AFSC Indiana Peacebuilding
https://www.facebook.com/pg/afscindiana
Contact: epolley@afsc.org
1100 W 42nd St, Ste 125
Indianapolis, Indiana 46208
The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace, and humanitarian service. The AFSC Indiana Peacebuilding Program uses creative and visual grassroots education and organizing to foster collaboration with and deepen the skills of students, faith-based activists, and community groups. By building leadership skills among a new generation of activists, the program seeks to create long-term changes in public opinion and policy about militarism and violence. Our work in Indiana focuses on two AFSC national initiatives, Humanize Not Militarize and Israel-Palestine peacebuilding campaigns. Militarism and policing affects everyday life from Ferguson to Gaza. Humanize Not Militarize is a poster exhibit and youth film festival engaging young people, community members,and leaders through art, media, and difficult dialogue to challenge our understanding of the growing military presence and violence at home and abroad, and reimagine the meaning of domestic and global peace. We work in partnership with student, activist, and community groups organizing for Palestinian human rights and for peace in Gaza, providing training and support for their efforts. We educate the public and engage with local lawmakers to advocate for the end of Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory and support for divestment from illegal occupation and resulting systemic violence. AFSC supports the implementation of international human rights laws in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, promotes implementation of Palestinian refugees’ right of return, and calls for full equality between Palestinians and Israelis. From our experience, we know that peacemaking requires more than merely advocating against one war or another. Real peace is more than the absence of war. Rather, we need to change the culture, situations, and systems that lead to violence. AFSC knows that miracles can happen when we build the capacity for peace person-by-person, community-by-community. When people understand the terrible consequences of violence and witness realistic alternatives, they come together as a powerful force to address the underlying causes and lay the foundation for lasting peace. The American Friends Service Committee has more than nine decades of experience building peace in communities worldwide. Founded in the crucible of World War I by Quakers who aimed to serve both humanity and country while being faithful to their commitment to nonviolence, AFSC has worked throughout the world in conflict zones, in areas affected by natural disasters, and in oppressed communities to address the root causes of war and violence.