Here’s the text of our invitational flyer:

TEACH PEACE
WORKSHOP TO SHOWCASE ALTERNATIVES
TO MILITARY RECRUITMENT,
KICK OFF EDUCATIONAL CAMPAIGN

Monday, 8-10-2009, 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Joy Mennonite Church, 504 16th St, Oklahoma City
(corner of Lincoln and 16th, just south of Capitol)

Please join the Oklahoma Center for Conscience on Monday August 10 for a dynamic workshop on “counter-recruitment” or making sure youth have full information about the military and a wide range of options for constructive public service and caring careers. The recruiters have unprecedented access to students; we want to offer another view, and make sure their right for access to all the facts is honored.

The workshop will kick off a concerted effort in OKC and across the state to make sure our youth do not feel compelled to join the military for lack of other practical options and opportunities.

All are welcome. The workshop is free of charge; donations for our CR outreach is greatly appreciated. If you can’t make the workshop, but would like to donate, see www.centerforconscience.org

For more info, call 405-771-4743 or 405-615-2700. Or visit www.centerforconscience.org

Experienced CR activists from Fort Worth and Austin will share with us the resources and techniques they use to reach young people with an important message about the realities of war and military life. A report from the recent national CR conference will be part of the agenda.

Presenters:

Yvette Richardson is a U. S. Army veteran, who was stationed at Fort Hood, Texas from 1992 – 1997. While serving five years on active duty as a Military Police officer, she deployed to Honduras, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. When not serving as a client advocate for domestic violence victims, she works as a community activist in Fort Worth, Texas. She is co-coordinator of the counter-recruitment organization, Peaceful Vocations, and of CodePink Fort Worth. Yvette holds a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of Texas at Arlington.

Diane Wood is a native Texan, a community organizer in areas of social justice for the past 30 years, and a retired Registered Nurse. She is a co-coordinator of Peaceful Vocations, a counter-military recruitment group serving North Texas. She’s been involved in nuclear and anti-war issues, Central American issues, local poverty issues, and a local movement to stop urban gas drilling. Diane led a coalition to establish a shelter in Fort Worth for Central American Refugees, and was the director of the shelter. She recently founded a local coalition, The Texas Christian University Divest and Boycott Israel Campaign.

Hart Viges joined the Army in reaction to the events of 9-11. He was with the 82nd Airborne Div. in 2003 when they invaded Iraq. Shortly after returning in January 2004, he applied and received Conscientious Objector status. Hart is a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War and works with Nonmilitary Options for Youth.

Below is our press release and a flyer (with the text above) you can print — please feel free to share.

2009 CR Workshop flyer

2009 CR Workshop news release

Documentary video explores the hidden wounds of war

Date: Wednesday, 7/21
Time: 6:30 pm
Place: Joy Mennonite Church, 504 NE 16th, OKC

The Oklahoma Center for Conscience and Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline invite you to a screening of the film “PTSD: Invisible Wounds of War” on Tuesday, July 21 at 6:30 pm at Joy Mennonite Church in Oklahoma City. After the film, there will be a discussion led by Nathanial Batchelder, a medic in Vietnam and director of Oklahoma City Peace House, Phyllis Byerly, a retired psychologist, and James Branum, a lawyer specializing in military law and supervising attorney for the Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline.

The film presents information about the vast scope of the problem, the potentially severe consequences, and the necessity to seek help. Veterans, elected officials and therapists who specialize in PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) explain the condition and discuss what resources are available and what needs to be improved in treatment and public policy.

The event is free and open to the public. Joy Mennonite is located at 504 NE 16th Street, on the corner of Lincoln.

For more information, email info@centerforconscience.org or call 405-236-4938, ext. 2.

Introductory training session for anyone seeking to help GIs know their legal options

Sunday, June 21, 4:30-6:30
Joy Mennonite Church, 504 NE 16th, OKC

A workshop entitled AWOL No More: (Relatively) Painless Processing Out of the Army will be offered on Sunday June 21 at 4:30 pm. The program will help volunteers learn about the regulations concerning AWOL soldiers and how to help them return to civilian life by turning themselves in and, when eligible, being processed through the Army’s PCF at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. The Ft. Sill facility is one of only two in the U.S. where “absent without leave” service members who meet certain requirements can surrender and be discharged.

Leading the workshop will be James M. Branum, an attorney with a private practice specializing in military law who has worked with hundreds of soldiers to facilitate their surrender to and separation from the Army. Branum is the supervising attorney with the Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline, serves on the board of the National Lawyers Guild’s Military Law Task Force and is a co-founder of the Oklahoma Center for Conscience.

”No special experience or knowledge is required for the workshop,” Branum said, “and it can serve as an introductory level training for anyone interested in going on to become a volunteer counselor with the Oklahoma hotline.” He added that the session also would be useful for family and friends of AWOL servicemembers who are concerned about the repercussions of being absent without leave.

The Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline, which is not affiliated with the military, provides free, confidential, and accurate information on US military regulations and practices to servicemembers, veterans, potential recruits, and their families.

Because of Ft. Sill’s status as a PCF base, Oklahoma-based volunteers are in increasing demand in both counseling and non-counseling positions, to provide information, assistance, and in some cases to transport and/or accompany GI’s to the facility.
The event is free and refreshments will be provided. Donations for the Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline will be gratefully accepted.

For more information, call the Oklahoma Center for Conscience at 405-236-4938 ext. 2.

Background on Winter Soldier here.

We are outreaching to Iraq War vets in Oklahoma who would be willing to testify at the hearings. Please use the contact form on this site to email us.

if you can help us support these vets, and get them to Austin for testimony, donations would be much appreciated.

WINTER SOLDIER HEARINGS COME TO AUSTIN, TEXAS

WHAT: Winter Solder – South Central Region, Eyewitness Accounts by Iraq Veterans Against the War

WHO: Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), with support from many local groups

WHEN: Saturday, February 28, 1PM-5PM

WHERE: Central Presbyterian Church, 200 E. 8th Street (Brazos & 8th), Austin, Texas

In March of 2008, Iraq Veterans Against the War held a national Winter Soldier event in Baltimore, Maryland. Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan featured testimony from U.S. veterans, giving accurate accounts of the true nature of those occupations. This four-day event brought together veterans from across the country to testify about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan – and present video and photographic evidence. In May of 2008, for the first time since the Iraq war began, boots-on-the-ground veterans testified under oath before Congress about the effects of the occupation. Members of Iraq Veterans Against the War presented their testimony to the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

Winter Soldier hearings continue to be held regionally across the U.S. Now Iraq Veterans Against the War, will bring Winter Soldier hearings to Austin. Veterans from New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas will join together to publicly share the experiences of war in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the tradition of other Winter Soldier events, live testimony, panel discussions, along with supporting video and photographic documentation, will focus on the human impact of war. This event is open to the public and all are encouraged to attend.

Winter soldiers, according to founding father Thomas Paine, are the people who stand up for the soul of their country, even in the darkest hours. The event was named Winter Soldier in honor of a similar gathering in 1971. The “Winter Soldier Investigation” was a media event sponsored by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War and was intended to publicize war crimes and atrocities by the United States Armed Forces and their allies in the Vietnam War. A complete transcript of those hearings was later entered into the Congressional Record by Senator Mark Hatfield, prompting the Fulbright Hearings in April and May 1973, convened by Senator J. William Fulbright, chair of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

For more information, go to www.austinivaw.wordpress.com.

We are asking Oklahoma activists, veterans and family members to help promote the event by printing and distributing the flier among their networks.

Winter Soldier flier for Oklahoma, 2 up

On Jan. 13, we will show the film Nuclear Weapons and the Human Future. It is a short film with a big agenda: ridding the world of nuclear weapons.

Just a dream? The election of Barack Obama has brought a new spirit of hope to the U.S. and the world and an opportunity to remove the greatest threat to peace and stability. Many organizations are getting behind the campaign, and even some prominent US politicians are getting on board.

How could it work? There are so many myths and naysayers. The organizers present seven steps:

• De-alert. Remove all nuclear weapons from high-alert status, separating warheads from delivery vehicles;
• No First Use. Make legally binding commitments to No First Use of nuclear weapons and establish nuclear policies consistent with this commitment;
• No New Nuclear Weapons. Initiate a moratorium on the research and development of new nuclear weapons, such as the Reliable Replacement Warhead;
• Ban Nuclear Testing Forever. Ratify and bring into force the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty;
• Control Nuclear Material. Create a verifiable Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty with provisions to bring all weapons-grade nuclear material and the technologies to create such material under strict and effective international control;
• Nuclear Weapons Convention. Commence good faith negotiations, as required by the Non-Proliferation Treaty, to achieve a Nuclear Weapons Convention for the phased, verifiable and irreversible elimination of nuclear weapons;
• Resources for Peace. Reallocate resources from the tens of billions currently spent on nuclear arms to alleviating poverty, preventing and curing disease, eliminating hunger and expanding educational opportunities throughout the world

.

This film by the nuclear Age Peace Foundation makes the case. We’ll provide info and resources for adding your voice to the call, and ways to spread the word. The film will then be added to our Peace & Conscience Library, and made available to the community. If you would like to show it to your group in the Oklahoma City area, contact us. It can also be borrowed by individuals. There is a version that can be watched online as well.

The film should prompt a good discussion about how we can take action to make this dream a reality. A petition will be available for attenders to sign.

Free and open to the public; 90 minutes total. Refreshments provided.

Tuesday, January 13; 7-8:30 PM

Joy Mennonite Church, 504 NE 16Th St (corner of 16th & Lincoln — parking is limited so carpooling is encouraged)

For more information call: 236-4938.

The film depicts the early years of the Kennedy administration, when a young generation was inspired to public service through the Peace Corps and VISTA, two programs Shriver helped develop and manage. It was a period of intense social change and hopefulness to which the Obama campaign and pending administration has been compared.

What lessons for solving today’s problems can we learn from man’s life and the historic time he represents? The film is a bittersweet look at a time of upheaval, empowerment and social change that is sure to leave viewers with a renewed commitment to the continuing struggle for justice and peace.

Below is more info on the film from the website:

Peace Corps, VISTA, Community Action, Head Start, Legal Services for the Poor, Youth Corps, Job Corps, and more. Sargent Shriver invented a string of social initiatives that shaped an era and dared millions of young Americans to live out their ideals. Those who knew him—Bill Moyers, Andrew Young, political commentator Mark Shields, and so many others—have spoken of Shriver in the same breath as Martin Luther King, Jr., calling him a visionary of deep humanity who helped create a more just society.

American Idealist brings Shriver’s story to life in a new film premiering nationally on PBS, primetime January 21, 2008. A powerful 90-minute depiction of practical activism, it offers a hopeful vision of what this nation could be and could do, based on the experience of what it once did when pushed by the civil rights movement and guided by the War on Poverty. Beyond broadcast, a multi-media National Education and Outreach Campaign will extend the reach and impact of the program and its powerful themes for years to come.

When: Tues. Aug. 12, 6 pm
Where: Joy Mennonite Church, 504 NE 16th, OKC

The Oklahoma Center for Conscience will host an informal talk and discussion with conscientious objector Jake Malloy on Tuesday, August 12. The event will take place at Joy Mennonite Church, 504 NE 16th St. in Oklahoma City, and begin with a potluck dinner at 6pm. The event is free and open to the public.

“I began with the question every soldier should ask, “Can I personally take another human life?” When I was honest with the words of Jesus, I had to conclude that whatever the consequences, there is no avenue by which one can kill another and love that other all the while.”

After enlisting in the Army and reaching the rank of Sergeant, Malloy’s deepening religious beliefs about war led him to seek an exemption from combat duty. Although he was willing to serve in Iraq in a non-combat role, the Army denied Malloy’s C.O. claim, demoted him and gave him an other-than-honorable discharge in May 2006.

Malloy’s case was one of the first in which OCC assisted an active-duty servicemember with a C.O. claim.

Later this month, Jake Malloy will be moving with his wife, Tiffany, and their son, to Nairobi, Kenya, for two years while Jake obtains an M.A. in Translation Studies.

The Oklahoma Center for Conscience (formerly Oklahoma Committee for Conscientious Objectors) seeks to engage a broader discussion in our communities about war and conscience. Our projects provide individuals with information and resources for personal decision-making about affirming careers, relationships and civic participation.

The “Journey of Conscience” series will include occasional programs about individuals whose personal stories of decision-making can compel thoughtful discussion and further understanding of difficult moral issues.

For more information, please call 405-771-4743 or email info (at) centerforconscience (dot) org

Attachments:

JOC_Malloy News Release

JOC_Malloy Flier

Nationwide network assists those who seek to get out of the military

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline will officially begin operations on Monday, September 24, undertaking its mission of providing free, confidential, and accurate information on US military regulations and practices to servicemembers, veterans, potential recruits, and their families.

The Hotline can be reached at (405) 231-1138. Live counselors will answer on Mondays from 10 AM to 5 PM. On other days messages will be returned within 24 hours. More live hours will be added gradually in the future.

The Hotline is managed by the Oklahoma Center for Conscience, an organization supported by Joy Mennonite Church, Veterans for Peace – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Catholic Peace Fellowship and the Oklahoma City Religious Society of Friends. Operating funds for OCC and the Hotline come from private donations from the local community.

The volunteers who will staff the hotline took an intensive two-day workshop last April that covered military regulations and GI Rights counseling practice. That training was led by experienced counselors and attorneys from the National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force. The workshop was funded in part by a grant from the A. J. Muste Memorial Foundation.

Hotline volunteers will work under the guidance of Oklahoma attorney James M. Branum, a member of NLG who specializes in military law. They will receive ongoing training updates as changes in military law may require, and will participate in national online discussions with other counselors across the country in order to stay informed about current issues that impact the work.

The goal of the Hotline is to empower servicemembers by giving them information and other resources needed to make appropriate decisions regarding their military service. The Uniform Code of Military Justice contains all the regulations regarding legal separation from service, but servicemembers usually are not made aware of these documents.

“Many of our men and women servicemembers face difficult realities: concerns stemming from injuries, post-traumatic stress disorder, sexual harassment, issues of conscience regarding military action, abuses of command and broken enlistment promises,” said Branum. “We want to support them in exerting their rights that the military gives them. Exerting their rights alone in a huge and complex system is almost impossible without support.”

Mr. Branum, has two years experience in GI Rights counseling. He is also a founder and co-chair of Oklahoma Center for Conscience.

The Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline will join a network of hotlines and counseling centers across the U. S. and in Germany that assist active duty military personnel with their options in obtaining discharges, registering as a conscientious objector, and other legal matters concerning their relationship with the military. It will begin by taking direct calls from servicemembers in or from Oklahoma, but will eventually be linked to the network to take calls from designated area codes in Oklahoma and possibly other states.

Oklahoma is in an especially important position to offer GI Rights counseling services. Ft. Sill, located in Lawton, is one of only two Personnel Control Facility (PCF) locations in the U. S., to which many AWOL soldiers must pass through when they surrender themselves. Ft. Sill is also where many of those refusing to fight, claiming Conscientious Objector status, are incarcerated during the legal process the military requires.

In addition to phone, email and in person counseling, the Hotline will provide resources on its website that a servicemember can use, in many cases, to get out of the military on their own.

“We are pleased and excited to welcome the Oklahoma hotline to the network of counseling services across the country,” said Luke Heiken, a member of the steering committee of the Military Law Task Force who was one of two trainers who conducted the April training workshop. “We are looking forward to working with them to meet the needs of those who are serving their country in uniform.”

New prospective Hotline counselors are welcome to apply for the next training, will be held in Spring of 2008. Inquiries should be directed to the Oklahoma Center for Conscience by emailing info-AT-centerforconscience-DOT-org or calling (405) 771-4743

More information about the Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline can be found online at okgirightshotline.org.

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INFORMATION RESOURCES:

Oklahoma Center for Conscience

Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline

National GI Rights Hotline

National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force

This news release in MS Word format:

News Release: Oklahoma GI Rights Hotline starts