Photo Caption: Members of the international delegation of peace activists on WCDMZ’s 10-year Anniversary Solidarity Trek to Korea staged historic artwork by Korean American interdisciplinary artist Yong Soon Min, “Movement Towards” (2018) at the Civilian Control Zone during WCDMZ’s 10- year anniversary trek to Korea. Min’s lifelong work exposed the lasting reverberations of the Cold War and Korea’s division. Photo by Yoon Ra
This year, Women Cross DMZ celebrated our 10-year anniversary of organizing, educating, and advocating for an end to the Korean War and forever wars everywhere. Amidst a global rise of militarism and fascism, we continue to strategize and weave our intergenerational, grassroots movement for peace in Korea with antiwar struggles for demilitarization and decolonization.
As we reflect on a decade of feminist peace-building, it’s clear to us: no democracy can thrive under militarism. Our 2025 accomplishments show how we have moved forward in developing our narrative, legislative, and grassroots advocacy, as well as creating collective spaces to build community.
Here are some of our key accomplishments in the last year:
We successfully organized our 10 Year Anniversary Solidarity Trek to Korea, where we commemorated our 2015 historic crossing of the DMZ and brought a delegation of feminist peace leaders from the U.S. to meet and mobilize with fellow civic society and peace activists in Korea, building transnational solidarity and calls for an end to the Korean War.
We published Women’s Rights Under the Division System in Korea, a report years in the making led by Korean women across borders, which sheds light on the profound and persistent impact of the division system and ongoing militarization of the Korean peninsula on women’s human rights, revealing the gendered consequences of U.S. military base violence, landmines and unexploded ordnance, and family separation.
In response to the martial law fiasco in South Korea in December 2024, we engaged in rapid on-the-ground mobilizations, legislative and media advocacy to support the South Korean democracy movement.
Along with our grassroots and faith-based partners, we organized the tenth annual Korea Peace Advocacy Weekto urge members of Congress to support legislation supporting peace in Korea – namely, H.R.1841, the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act. Over 150 constituents from 29 states joined in over 70 in-person and virtual meetings with Congressional representatives and Senators.
Looking ahead, our initiatives for 2026 and beyond include:
Publishing ground-breaking feminist analysis: We will continue to highlight the impact of war and militarism on women in Korea and globally through analysis, educational initiatives, media advocacy, and more.
Advocating for progressive Korea peace legislation: We will continue advocating for the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act and changes in military spending on the Hill, including amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act.
Training the next generation of leaders: We will organize a series of convenings for next generation activists to build skills in legislative advocacy, combating far-right agendas, and seeking redress for historic injustices.
Feminist counter to the “New Cold War”: We will convene leading feminist activists and produce policy papers that promote dialogue and civil society engagement on issues pertaining to North Korea, Russia, and China.
Militarism and Democracy: We will organize activists, scholars, policymakers, and journalists to engage in critical conversation about the ways in which U.S. forever wars and militarism undermine democracy both at home and abroad.
To find out more about what we’ve accomplished and what we’re planning in the year ahead, read our 2024-25 Annual Report.
As we brace for the next administration that will greatly impact the direction of U.S. foreign policy, Women Cross DMZ continues to evolve our strategies and tactics to work toward lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Our accomplishments in the past year show how we have adapted to increased U.S. militarism and unprecedented violence across the globe, by building solidarity across movements, growing the leadership of the next generation of Korea peace activists, and connecting our movement for Korea peace to global struggles for demilitarization and decolonization.
Here are some of our accomplishments in the last year:
Along with our Feminist Peace Initiative partners and the Inclusive Global Leadership Initiative, we organized the inaugural Feminist Peace Summit with leading feminist scholars and activists to discuss advancing a new U.S. foreign policy away from endless wars and toward feminist principles of peace, justice, and sustainability, led by people of color, diasporic communities, and Indigenous Peoples.
Our Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network expanded its membership base to grow our political power and mobilize more voices calling for a peace-first approach to end the Korean War. Our monthly national meetings focus on community building and political education.
We launched a groundbreaking Intergenerational Healing & Learning Series led by artists, psychologists, writers, and other culture bearers to center addressing intergenerational trauma as an integral part of our work to end the Korean War.
We organized the ninth annual Korea Peace Advocacy Week to urge members of Congress to support legislation supporting peace in Korea. Thanks to this nationally coordinated action with our faith-based partners and our grassroots activists across the country, H.R.1369, the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act, now has 52 co-sponsors.
Next year will mark an exciting new chapter for Women Cross DMZ, as Cathi Choi will become Executive Director in January 2025 and Founder and Co-Director Christine Ahn will leave her post to become a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. Christine will continue to serve as a strategic advisor for Women Cross DMZ. Cathi plans to expand Women Cross DMZ’s visibility and reach, and cultivate a new generation of Korea peace activists for the long-term viability of our global peace movement.
Looking ahead, here are some of our initiatives for 2025 and beyond:
Women Cross DMZ turns 10! To commemorate our historic 2015 crossing, we will lead a Healing & Reconciliation Tour to South Korea in 2025, on the 10-year anniversary of the DMZ crossing and the 80th Anniversary of Korea’s division.
Feminist Peace Report. With our Feminist Peace Initiative partners MADRE and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, we will publish a report outlining our feminist vision for U.S. foreign policy for the incoming administration.
Anti-Asian Violence Conference. Partnering with the University of Washington, in the fall of 2025 we will host a conference on the connections between anti-Asian violence and U.S. militarism.
Organizing & Advocacy. We will work with our advocacy partners on developing the best strategies for legislative change, and we will continue organizing the dedicated activists in our Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network to advocate for Korea peace legislation and an end to the U.S. ban on travel to North Korea.
Healing Intergenerational Trauma. Responding to overwhelming interest, we will continue with our Intergenerational Learning & Healing Series with legal experts, scholars, artists, psychologists, community leaders, survivors, and allies to discuss how healing intergenerational trauma stemming from U.S. forever wars is intricately tied to advocating for peace and justice.
As the global community struggles to advance peaceful solutions to crises in Russia-Ukraine, Israel-Palestine, U.S.-China and beyond, creating peace in Korea and in our world has become ever more urgent.
Here are some of our accomplishments in the last year:
Together with our partners, we organized Korea Peace Action, a national gathering of hundreds of Korea peace supporters in Washington, DC, on the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice.
We’re changing the narrative on the Korean War through Crossings, the documentary film by Deann Borshay Liem about our feminist movement for peace, which was broadcast nationally on PBS and, to date, has been screened over 75 times to thousands of people around the world.
With our partners the American Friends Service Committee and Mennonite Central Committee, we organized Korea Peace Advocacy Week, virtual lobby visits with dozens of members of Congress to advocate for Korea peace legislation.
We released an analysis on how the U.S.-China great-power competition is impacting the prospects for peace in Korea.
Looking to the next year, Women Cross DMZ plans to:
Partnering with Hawai‘i Peace and Justice and The Costs of War Project, we will convene researchers and activists from across the Pacific and Asia to deepen our understanding of the intersection of militarism and climate change.
For the Feminist Peace Initiative with MADRE and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, we will convene a Feminist Peace Summit, bringing together activists, academics, policymakers, and other key allies to forge a new vision for building a Feminist Foreign Policy for Peace.
Building on our July 2023 national mobilization, we will partner with cultural creatives (artists, authors, filmmakers, etc.) to produce an online series that challenges the U.S. mainstream narrative on the Korean War and addresses generational trauma.
Since 2014, Women Cross DMZ has built a formidable organization to educate the public and policymakers about the need for a peace-first approach to resolve the seven-decade conflict on the Korean Peninsula.
Despite the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, Women Cross DMZ continues to build the political will for bringing about a formal end to the Korean War. Here are some of the steps we’ve taken in the last year to get closer to that goal:
Organized a Korea Peace National Strategy Meeting to convene key leaders from advocacy, grassroots organizing, humanitarian, and messaging sectors of the U.S.-based Korea peace movement in order to assess the current political reality and develop strategies across these intersecting vantage points.
Highlighted the harms caused by the U.S.-China rivalry on frontline communities in the Pacific and Asia region through a series published in Foreign Policy in Focus as part of our Feminist Peace Initiative with MADRE and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance.
Organized letters signed by 100 women leaders to U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and North Korea’s First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choe Son-hui urging them to set the stage for a diplomatic solution, and to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging him to end the ban on U.S. citizens traveling to North Korea, signed by humanitarian leaders, members of divided families, organizations working to repatriate U.S. servicemember remains, and others.
Called for suspending the U.S.-R.O.K. military exercises and decreasing military tensions on the Korean Peninsula by organizing rallies and sending a letter to the State Department.
Advocated for H.R.3446, the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act by collaborating with the Korea Peace Network, Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network, and Peace Treaty Now to organize “Korea Peace Advocacy Week” for nationally coordinated online advocacy.
Organized nationwide screenings of the new documentary film Crossings by Emmy-award winning filmmaker Deann Borshay Liem about our historic journey across the demilitarized zone in 2015 from North Korea to South Korea to call for an end to the 70-year war that has divided the Korean Peninsula and its people.
Published From Confrontation to Peacebuilding: U.S.-China Competition and the Korean Peninsula, a new report that explores how the great power competition threatens prospects for peace in Korea, and conversely, how peacebuilding in Korea offers an opportunity for cooperation between Washington and Beijing.
Looking to the future, Women Cross DMZ plans to:
Garner more support in Congress and within the Biden administration for peace and normalizing relations with North Korea. We will continue to educate the public, lead and build coalitions, direct national advocacy work, and mobilize our grassroots chapters. We will work with Korea Peace Champions in Congress to reintroduce the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act in Spring 2023.
Cultivate the next generation of activists to become Korea Peace Champions by establishing Korea Peace Now! Campus chapters in colleges and universities, including at Boston College, University of California at Santa Cruz, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, Spelman College, and more.
Organize 100 screenings by December 2023 of the new documentary film Crossings to grassroots communities, on college campuses, and to policymakers as an educational and organizing tool to grow our movement and encourage people to take action to end the Korean War.
Lead an international delegation of women leaders on a De-militarization Tour to South Korea in 2023 on the 70th anniversary of the Armistice Agreement. We will travel to the DMZ and other militarized sites to hear from women about the impact of the ongoing 70-year-old war on their daily lives, and about their vision of a genuinely de-militarized Korea, region and world.
Read more about our accomplishments and how we are continuing to build a growing movement for peace in Korea in our 2021-2022 Annual Report.
Despite all the challenges during this pandemic, Women Cross DMZ has persevered and grown this year, in both capacity and spirit. Here are some of our many accomplishments:
Released the groundbreaking report Path to Peace: The Case for a Peace Agreement to End the Korean War, which explores how a peace-first approach can help advance denuclearization and improved human rights
Sent a letter signed by 71 prominent Korean American leaders to President Biden urging him to end the Korean War with a peace agreement
Launched the Feminist Korea Peace Fellowship to build the bench of the next generation of young Korea peace leaders
Strengthened our Feminist Peace Initiative with MADRE and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance to advance a movement-driven US foreign policy away from endless wars
Devised a two-year strategic plan to become a more robust, powerful organization
Expanded our board with the addition of two new board members, Professors Ji-Yeon Yuh at Northwestern University and Marie Berry at University of Denver
Looking to 2022, Women Cross DMZ will:
Urge the Biden administration and Congress to pursue a peace-first approach on the Korean Peninsula by building and leading coalitions, directing the advocacy work with national organizations, cultivating Korea peace champions, and building the political space for peace through Congressional resolutions such as H.R.3446, the Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act.
Strengthen solidarity among feminist peace movements, from the Korea Peace Now! transnational feminist campaign to the Feminist Peace Initiative with MADRE and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance.
Cultivate younger generations of activists to become Korea peace champions, by establishing Korea Peace Now! chapters in colleges and universities.
Convene a national strategy meeting with key leaders and allies to develop a roadmap for organizing and advocacy for Korea peace during the Biden administration.
Organize nationwide screenings of the documentary film Crossings by Deann Borshay Liem about our transnational feminist movement for Korea peace.
Read more about our accomplishments this year and how we will continue to advance Korea peace in our 2020-2021 Annual Report.
Although the coronavirus pandemic forced Women Cross DMZ to shift tactics this year, we made significant progress in building momentum toward ending the Korean War, the signing of a peace agreement, and women’s inclusion in the peace process. Our 2019-2020 Annual Report recaps our many accomplishments this year. Among the highlights:
Launched an initiative with MADRE and Grassroots Global Justice Alliance calling for a new US foreign policy based on feminist principles of collective care, reparations, and sustainability.
Organized a bipartisan roundtable in support of a peace agreement.
Brought in the first Republican co-sponsor of House Resolution 152, which calls for a formal end to the Korean War and a peace agreement. There are now 52 members of Congress on record in support of a peace agreement to end the Korean War.
Together with our coalition partners, sent a key policy education memo to presidential candidates outlining what a pro-peace, pro-diplomacy Korea policy should look like.
Organized a series of monthly webinars that brought together thousands of people in critical reflection, study, story-sharing, and dialogue.
Looking to 2021, Women Cross DMZ will:
Lead the coalition of national groups to advance a new bipartisan H.Res. 152 in Congress
Release the Korea Peace Now! report “Path to Peace: The Case for a Peace Agreement to End the Korean War”
Host virtual roundtables with Korean, diaspora, and international feminists
Advance our Feminist Peace Initiative for a movement-driven feminist foreign policy
Launch Young Korea Peace Feminists program to train and cultivate a new generation of activists
Unveil our Question Bridge video project to facilitate intergenerational dialogue among our grassroots members
Further grow our grassroots base in the US and with the Korea Peace Appeal campaign in South Korea
Organize virtual screenings of the documentary Crossings about our transnational feminist peace movement
Read more about our accomplishments this year and how we will continue to build momentum for Korea peace in our 2019-2020 Annual Report.
It’s been quite a year for Women Cross DMZ. Our 2018-2019 Annual Report looks back at a productive year working toward ending the Korean War, the signing of a peace agreement, and pushing for women’s inclusion in the peace process. Thanks to your support, we’re building the momentum for peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Some of our achievements include:
Mobilizing 40 co-sponsors for House Resolution 152, which calls for an end to the Korean War.
Helping organize a meeting of women peacemakers from Northeast Asia to discuss women’s leadership in building peace in Korea and the region.
Launching the global campaign Korea Peace Now! Women Mobilizing to End the War with the Nobel Women’s Initiative, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, and the Korean Women’s Movement for Peace.
Bringing a delegation of women lawmakers from South Korea to dialogue with members of Congress on how to push the Korea peace process forward and include women.
Meeting with senior officials from the Trump and Moon administrations and the DPRK Mission to the UN to discuss ways that our network of women can support the peace process.
Organizing 10 grassroots Korea Peace Now! chapters across the country.
With DC allies, coordinating a National Call-In Day for Korea Peace, which generated 576 calls and 3,957 emails to members of Congress.
As we look to 2020 — the 70th anniversary of the start of the Korean War — and a narrowing window of opportunity for peace, we’re ramping up our efforts to realize our goals: We’re co-organizing a women of color feminist foreign policy roundtable to inspire the next generation of activists, a Northeast Asia roundtable in Sweden with women peace activists from around the region to share strategies and build relationships, and a national grassroots convening in Washington, DC, to mobilize grassroots support across the country. We’re also gearing up for the release of a documentary about our efforts, Crossings, and preparing for another DMZ crossing in May — the fifth anniversary of our 2015 peace walk.
Thank you for continuing to support our efforts to achieve a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world, free from nuclear weapons and militarization. We hope you enjoy reading our 2018-2019 Annual Report about how your support makes our work possible.
