FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 28, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT: Melissa Garriga | [email protected]
Prayer Vigil and Civil Disobedience to Urge Diplomacy in Ukraine War
Washington, DC - On October 4, a group of constituents and faith leaders will gather in Washington D.C. for a day of prayer, advocacy and, potentially, civil disobedience to demand that Congress call for a ceasefire and diplomacy as a path to peace in Ukraine. The group will hold a sit-in at Senator Bernie Sanders’ office to remind the progressive senator of his antiwar roots and urge him to take diplomatic steps to end the deadly conflict.
The prayer vigil will be followed by a sit-in at Senator Sanders' office in Washington D.C. The sit-in will coincide with a protest happening at Senator Sanders' office in Burlington, VT. The activists in D.C. plan to use large and colorful visuals, including a Bernie impersonator who will read out Sanders’ own words regarding the need for diplomacy to end the Ukraine war.
A coalition of constituents from across the country will spend the day in the halls of Congress visiting their representatives and asking for them to pursue a peace plan to end the war in Ukraine. The coalition includes constituents from Vermont, California, Washington State, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, Ohio, Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina. Those taking part in the sit-in are risking arrest in order for their voices to be heard.
“I have been so disappointed that my senator, Bernie Sanders. He is usually a champion for peace, but he has voted for more and more weapons to Ukraine and even criticized Democrats who called for peace talks. Yes, Bernie should condemn the Russian invasion, but he should also be calling for a negotiated end to this brutal war,” says Crystal Zevon, an artist and CODEPINK peace activist from Barnet, VT who is coming to Washington DC.
“We need Bernie to provide leadership to put a stop to the US funding of the Ukraine war now. Use the money for health care, not warfare,” says Burlington resident James Marc Leas, a retired IBM engineer and now a patent attorney.
The day of action will start at 9:30am ET in the Senate Hart Building atrium and will move to Senator Sanders’ office at approximately 10:30 am ET. The group is calling on all senators to take action to end the costly and deadly war by prioritizing diplomacy over weapons. They believe that there is no possible victory on the battlefield and that the only way to end this war is through negotiations.
The Advocacy Day is sponsored by CODEPINK and the Peace in Ukraine Coalition. For more information, please contact Medea Benjamin [email protected] or Melissa Garriga [email protected].
###
