The Declaration of Peace is a grassroots nonviolent action campaign calling on the U.S. government to establish a comprehensive plan to end the U.S. war and occupation in Iraq. It is working to stop U.S. military escalation in Iraq, to defund the war, to bring the troops home safely, and to support a comprehensive Iraqi-led peace process.

During the September 21-28, 2006 Week of Action, thousands of people and hundreds of endorsing organizations participated in 375 Declaration of Peace events in cities and towns across the United States. These public actions for peace were the culmination of a four-month initiative to call on members of Congress to publicly commit to co-sign legislation to bring U.S. troops home safely and to support a plan for a just and lasting peace. One of the objectives of this campaign was to contribute to making the fall mid-term Congressional elections a referendum on the war.

Marking the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, in March 2007, The Declaration of Peace encouraged the organizing of hundreds of local events across the U.S., including nonviolent sit-ins and die-ins in 15 cities.

The Declaration of Peace also endorsed and helped organize the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq [1], where thousands gathered in Washington, D.C. for prayer, a candlelight procession and vigil, and nonviolent action resulting in 222 arrests at the White House [2].

Phase 3 - Now through September 21, 2007

Now we are building on these efforts to reinforce the growing sense of urgency in Congress about the war – and to take action to Defund the War and Establish A Comprehensive Peace Plan for Iraq.

Consultations with peace and justice coalitions, faith-based groups, veterans and military families, elected officials and staff, and community leaders from around the country led to the development of The Declaration of Peace’s nine point framework for a comprehensive plan for peace, including:

• An end to all funding of U.S. military operations in Iraq.
• Safe and rapid withdrawal of all U.S. troops and coalition forces from Iraq, with no future deployments.
• No permanent U.S. military bases or installations in Iraq.
• Support for an Iraqi-led Peace process, including a Peace conference to shape a post-occupation transition.
• Return control of Iraqi oil to the people of Iraq, as well as complete sovereignty in their economic and political affairs.
• Support for reparations and reconstruction to address the destruction caused by the U.S. invasion, military occupation, and 13 years of economic sanctions.
• Establish a U.S. “peace dividend” for job creation, health care, education, housing, and other vital social needs at home.
• Increased support for U.S. veterans of the Iraq war.
• No war against Iran or any other nation.

We will take every nonviolent step possible to meet these goals.

The Campaign

More than 500 national and local peace and justice organizations and coalitions endorsed The Declaration of Peace in Phase 1.
Now in Phase 3, The Declaration of Peace is endorsed by 800+ organizations and coalitions. We invite these organizations to be actively involved in the current stage of this campaign.

Click Here for a List of Endorsing Organizations [3]

If your organization would like to endorse this effort, you can do so by signing The Declaration of Peace Pledge online [3]. At the bottom of the Pledge, be sure to check the box indicating, “Yes - My Organization would like to endorse The Declaration of Peace.”

The Declaration of Peace is grassroots-driven and volunteer-run.

The Declaration of Peace National Coordinating Body makes major decisions on the direction of the campaign, with input from local organizers across the country. The National Coordinating Body is composed of representatives of the DoP work committees. These committees include: Outreach, Media, Communications, Finance, Local Organizing, Legislative, Nonviolence Training, Education, and Actions. These committees meet by telephone conference call on a regular basis.

If you are interested in working on a DoP committee, please contact the campaign at info@declarationofpeace.org [4].

To learn more, please contact us at: info@declarationofpeace.org [5].