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More than 200 Quakers from about 36 states gathered in Washington, DC, in early November to plan strategies for lobbying Congress and making peace an issue in the 2008 elections. The 2007 Annual Meeting of the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) included a keynote address by civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis and briefings from congressional staff, FCNL staff, and grassroots lobbyists from around the country. Here are some initial reports.
"It is time for all of us to make a little noise,
to get in the way, to bring this madness of the war
in Iraq to an end," Rep. John Lewis said.
Listen to his speech.
More photos of annual meeting coming soon as well as better quality audio.
Read a summary of what happened at Annual Meeting.
Building a Broader Network to End the War
Robert Neuhauser, pictured at above right, talked about his participation in an interfaith effort to end the war in Vietnam. "We can learn from this history," Field Program Secretary Kathy Guthrie told the Annual Meeting. "We need to organize interfaith delegations in every congressional district to urge Congress to stop funding the war and start funding a new diplomatic strategy to get the U.S. out of Iraq." FCNL specifically urged local Friends and like minded folk to organize a grassroots, in-district lobbying effort in January 2008 just before Congress was expected to vote on legislation authorizing more money for the war in Iraq.
David Goldstein on Saving Energy, Growing Jobs
David Goldstein, co-director of the Natural Resources Defense Council Energy program, explained the impact of density and transit on auto costs. Government regulation now discourages energy conservation in some parts of the country.
Listen to his speech.
Look through the presentation (PDF) that accompanied his speech.
Interns Talk About How They Ended Up at FCNL
The FCNL program assistants addressed the Annual Meeting on Saturday morning.  Listen to their comments by clicking on the name below.
Dan Allen
Caroline Anderson
Nick Bauer
Sharon Franklet
Kate Gould
Danny Hosein
Trevor Keck
Joelle Maruniak
Claire Valentin
Reviewed:
06/06/2008
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