Dear Peace House supporter,

What turned you into a peace and social change activist?
The Vietnam War? The Women’s Movement? Ending the nuclear arms race? The GLBTQ struggle for equal rights? For most of us, activism has enriched our lives, and made a difference.

But what about today’s youth? What can we do to convert their inherent idealism into activism? Peace House’s newest campaign is to empower a new generation of activists in the Rogue Valley. Our own organization needs their vitality and fresh perspectives…and so do our local communities and the world at large.

With Oregon Action, we are hosting an all-day training for aspiring social change activists on November 16. We have recruited a diverse group of 20 participants from local high schools, SOU, RCC and the community. At the training we will introduce them to the practical work of social change and connect them to each other and to Rogue Valley organizations for on-going education and activities. The majority of our planning committee members are under 35, so the intergenerational work has already begun.

We have been working to strengthen our connections with Southern Oregon University, especially through its UN Club, with which we co-sponsored a major conference in the spring and several talks later in the year. We hosted a Peace House table at SOU’s fall Meet the Community Day to form meaningful connections with students in person. Shaun Franks, a leader of campus activism, has joined our board and is helping to guide our work.

We’ll follow up with all our young contacts using the technologies they rely on to build relationships – primarily social media accessed with mobile devices. We have the ideas and the technical capacity, and we will leverage the growing body of expertise about how to involve the “millennials” in political activism. …if we can secure the resources.

Despite all the peace and justice work your support has made possible (and which continues at an intense pace), we will need additional funding to launch and work this campaign to attract younger people into our membership, programs, and activism. We also rely on your support for other ongoing actions:

• Averting wars with Syria and Iran. We helped prevent an attack on Syria by generating intense grassroots pressure on our Congressional representatives. And we have joined with activists nation-wide to urge President Obama to seize the opening provided by the election of a new and more moderate Iranian leader. And we keep lobbying our two U.S. Senators to promote diplomatic approaches instead of punitive measures to assure that Iran confines its nuclear program to civilian purposes.
• Ending drone attacks. Our work to end this remote-control “shadow war” (with unacceptable civilian casualties) has had an impact far beyond what our size could have predicted. In the last six months the attacks have diminished significantly, and the national security establishment seems to be rethinking its ultimate value.
• Supporting whistleblowers. With our public rallies in connection with the Bradley Manning trial, our Fourth of July parade entry, and our summer door-to-door petition drive, we have promoted public understanding of the long-standing Constitutional abuses that prompted courageous actions by Manning and Edward Snowden.

And that’s not all. We keep feeding the hungry at Uncle Food’s Diner—more than 100 on average. We continue to hold our well-attended monthly Happy Hour Peace Talks on major issues. We keep working to reduce military spending and properly fund human needs. And we were once again a major organizer of Ashland’s highly successful observance of the International Day of Peace on September 21.

Please carry our fight into the future
I hope you are proud to be a part of Peace House, and are pleased with the work your support has made possible. We ask that you continue your connection and your support by renewing your membership or donate what you can today.

Herbert Rothschild, Board Chair

PS. Visit our website (www.peacehouse.net) and LIKE our Facebook page Peace House Ashland Oregon at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Peace-House-Ashland-Oregon/235510203165748. They are continuously updated and offer opportunities for you to make a difference by participating in local events and signing online petitions.