I recently got to sit in a vote in the Senate for the first time as they were debating and voting on the joint resolutions of disapproval (JRD) on arms sales to Israel. As we were walking in, someone asked me how I was doing, and I responded, “I’m excited about this vote.” They were surprised because, they said, “we’re going to lose.”
Our advocacy is never about one vote alone.
I knew that more senators were going to vote against the JRD than were going to vote for it. We stated that at the beginning of the Quaker Public Policy Institute as we were sending out constituents for over 100 lobby visits in support of the JRD. So why was I excited about a vote that we were about to “lose?” Because at FCNL, where one of our core values is perseverance, our advocacy is never about one vote alone. We are prophetic, persistent, and patient.
We were prophetic when we advocated for a ceasefire on October 8, 2023. The following week White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called such advocacy “disgraceful” and “repugnant.” We were not dissuaded. Our prophetic message was shared on a banner outside of our building and our staff immediately became leaders in ceasefire coalitions.
Our FCNL community has been persistent in our pursuit of just peace. More than 80 Quakers communities have shared minutes calling for a just peace in Palestine and Israel with FCNL, and hopefully with their members of Congress. We have submitted over 100 letters to the editor. We have had over 500 lobby visits on these issues. Collectively we have sent over 730,000 letters to Congress about ceasefire and humanitarian aid. I am proud of persistence as we speak truth to power.
We do not lose hope in the face of challenges because our faith gives us the strength to be patient even when our persistence is slow to yield results.
We do not lose hope in the face of challenges because our faith gives us the strength to be patient even when our persistence is slow to yield results. We are patient because we trust that our relational and transformational strategy works.
In January our persistence led to a historic 11 senators willing to vote in favor a resolution under Section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act that would have required a State Department report on Israel’s human rights practices and U.S. military aid to Israel. In the recent JRD vote, there were 19 senators who voted against the sale of offensive weapons to Israel. I have faith that next year there will be more members of Congress willing to do the right thing.
On the day of the JRD vote, I quoted Marge Piercy’s “The Low Road”:
It goes on one at a time,
it starts when you care
to act, it starts when you do
it again and they said no,
it starts when you say We
and know who you mean,
and each day you mean one more.
I am grateful that our beloved community continues to grow. I am grateful that we are a community that never ceases in its struggle for peace and justice. As Amanda Gorman wrote, “there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
May the prophetic, persistent, and patient witness of the FCNL community serve a light for the work ahead.
