ACTIVE NONVIOLENCE & PEACEMAKING

Space Force Estimated to Cost $13 Billion in First Five Years

The U.S. Air Force has estimated that a Space Force would cost an estimated $12.9 billion in its first five years, according to a Department of Defense memo. The new military branch, described in the memo as "a lethality focused organization that will field space superiority capabilities," is expected to employ more than 13,000 people. MORE

How Some American Evangelicals are Challenging Views About Palestine

A movement is building among justice-minded evangelicals. To them, the suffering of Palestinian civilians, including many Christians as well as others from diverse theological and faith traditions, demands accountability regarding the Israeli occupation and government. And this movement has gathered traction in recent years among young evangelical Christians who say figures who defend the oppression of Palestinians do not speak for them. MORE

NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT

TAKE ACTION: Halt Production of "Low-Yield” Nukes

New legislation has been introduced to prohibit the research, development, production, and deployment of low-yield nuclear warheads. So-called "low-yield” nuclear weapons can be as large as the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These particular weapons make us less safe and increase the risk of the U.S. launching a nuclear war. Women’s Action for New Directions urges to tell our members of Congress to co-sponsor this bill today. TAKE ACTION

Anti-Nuclear Weapons Organization Looks to Revitalize Under Trump

The current administration had strayed from the nuclear posture of the past several presidents, necessitating more pressure from anti-nuclear weapon activists. Former Massachusetts Rep. John Tierney now leads an anti-nuclear proliferation non-profit, the Council for a Livable World. "Every president, Democrat or Republican Since Reagan...understood this issue,” he said. "People (need) to realize what’s happening in this White House.” MORE

Japanese Financial Institutions Doing Business With Nuke Firms
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons found that seven Japanese financial institutions made loans or investments to companies involved in the production of nuclear weapons,totaling around $16 billion US over a four-year period. No financial institutions in Japan have guidelines explicitly banning themselves from providing investments or loans to companies that produce nuclear weapons.MORE

IMMIGRATION

TAKE ACTION: Protect Vulnerable Refugees

The Trump administration has just set the refugee admissions goal for FY 2019 at 30,000 - the lowest level in U.S. history. This drastically low number will leave tens of thousands of vulnerable refugees without a chance at safety. The Sisters of the Good Shepherd urge us to tell our legislators to do everything in their power to increase the number to at least 75,000. TAKE ACTION

U.S. To Triple Number of Beds at Tent Camp for Immigrant Children in Texas

The Trump administration announced it plans to triple the size of an immigration detention camp outside El Paso to accommodate up to 3,800 migrant children. The Department of Health and Human Services said the expansion is necessary because of the growing number of new arrivals at the border. MORE

Trump Administration Transferred $9.8 Million from FEMA to ICE

This summer, the Trump administration transferred nearly $10 million away from the agency that responds to disasters and emergencies, redirecting it toward one of President Trump's top priorities — the deportation of undocumented residents of the U.S. The funds transfer is prompting the Federal Emergency Management Agency to cut back on training, IT security and infrastructure investments. MORE

ENVIRONMENT

Trump Administration Wants to Make It Easier to Release Methane Into Air

The Trump administration, taking its third major step this year to roll back federal efforts to fight climate change, is preparing to make it significantly easier for energy companies to release methane into the atmosphere. Methane, which is among the most powerful greenhouse gases, routinely leaks from oil and gas wells, and energy companies have long said that the rules requiring them to test for emissions were costly and burdensome. MORE

3 States to Phase Out Climate Super-Pollutants Used in Cooling

New York, Maryland and Connecticut all announced plans this week for statewide phase-outs of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, potent greenhouse gases used in air conditioners and refrigeration systems. Their moves, following a similar step earlier this year by California, will help fill a breach in climate policy created by the federal government. MORE

The Private Intelligence Firm Keeping Tabs on Environmentalists

Alarming images of protesters have been distributed by Welund North America, a private intelligence firm that promises to help oil and gas operators mitigate the threat posed by an increasingly sophisticated activist movement. They purport to help companies"dramatically increase the ability to pre-empt and better manage activist engagements and minimize reputational damage.” Clients include firms such as Royal Dutch Shell, Kinder Morgan, Duke Energy, Dominion, and Chevron. MORE

HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Debunking Five Misconceptions About Human Trafficking

Elizabeth Hutson is an attorney who led a team that represented human trafficking victim Kendra Ross in her successful lawsuit against a nationwide cult led by Royall Jenkins. The team won an unprecedented $8 million civil judgment against Jenkins and the cult. Hutson outlines several misconceptions about the scourge of human trafficking. MORE

Kids Held Hostage to Force Moms into Sex Work

Human traffickers in Mexico are holding children hostage as a tactic to force their mothers into sex work, campaigners warn. These same traffickers often lure their young female victims by posing as their boyfriends. In some cases, these men even marry and have children with their victims. When a woman forced into sex work does not earn her weekly quota, disobeys rules, or tries to escape, traffickers threaten to keep or harm their children. MORE

UNICEF: Many Kenyan Girls Pay For Sanitary Supplies With Sex

More than 50% of girls in Kenya say they have difficulty obtaining menstrual hygiene products, and 65% of women and girls in Nairobi's largest slum have paid for sanitary products with sex, according to UNICEF research. Andrew Trevett of UNICEF says the problem is caused by poverty and the lack of supplies in rural areas. MORE

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE & SEXUAL ASSAULT

Doctor, Girlfriend Charged With Drugging, Raping Women; Hundreds of Victims Possible

A California doctor and his girlfriend have been charged with drugging and then sexually assaulting two women – and video evidence suggests there could be hundreds of other women who may not realize they were victims. Grant Robicheaux, 38, is an orthopedic surgeon in Newport Beach, Calif. In 2014, Robicheaux appeared briefly on a reality showabout online dating. Before that,Orange Coast Magazine had named him a 2013 bachelor of the year. MORE

Republicans Nix Kavanaugh Accuser's Request to Delay Hearing For FBI Investigation

The Senate Judiciary Committee will move forward with a hearing scheduled for Monday on sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh, despite a request for further investigation from his accuser. The decision follows the release of a letter from attorneys representing Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her more than three decades ago when they were teenagers. MORE

POVERTY & SOCIAL JUSTICE

TAKE ACTION: Tell ALEC Companies to Stop Funding Bigotry

Major companies like UPS, AT&T, and Comcast are funding bigotry through their membership in the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) -- a secretive corporate lobbying group that pushes harmful legislation. In his recent keynote speech at ALEC’s annual conference, right-wing extremist David Horowitz made extremely hateful comments about women, LGBTQ people, people of color, and the Black Lives Matter movement.The Franciscan Action Network invites us to sign a petition to major companies to stop funding ALEC. TAKE ACTION

Medicare for All and the Myth of the 40% Physician Pay Cut

Support for Medicare for All—now up to 70%in recent polling—has single-payer opponents ramping up their scare tactics. The Koch-funded Mercatus Center recently claimed that Medicare for all could only work with painful sacrifices from doctors, specifically by paying Medicare’s current reimbursement rates, which are about 40% lower than private insurance. A single-payer system works by cutting administrative waste, not doctors' income. MORE

Helping People Sign up For Health Care Coverage

Open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act starts Nov 1. The Trump administration has shortened the open enrollment period and virtually done away with advertising campaigns and enrollment support for the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACA Signup Project is a nonpartisan group of volunteers promoting outreach and assistance for the upcoming Open Enrollment Period so people can get the coverage that they need. MORE

DEATH PENALTY

Troy Clark is scheduled to be executed on September 26 by the state of Texas for the murder of Christine Muse. Please hold Troy, Christine, their families and the people of Texas in prayer.

TAKE ACTION

Daniel Ackeris scheduled to be executed on September 27 by the state of Texas for the murder of Marquetta George. Please hold Daniel, Marquetta, their families and the people of Texas in prayer. TAKE ACTION