Divest From the War Machine

As momentum to organize locally against the Trump Military Budget grows, NYC could become the largest city to say MOVE THE MONEY! NYC-area peace and justice organizations are working to get support from NYC Council Members for shifting federal resources from spending on an immoral war economy to funding human needs and all essential public services.

Read their draft letter to the NY City Council below.
Then organize in your city, town or community to build support to MOVE THE MONEY.

DRAFT PEACE & JUSTICE ORGANIZATION LETTER TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS

Communities Across the U.S. Can Use This as a Template

Dear New York Council Member,

If President Trump’s budget is passed, New York City is likely to lose significant
resources to fund essential city programs: $100 million in cuts to public schools;
$150 million to public housing; $190 million to counter-terrorism and innumerable
cuts to programs such as Meals on Wheels, public libraries, and other programs that
New York City residents depend on. We need to move our money away from the
Trump Administration’s budget, and towards investing in our city.

We want you to help us Move the Money, and keep our tax dollars in our city. This
means we need to shift federal resources from the military budget of over $600
billion, now topped off with another $54 billion, accounting for more than half of
federal discretionary spending – to spending on human needs, and protecting our
city’s resources.

New York City mayor Bill DeBlasio and 252 other mayors  across the country
endorsed our Move the Money campaign at this year’s U.S. Conference of Mayors in
July. Hardly a new idea, our campaign is gathering steam across the
country. Charlottesville, VA; New Haven CT; Montgomery County
MD; Evanston IL; New London NH; Ithaca NY; and West Hollywood, CA, have all
adopted resolutions opposing a Trump budget that levels or eliminates city funding
to fund an already huge Pentagon budget.

As concerned New York City residents and organizations, we request a City Council
resolution for a public hearing to Move the Money and invest in our city. This
resolution would ensure a public hearing process on how redirected public funds
could be used to meet our city’s needs. These needs include, among others: fixing a
transit system that finds itself in a new crisis; preventing layoffs at the Health and
Hospitals Corporation; building affordable housing to stem the surge in
homelessness; to say nothing of infrastructure spending of all kinds. The City
Council resolution should be based on the resolution passed at the U.S. Council of
Mayors (attached)

The full consequences of the proposed budget for our city will become clear in the
months ahead. Right now the budget is known only in outline form. We need to
build local pressure so that our federal legislators will fight for us and to move our
tax money from war spending to spending for human needs. Your support will help
our legislators muster the courage to counter the Trump budget.

Local government officials, coping with actual or impending federal cutbacks to
these programs, see this crisis most clearly and should be at our side. We urge
your support for the sake of our great city. Should you have any questions, please
contact our facilitator, Joe Jamison, at Mejjam@aol.com

SIGNED
Veterans for Peace, Chapter 34, NYC
Code Pink
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, New York
World Beyond War
Peace Action NYS
Green Energy Legal Fund
CWA Local 1180
Queens NY Peace Council
United for Peace and Justice
September 11 th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows