A huge coalition is launching a major effort to move the US government away from militarism and toward diplomacy.

Sign the Petition: Support a US foreign policy that prioritizes diplomacy over militarism

World BEYOND War, et al. & The Daily Kos

It’s finally time for a fundamental shift in US foreign policy.
The US government is absurdly unprepared for disease pandemics, climate collapse, or even basic non-emergency functions. The resources dumped into countrproductive militarism — which militarizes local police as a side effect — are badly needed elsewhere.

The United States currently has more than 240,000 troops outside its borders, doing no more good there than they do when so objectionably deployed on US streets. It is time to end the endless wars and adopt a new approach to international relations, one in which the United States abides by international law.

This progressive shift of foreign policy principles includes: moving money out of the military budget; engaging diplomatically with Iran and North Korea; rejecting discriminatory immigration policies; supporting refugees; and ending supportfor governments that violate human rights.

Support a US Foreign Policy that Prioritizes Diplomacy over Militarism

For decades, US foreign policy has been overly focused on confrontation with perceived adversaries and the global projection of US military power. Doing so has militarized our response to global challenges, distorted our national security spending priorities, toxified our political discourse, and left us woefully ill-prepared to confront the growing transnational threats to human security we face today that do not have military solutions. 

We are demanding a fundamental shift in US foreign policy.

The coronavirus has changed everything, and our foreign policy priorities must change to reflect the fundamentally new world that we are living in. As the coronavirus pandemic reveals, our country and many others are woefully unprepared for the crisis that we now face. Without extraordinarily bold leadership, this is likely to be the beginning of a period of profound instability for the entire planet, given the intensifying climate crisis that is also now underway.

The US currently has more than 240,000 active-duty and reserve troops in at least 172 countries and territories. According to one study, the wars we have engaged in the Middle East and Asia have cost $6.4 trillion since 2001.

It is time to end our endless wars and adopt a new approach to international relations, one in which the US abides by international law, encourages others to do the same, and utilizes our military solely for the defense of the people of our country.

This progressive shift of foreign policy principles includes: returning war powers to Congress; reducing the Pentagon budget; engaging with Iran and North Korea; rejecting discriminatory immigration policies and supporting refugees; and ending support for governments that violate human rights, among others. 

Participating Organizations:

Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain

Beyond the Bomb

CODEPINK

Common Defense

Common Dreams

Daily Kos

Demand Progress

Equality Labs

The Feminist Foreign Policy Project

Freedom Forward

International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN)

Jetpac

Just Foreign Policy

Justice is Global, People’s Action

LeftNet

MoveOn

National Iranian American Council

The Other 98%

Peace Action

Progress America

RootsAction

Women’s Action for New Direction (WAND)

World BEYOND War

World BEYOND War is a global network of volunteers, activists, and allied organizations advocating for the abolition of the very institution of war. Our success is driven by a people-powered movement — support our work for a culture of peace.