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.
At Women Cross DMZ, we aren’t just working to end the Korean War, but to democratize the process of U.S. foreign policy-making and build lasting peace in the Asia-Pacific and beyond. We see the movement for peace in Korea tied to the collective struggles for freedom everywhere. We want everyone to live in a world free from violence and militarism, where people and the planet are valued over profit.
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.
- We are building and strengthening our grassroots network, especially among younger generations, who are taking leadership positions in our local chapters, tabling at events, participating in protests, and raising their voices for peace.
- We sent a letter to the State Department urging them to lift the ban on U.S. citizens traveling to North Korea, after which the State Department made revisions to their policies to allow family reunions.
- 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.
- Through our Feminist Peace Initiative, we are challenging U.S. militarism in the Asia-Pacific.
- 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.
To find out more about what we’ve accomplished and what we’re planning in the year ahead, read Women Cross DMZ’s 2022-2023 Annual Report.
Download our 2022-2023 Annual Report.
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