MAY 2014Our WorkOn April 11, four PT members met with a group of twelve Pakistani journalists to dialogue and answer questions. Organized in conjunction with the East-West Center, the Pakistan-United States Journalists Exchange is a new initiative to increase and deepen public understanding of the two countries and their important relationship.
On April 15, PT participated in the first Charter Peace Call. The call was organized by the Charter for Compassion and featured two main speakers: Michael Matkin, director of the Desmond Tutu Global Forgiveness Challenge and Simmi Kher from the Tony Blair Foundation. CLICK HERE to read the report. PT member, Talat Hamdani, attended the street renaming event in Bayside, NY on April 28. During the ceremony, her son, Zeshan, read the following PT statement: “Peaceful Tomorrows gratefully acknowledges the renaming of 204th Street to Salman Hamdani Way, in Bayside, NY. Salman was a first responder to the 9/11 tragedy whose contribution was not fully acknowledged because of his religion. Even today, people still equate being a Muslim with being a terrorist. Hundreds of New York City first responders and hundreds of millions of persons across the globe are Muslims and good citizens. We thank the State of New York for rising above the stereotyping and for honoring a deserving citizen.” TAKE ACTION: Starting on May 4, the Tutu Global Forgiveness Challenge can take you on a journey of Forgiveness. “Forgiving is a choice. A choice I have seen profoundly transform lives time and again,” says Archbishop Tutu. “As Nelson Mandela said when he walked free after 27 years of prison, ‘I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.’ Tutu hopes to bring the transformative power of forgiveness to people everywhere and to see it spread through families, communities, countries and our whole world. Nuclear Non-Proliferation: The 2014 “National Peace March Against A&H Bombs” in Japan spreads the wish of the Japanese people for “No More Horshimas and No More Nagasakis.” One hundred thousand people walking eleven different routes throughout Japan will start on May 6 from Yumenoshima and end in Hiroshima in August, during the World Conference Against A&H Bombs. This year the March incorporates an international youth relay. PT sent a message of support to be shared with the marchers. Global Day of Action: On May 28 join Witness Against Torture and many other organizations in Washington DC, across the US and around the world to Close Guantánamo. PT COMMUNICATIONS: When using any of the PT lists, make sure you OMIT the word “lists” in the address line. List addresses in alphabetical order now are: afghanistan@peacefultomorrows.org We are phasing out the civil liberties listserve. Those who are members will be moved into the Guantanamo and the Islamophobia lists. Please alert the office which of these lists you would like to join or if there are any you would wish to be removed from.
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