The Cost of War

Bring the War Dollars Home … Fund Our Communities!

In North Carolina, NC Peace Action and the American Friends Service Committee (Carolinas Office) have united on a statewide effort to connect the dots: War Spending Has Local Consequences.

People everywhere are aware that budget cuts at the federal, state, and local levels are having serious consequences.  Libraries and firehouses are being closed, public servants and teachers laid off, care for sick and elderly being denied, our environment degraded, and our society abandoning quality education for our children.  YET there always seems to be enough money to fund the wars.  Why is this?

We have to pose this question to every elected official and repeat the message that these upside down priorities are wrong and must be reversed.

Campaign Successes | Join The Change

• 20 members of the NC General Assembly sent a strong letter to our NC Congressional delegation calling for the need to “redirect tens of billions of dollars from excess military spending and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq toward meeting urgent domestic needs.”  (Read full letter here.)

• The Durham City Council called upon the president and Congress “to bring these war dollars home to meet vital human needs, promote job creation, rebuild our infrastructure, aid municipal and state governments, and develop a new economy based upon renewable, sustainable energy and reduce the federal debt.”  (Read full resolution here.)

• The Durham County Commissioners called “upon the United States Government and President Barack Obama to responsibly end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and bring our war dollars home”.  (Read full resolution here.)

• The Durham Board of Education called “upon the US government and President Obama to end the wars and military presence in Afghanistan and other areas of the world that have not attacked the US and reinvest those dollars in the future of our children.”  (Read full resolution here.)

Campaign Resources | Change Starts Locally

Consider starting a campaign in your town or city – or if there is already a campaign in your area, join in!

• Alamance County Campaign
• Buncombe County Campaign
• Durham County Campaign
• Orange County Campaign
• Wake County Campaign 

There are many resources available to help. NC Peace Action wants to empower you to make a difference where-ever you are. On this site you will find:

• a sample letter to public officials
• a draft resolution for city and town councils
• a flier that makes clear the trade offs we are making to fund the wars

There is much more but please let us know what you need.

To get involved, send a message to director@ncpeaceaction.org or call (919) 381-5969 for more information.