Washington, DC – June 17, 2019 – Peace Action, the nation’s largest grassroots peace organization, and its affiliate Massachusetts Peace Action, endorsed Ayanna Pressley for Massachusetts’ 7th district. Peace Action is a national grassroots organization working to advance nuclear disarmament, promote government spending priorities that support human needs, encourage real security through international cooperation and human rights, and support nonmilitary solutions to international conflicts.
“My first priority is always to reduce violence and trauma, and to affirm the dignity and humanity of survivors — that means ending endless war and pursuing peace by all possible means,” said Pressley. “It also means fundamentally altering our approach to foreign policy — investing more in foreign assistance, specifically to improve conditions for women and girls around the world, and decreasing our military budget to provide more funding for critical domestic priorities like education, healthcare, and housing. We need a foreign policy that represents the best our nation has to offer, and I will continue working with Peace Action and other advocates to advance one.”
Paul Kawika Martin, Senior Director for Policy and Political Affairs at Peace Action, who also directs Peace Action’s PAC, said of the endorsement, “Peace Action is excited to endorse Ayanna Pressley for Congress because her commitment to peace is beyond question. She supports repealing the 2001 war authorization so we can finally put an end to endless war. She opposes what would be a dangerous and destabilizing military intervention in Venezuela. She knows we can afford real investments in our communities if we stop squandering taxpayer dollars in war after war. Our nation is safer and better off when we elect leaders like Rep. Pressley who prioritize human needs over the needs of the military industrial complex.”
“Massachusetts Peace Action is pleased to endorse Rep. Ayanna Pressley for re-election,” said Andrea Burns, Massachusetts Peace Action board member, co-chair of its legislative and political committee, and District 7 resident. “Her efforts to foster a productive, serious, and respectful dialogue — making space for multiple narratives and viewpoints — regarding the conflict between Israel and Palestine, has been a game-changer. Her support of the Yemen War Powers resolution, repeal of the AUMF, No War with Venezuela, and reducing the military budget by 25%, show that Congresswoman Pressley has already become a champion for peace and justice. Domestic policies such as the Healthy MOMMIES Act, support for ending cash bail and restoring voting rights of the incarcerated, among others, shows the Congresswoman prioritizes investment in the critical human needs of her district that contribute to real national security. With the trauma of violence, racism and poverty as her North Star, we believe Congresswoman Pressley will be a legislator who puts health and healing above profit and destruction both nationally and internationally.”
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Ayanna Pressley is an advocate, a policy-maker, an activist, and a survivor. On November 6, 2018, Ayanna was elected to represent Massachusetts’ 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, making her the first woman of color to be elected to Congress from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Ayanna believes that the people closest to the pain should be closest to the power and that a diversity of voices in the political process is essential to making policies that benefit more Americans.
Founded in 1957, Peace Action (formerly SANE/Freeze), the United States’ largest peace and disarmament organization, with over 100,000 paid members and nearly 100 chapters in 36 states, works to abolish nuclear weapons, promote government spending priorities that support human needs, encourage real security through international cooperation and human rights and support nonmilitary solutions to the conflicts with Afghanistan and Iran. Peace Action endorses dozens of candidates per election cycle and through Peace Action PAC raises tens of thousands of dollars for candidates and donates staff to key races. The public may learn more and take action at www.peaceaction.org.
