Faith Communities

courtesy of interfaithcommunities.org

Witness for Peace (WFP) was founded - in large part by the faith community - in 1983, as the Contra War raged in Nicaragua.  WFP established on ongoing presence in war zones and sent U.S. citizens to accompany the Nicaraguan people. WFP documented the human face of Regan's military policy in Central America. Having heard the call to put their faith into action, people of faith and conscience the U.S. traveled to Nicaragua to bear witness to the impacts of U.S. policy. WFP led the way in bringing the brutal facts of those policies home to U.S. faith communities and the general public through grassroots education and large-scale media outreach. During this initial period, WFP established its successful model of merging the powerful forces of: on-the-ground documentation, assertive media strategies, a dynamic delegations program, and grassroots mobilization.

For 25 years, WFP has answered prophetic calls to accompany peole most affected by harmful U.S. policies and corporate practices. Currently, our international witness is based in Nicaragua, Mexico and Colombia, with satellite programs in Cuba and Venezuela. We document the human costs of unethical trade and military policy, transform U.S. citizens who travel with us to our sites, and mobilize a motivated grassroots network of nonviolent, faith-based activists who hold policymakers accountable and work for positive change.

Over the past 25 years, WFP has developed and maintained an energized nation-wide base of 15,000 members, and sent more than 12,000 people to Latin America and the Caribbean on transformative delegations guided by our highly skilled teams in our program sites abroad.

Please take a look at the links below, especially the Congregational Partnership Program which is a very successful guide to interacting with your faith community on these  urgent issues.