[CFSC E-news] True peace
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- Published on Saturday, 01 November 2014 02:00
- Written by editor
r33
November, 2014
True Peace"At a time when there is so much rememberance of war, we remember Peace, and what makes for it."
So starts a letter from CFSC Clerk Lana Robinson which shares stories of peace, justice, and Indigenous rights work that is only realized thanks to you, our donors.
Once a year we ask for donations to this work and now's the time! We encourage you now to read our Annual Appeal 2014, share it with any you know who might be interested, and most importantly donate to support "true peace".
http://quakerservice.ca/news/cfsc-annual-appeal-2014/
CFSC Meeting - news & updates!
Friends serving on CFSC’s board and program committees met in Toronto October 24-26, 2014 to keep our work moving forward, including approving changes to simplify our structure, as a means to strengthening our program work, by using Friends’ gifts and abilities in a more focused, purposeful, and meaningful way. It was a busy two and a half days - here are just a few of the highlights from our programs:
CFSC's fearless new Clerk Lana Robinson receives the all important "how to herd cats" t-shirt sent by previous CFSC Clerk Lesley Robertson while General Secretary Jane Orion Smith composes a minute to record the moment. Photo credit: Matt Legge
Justice
- Planning to do education and outreach about penal abolition - helping Friends consider what it means and the alternatives.
- Endorsing the draft Best Practice Guidelines for Prison Mother-Child Units for provincial and federal corrections institutions in Canada.
- Continuing to participate in a number of networks and coalitions as well as attending the 2014 UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on the 25th Anniversary of the Adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child this November in New York.
- Continuing to develop and build engagement with our Youth Justice Knowledge Hub, which shares research and information among those active in the justice field so that all are aware of each others' work and good practices.
- Continuing to support efforts internationally and in Canada to recognize and mitigate the negative impacts of incarceration of parents on their children.
- Approving small grants: Renewal of a women’s shelter grant that assists with travel costs for women and their children to attend a program providing support and counseling for children exposed to violence against women. Approval of a grant towards an art exhibit and workshop that explores the shaping of our understandings of justice in society, in collaboration with the Church Council on Justice and Corrections (CCJC), at the National Restorative Justice Symposium in Banff, Alberta in November.
- Developing initial steps to move forward our work on synthetic biology as described in this year's CYM minute (see the news item below for more on synthetic biology).
- Supporting a women's reproductive health project in Bujumbura, Burundi in partnership with Friends Women's Association and the Africa Great Lakes Initative of Friends Peace Teams (AGLI).
- Continuing work in support of peacebuilding in Kinshasa, DR Congo. Together with Kinshasa Friends, a work plan with key activites until 2016 has been developed.
- Planning information and options to share with Friends about how to engage in the boycott of products from illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem if so led, as well as other actions to consider toward a just peace in Palestine/Israel.
- Meeting with three members of the Refugee Committee of Toronto Monthly Meeting who presented about the refugee work that CFSC financially supports.
- Giving considerable time and thought to our future work in peacebuilding education within Canada. We will be moving forward on a number of "pilot" initiatives in the coming year.
- Continuing our engagement in support of Indigenous partners to see that the Supreme Court of Canada's landmark Tsilhqot'in Title decision is respected by Canada, provinces, and industry. There is much action and litigation involving resource development in British Columbia, including the Northern Gateway project.
- Participating in various presentations, a conference on coalition building, and hosting with partners a roundtable on Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC).
- Working to promote and implement recommendations from the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples’ Outcome Document.
- Supporting KAIROS as they build their capacity to engage on Indigenous rights issues at the United Nations.
- Supporting Friends presence at the closing event of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Ottawa in May/June 2015. Preparing tools to assist Friends working on Reconciliation.
- Furthering work encumenically, and supporting work at the Monthly Meeting level, toward Canada's repudiation of the racist Doctrine of Discovery, which CYM repudiated in 2013.
- Approving small grants: First Peoples Human Rights Coalition to run an email list of news about Indigenous rights (contact CFSC to be added!), Smoke Signals to run an Indigenous news radio show, Ojibway Connections to hold gatherings for Indigenous women.
New animated video explaining syn bio
In just 10 minutes, this video touches on a staggering array of concerning implications of the ever expanding synthetic biology industry. It is well worth watching and sharing this video, which outlines many of the concerns that Monthly Meetings expressed to CFSC during their discernment around synthetic biology:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=C726wUGLdL4
More about CFSC's work on synthetic biology:
http://www.quakerservice.ca/syntheticbiology
Prison chaplaincy speaking tour
Friends in Ontario are encouraged to hear CFSC Associate member Kate Johnson speak about her experience as a prison chaplain and how changes in Canada's approaches to justice and corrections and affecting prisoners and chaplaincy today. Here is a list of Kate's speaking dates:
- Whitby, ON - Westminster United Church, November 16, 2014 at 7 pm
- Kingston, ON - Agnes Etherington Art Centre, November 23, 2014 at 2 pm
- Toronto, ON - Eglington St. George's United Church, January 25, 2015 at 12:30 pm
- Guelph, ON - Third Age Learning Circle, February 18, 2015
- Perth, ON - Probus club, April 3, 2015
The Canadian Council for Refugees, of which CFSC is a member, recently released a report describing the effects that changes to the refugee claim process have on refugees and the NGOs that serve them. The report touches on shorter timelines, "designated countries of origin", cuts to refugee healthcare and other recent changes as well as explaining the crucial role that NGOs play in supporting refugees. CFSC plays a major role providing services like those described in this report through our partnership with Toronto Monthly Meeting's Refugee Committee.
Read the CCR report at: http://ccrweb.ca/en/keeping-door-open-report
Read more about our work on refugee issues: http://quakerservice.ca/our-work/human-rights/refugee-rights/
Friends lead Micah Mission work in Saskatoon
Our Quakers Fostering Justice program committee congratulates Sharon Wright (Prarie Monthly Meeting) on her recent reappointment as the Chairperson of Micah Mission!
The Micah Mission of Saskatoon is an ecumenical restorative justice organization. Micah is committed to restoring individuals and communities to caring and respectful relationships in the wake of harm through the work of a community reintegration chaplain, programs of visitation, befriending, and circles of support and accountability - visit http://themicahmission.org/ for more information.
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