’s March 1/16. 2nd hour with guest Heidi Jones: White supremacists in anti-maskers’ clothing; recent events in WNY.
WEDNESDAY, 1/6
7 PM – First-hand reports from Chiapas. Via Zoom. No need to register in advance; publicity and link to join meeting will be posted here. Led by Bill Jungels, reporting on Chiapas, COVID, dental projects, and autonomous communities there. A collaborative virtual presentation of the Latin American Solidarity Committee (LASC), and the Rochester Committee on Latin America (ROCLA).
~7:15 PM – Talking Peace taping. On Facebook Live. Featured guests: Clare Grady, Kings Bay Plowshares, Ithaca Catholic Worker, St. Patrick’s Four; Agnes Williams, Seneca, Indigenous Women’s Initiatives. Topics will include Epiphany (1/6), the Women’s March, Kings Bay Plowshares, Witness Against Torture and Guantanamo; Stop Pipeline 3; the Water Protectors; Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples (DRIP).
MONDAY, 1/11
SAVE THE DATE: Witness Against Torture events – TBA. A rough outline of activities includes: Lobby Day (by phone), small demonstration in DC (in-person), and an online educational program. Email witnesstorture@gmail.com if you’re interested in organizing. A Fast for Justice will also take place from 1/11-15 in solidarity with the men at Guantanamo with a Friday evening celebratory Zoom circle.
SATURDAY, 1/16
2 PM – WNY Women’s March 2021. On Zoom – register in advance here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
FRIDAY, 1/22
SAVE THE DATE: Entry Into Force Day for TPNW. On this day, the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons will enter into force. To mark the day that nuclear weapons become illegal under international law, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) campaigners and other anti-nuclear activists around the world will be hosting a huge range of actions and activities. Find one near you (or online in your time zone) here.
MONDAY, 1/25
2 PM – “World Says No to War on Yemen” Global Day of Action. Stop the War Coalition webinar with various internationally known artists, musicians, members of French and UK parliaments, and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. The WNYPC is also working with the Lackawanna Yemeni community to possibly hold a local interfaith vigil with masks and physical distancing – TBD. #YemenCantWait
UPCOMING REGULARLY SCHEDULED EVENTS
Find more details and additional weekly/monthly events on our website at
wnypeace.org/wp/regularly-scheduled-events
MONDAYS
1pm – Talking Peace (WNYPC radio show). On WBNY 91.3 FM or streaming online at wbny.buffalostate.edu. Insights on peace and justice with the WNYPC. At the moment, the show is being pre-recorded by Think Twice Radio: The Home of the Future!
WEDNESDAYS
3pm – Weekly Vigil and March Against the Death Penalty. From the Robert L. Jackson Courthouse to the ECHC. Please bring your own signs.
4pm – Prisoners’ Rights weekly vigil: No More ECHC Deaths! at the Erie County Holding Center. Please bring your own signs.
THURSDAYS
5pm – Immigrant & Refugee Justice (IRJ) weekly vigil: End Ice Terror! Outside the Delaware North Building. Please bring your own signs.
FRIDAYS
2pm – Environmental Justice weekly vigil: No Nuclear Waste over the Peace Bridge! At Front Park. Signs on hand.
SATURDAYS
12 pm – Women in Black weekly vigil. At Elmwood & Bidwell. Signs on hand.
UPDATED: CAMPAIGNS BY ISSUE AREA
Find more details and additional campaigns and fundraisers at
wnypeace.org/wp/current-campaign
wnypeace.org/wp/organizing-in-wny
Environmental Justice
– Join the West Valley Action Network and support the full cleanup of one of WNY’s most dangerous radioactive pollution problems. Help protect our drinking water, environmental, and community! Join in proactively protecting our region from the long-lasting, deadly nuclear and hazardous waste at the West Valley site. Please also contact all of your legislators – local, state, and federal – to urge full covered cleanup with extensive monitoring!
Policing & Criminal Justice Reform
– City of Buffalo’s Parking Amnesty Program: December 31st deadline! The program allows individuals whose tickets are older (i.e., issued prior to June 30th, 2019) to pay the original amount owed without late fees and clear their records. Contact pvboffice@city-buffalo.com or 716-851-5182 for more information, and please help the Fair Fines + Fees Coalition spread the word about this very important program!
– Please support the Cariol Horne Whistleblower Fund!
– Contact ECDA John Flynn’s office (by phone: 716-858-2424 and by web: https://www2.erie.gov/da/) urging him to:
- drop all charges against Willie Henley! If you are able, please also contribute to Willie’s lawyer fee funds at gofundme.com/f/willie-henley-lawyer-fee
- re-visit the Buffalo 5 case (indictment no. 41-413)! Three of the original Buffalo 5 remain living and are seeking a complete exoneration and clearing of their names. Please also see the change.org petition and GoFundMe.com campaign.
- give Deyanna Davis more freedom while she’s in house arrest! Visit linktr.ee/deyannadavis for a petition, fundraiser, and more information.
– Buffalo needs LEAD now! We recently saw a clear example of how the current way police respond to community members with mental health issues fails our community. This entire situation could have been avoided with Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD), a program that offers an alternative to arrest or hospitalization: diverting individuals into intensive management so their underlying needs are addressed. Learn more about LEAD here and SHARE WIDELY!
– Support the demand that the police budget is reallocated to invest in traffic calming infrastructure and take BPD out of traffic enforcement all together. Please fill out the questionnaire shared by Fair Fines + Fees to participate in a budgetary process that aims to make positive changes to the City’s budget. NEW! You can also share your ideas and priorities for changing the Buffalo Police Department through this survey by Free the People WNY.
– If you are a social worker or mental health professional, please sign the WNY Agents of Change open letter to Mayor Brown re: working with the BPD.
#UNITEtheStruggles | #OneLove | #WeShallOvercome | #SiSePuede