February 9th ONE WILPF CALL
4:00 pm pacific / 7:00 pm eastern
For all WILPF US members - not just branch contacts.
Guest speaker is Cindy Domingo
, Chair of the WILPF US National Issue Committee on CUBA & THE BOLIVARIAN ALLIANCE, describing the work of her committee over the last year and what they have planned for 2017. It isn't always easy to learn the details of this committee's work, so this is a great opportunity to learn more and become more engaged. With the changes in the US/Cuba relationship, what will that mean for both countries? Lots of news continues to emerge. In Florida the Governor has threatened to cut funds for the Port of Tampa and Port of Miami if they sign a trade and docking deal with Cuba, and those ports have chosen to reject the deal to retain their state and federal funding, for example.
The Solidarity Event date and theme
was voted on by 24 branches and at-large members and the decision is: April 22nd (Earth Day) and the Theme Peace & Planet Before Profit. Dial in to hear firsthand more about the next steps for the April 2017 Solidarity Event we are planning across all of WILPF US, including a new toolkitavailable soon to participating branches and at-large members.
Please note, requests for media lists (see below), reminders to order
CLIMATE JUSTICE+
WOMEN+
PEACE Infographic Cards from
1wilpfcalls@gmail.com. And banner/logo design for this event will be available the first week of February.
The Most Dangerous Women Book Group
will meet in a Break Out Room to discuss the new book This is an Uprising by Mark & Paul Engler, two community organizers who are the sons of a Des Moines WILPF member.
The Sustaining Activism Post Trump
group will be discussing suggestions for local actions that could be adopted by all branches and members. And a continuing discussion of diversity in WILPF. Work together across the US on strategies to make WILPF stronger, using the power of Break Out Rooms that help move our work forward.
Pre-registration is required
You can call in with your phone, or using both your phone and your computer for a fuller communication experience. All voices will be muted during the general part of the call and open during Break Out Rooms.
Press 5 on your phone keypad if you have any technical problems.
Press 1 on your phone keypad during Q&A to raise your hand and get on the stack, or to vote in real time polls.
Break Out Rooms planned so far (others may be added) include:
- SHARING RESOURCES - A starting road map for a website that allows branches and members to share materials and atrategies will be shared.
- SOLIDARITY EVENT - Continued planning and next steps.
- SUSTAINING ACTIVISM AFTER TRUMP - Actions and tactics that could become solidarity strategies across WILPF US.
- Most Dangerous Women Book Discussion. All who have read the book THIS IS AN UPRISING by Mark & Paul Engler and wish to discuss it with other members should join this break out room! Eileen Kurkoski of Boston WILPF will facilitate.
If you wish to suggest another Break Out Room topic,email us at
1wilpfcalls@gmail.com. Please use "New BOR Please" in the subject line.
If you wish to suggest guest speakers or topics for future ONE WILPF CALLS, email us at
1wilpfcalls@gmail.com. Please use "CALL TOPIC" in the subject line.
Branches/Members are asked to contribute local media lists by February 10 to help us effectively promote the April 22nd Solidarity Event.
In order to make a "big splash" with this event and bring it to the public's attention, each participating branch must promote it in the local newspapers and radio stations that you typically place ads in for your events, as well as in any local blogs or peace & justice email lists or newsletters. The Solidarity Event organizers realized this was a good opportunity for each branch to collect together a list of their local media (even researching papers and radio stations you haven't used in the past) and put it in a Word document that will be useful to your branch in general.
Please send your completed Word document to one central organizer and she will collect all this information for WILPF-US's future use. The national office does not have such a media list and all the information in your Word files will be sent to them too.
Even if you are doing just a level one participation in the Solidarity event you must still send the photo of your group and its banner to your local media with a short explanation, and so you must still prepare a list of the media you will be contacting.
This is what we want you to do before Friday, February 10
- Download the attached Branch Media Contact List. Maybe save it in a Solidarity Event folder.
- Open it up on your computer and fill in the top section with your own name, email address, phone number and branch name.
- Look at the table in the file and see the kind of information we want about the local media you typically send your event adverts to. There is an example given on the first row.
- Collect that information and type it into the table. The cells will increase in depth automatically to capture all the text you type in.
- Think about other daily or weekly newspapers, radio and TV stations in your town and surrounding area that you haven't contacted in the past, but maybe this is the time to expand your media contacts, so add them to the table.
- Think about local Progressive or Liberal Blogs, even political ones whose readers may be inclined to support your work.
- Add local or state Peace & Justice organization newsletters or email listservs and event calendars.
- Send the completed Word file as an email attachment to Cherrill Spencer of the Palo Alto/Peninsula branch (Cherrill@slac.stanford.edu -- note there are two "l"s at the end of her name) who has kindly volunteered to collect all your media contact files and will be sending them on to the Solidarity Event organizers and the national WILPF office. Send your file to Cherrill before Friday, February 10.
- If you do not send a media list by February 10, Cherrill will be phoning you to pester you about it. If you cannot create such a list, then write to Cherrill to tell her so.
- Please provide in the cover email to Cherrill a list of names and emails of your members who are active on Facebook. This is important since we will be relying on social media to help build interest for this event. If you don't have this list of active Facebook users by Feb. 10th, send the completed document to Cherrill on time, and please send that list of Facebook users asap after that, hopefully by March 1st.
Start the New Year with A Cuppa - Because we've got a LOT of work ahead!
WILPF members will have their work cut out for them in 2017, countering hate and fear and threats of war. We have a lot to look forward to as well, with an exciting and inspiring Triennial Congress being planned in late July in Chicago, in the shadows of Jane Addams' Hull House.
With so much to do, why not start off the year by becoming a monthly sustainer for WILPF US, where so much of your energy and heart already belong. Investing in peace will take all of us. So whatever you can afford each month, even as little as $5 a month ($60 a year) will make a huge difference and buy WILPF some space for setting strategy and connecting across the nation.
Mini Grant deadline has been extended to Feb. 15th.
Click for guidelines and application forms. WILPF US Mini Grants are available up to $2500.
A new JAPA-based Miami Fund
Smaller grants from $50 to $500 are available to branches for Peace Education projects. This could include seed money for work on your Solidarity Event, or other peace education work. Its deadline is also Feb. 15th.
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