FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

National Contact: Patty Kuderer, 206.910.2422,  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Local Contact: Linda Henderson, 517.282.1467,  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

LANSING JOINS GROWING LIST OF CITIES SUPPORTING DEPARTMENT OF PEACE

Washington , DC – October 3, 2007. In Michigan’s capital city of Lansing Monday night, city officials unanimously adopted a resolution calling for creation of a U.S. Department of Peace and Nonviolence. In doing so, Lansing joins Detroit, Hamtramck, and the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Tribal Council in Michigan in supporting HR 808, a bill currently in the U.S. House to establish this cabinet-level department within the federal government. The resolution also calls on Michigan Congressman Mike Rogers [R-8 th Congressional District] to co-sponsor the bill and urges Senators Debbie Stabenow [D-MI] and Carl Levin [D-MI] to offer a companion bill in the U.S. Senate.

Linda Henderson, State Coordinator for the Michigan Department of Peace Campaign, is credited with organizing the support for the federal legislation among city officials. "To quote Tip O’Neill, 'all politics are local,'" said Henderson. "(Lansing Council Vice President) Brian Jeffries was right to point out the biggest local issue facing us today is crime and violence, and that this legislation will provide local officials and law enforcement with tools and programs to prevent much of that violence," she said.

A Department of Peace will address issues both at home and abroad. Internationally, the Department will research and analyze foreign policy and recommend to the President ways to address the root causes of war. The Department will also provide expert advice to the President when diffusing or dealing with international crises.

Domestically, the Department will research, propose and facilitate practical, field-tested solutions to reduce and prevent violence. It will provide additional financial and institutional heft to strengthen and complement our current approach to violence, focusing on prevention through multi-layered strategies, including increased funding for local programs already proven effective at reducing and preventing violence. A Peace Academy, on par with the Military Service Academies, would train civilian peacekeepers and the military in the latest nonviolent conflict resolution techniques and approaches.

Over 20 other cities have endorsed the legislation across the country, including Atlanta, GA, Cleveland, OH, Minneapolis, MN, and Providence, RI.

"Reacting to violence after it occurs is inadequate and insufficient," said Henderson. "Let’s get serious about violence and create a US Department of Peace so we can focus more of our attention on preventing these tragedies from occurring in the first place."

Please visit The Peace Alliance website at www.thepeacealliance.org, for more information on the campaign to create a U.S. Department of Peace. Photo available upon request.

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