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Dear member of Congress,
As one of the 200,000 supporters of Peace Action and a voting constituent, I am writing to urge you to speak out in favor of the U.S. joining the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
Cluster bombs are deadly, indiscriminate weapons that disperse bomblets over large areas, making their use over civilian areas particularly atrocious. They also leave unexploded bomblets strewn across those areas — functionally landmines — that civilians can stumble upon and accidentally detonate.
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Victory! Largest U.S. Cluster Bomb Maker Stops Production.
Textron, the last remaining U.S. company producing cluster bombs, has announced that it will end production of these terrible weapons. This is a huge victory!
Cluster bombs are deadly indiscriminate weapons that disperse bomblets over large areas, making their use over civilian areas particularly atrocious. They also leave unexploded bomblets strewn across those areas — functionally landmines — that civilians can stumble upon and accidentally detonate.
Some of these bomblets even look like toys, leading children to pick them up and play with them. For these reasons, cluster bombs have been banned internationally by 119 states, but not the U.S. or Saudi Arabia. Now that the last U.S. manufacturer of these weapons is ending production, the time is ripe for the U.S. to join the convention banning their use.
Please email your representative and senators TODAY and ask them to speak out in favor of the U.S. joining the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
Peace Action has worked for years to protest the use, transfer and manufacture of cluster bombs, which have made headlines in the past year for killing and maiming hundreds of civilians in Yemen’s civil war. After rights groups documented that a U.S.-backed coalition led by Saudi Arabia was using American-made cluster bombs over civilian areas in Yemen, Peace Action took part in a grassroots campaign to build awareness and opposition to them. This campaign was a huge success, leading President Obama to suspend the transfer of cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia this past spring.
Since then, we’ve built support in Congress for an amendment that would make that ban permanent. We’ve also taken advantage of our national grassroots power. Our state affiliate, Massachusetts Peace Action, led protests outside of Textron’s facilities calling on the company to cease production, and calling for the U.S. to join the convention banning cluster bombs.
In discussing the decision to end production of cluster bombs, Textron all but admitted that the grassroots campaign we helped organize was responsible. In a press conference, they said that “the current political climate” had led to decreased sales and lowered the chances of getting future sales approved by Congress and the administration. And while one spokesperson claimed that the protests “didn’t drive the decision to exit,” they noted that “clearly, it was noticed.”
By removing the U.S. business interest in the making of cluster bombs, this campaign has created a window of opportunity for further progress, making right now — today — a critical time to pressure Congress to act.
Follow this link to email your representative and senators and ask them to stand up for what’s right by speaking out in favor of joining the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
I hope you’re able to savor this victory over the holiday weekend. Thank you for taking part in previous actions to make this victory possible, and thank you in advance for taking action to seize this moment and push for more.
Humbly for peace,
Jon Rainwater
Executive Director
Peace Action and the Peace Action Education Fund
P.S. As a wise woman, Margaret Mead, once said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Email your representative and senators now and ask them to speak out in favor of joining the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
