Who We Are

      In the early 80's, then President Reagan was boasting that the United States could fight and win a nuclear war with the U.S.S.R. In the area around Rochester, NY, as elsewhere in the country, people were frightened by this kind of talk, and the accompanying military build-up. Local groups formed to lobby for a peaceful future, including Pittsford Citizens for Nuclear Disarmament. PCND was one of many members of the Genesee Valley Nuclear Disarmament Network.

      When the Berlin Wall came down, the "Cold War" was said to be ended, but tens of thousands of nuclear weapons remained, and now remain. The U.S. continues to spend some $400 billion annually on militarism, almost as much as the rest of the world put together.

      We activists learned something about how the process works. Once a foreign threat is identified, or supposed, voters will approve essentially any expenditure for "national defense." Contracts worth tens of billions of dollars go to military industries. Some tens of millions are reinvested by industry in the political process, for campaigns of "hawks," and lobbyists to promote new weapons systems. The armed forces get a new lease on life, money, promotions, power. Everyone in the system wins, as long as war doesn't actually occur.

      So it's not exactly about nuclear disarmament. It's the war system of dispute settlement among sovereign nations. As long as war is the ultimate way of deciding whether a nation's people will survive, it's pointless to talk about nations voluntarily setting aside nuclear weapons. It's about a peace system.

      After the Cold War, most people in the nuclear disarmament movement moved on to other things. The small numbers who remained were focused on peace--not just nuclear disarmament. Pittsford Citizens for Nuclear Disarmament became Citizens for a Peaceful Planet. It had a newsletter. The Genesee Valley Nuclear Disarmament Network became The Peace Network. We shared resources by putting out just one newsletter: The Peace Network (1985-2002).

      We evolved further. Just as nuclear disarmament only makes sense as part of a just peace, peace is a vain hope if the planet is not protected. Right now the most significant global threats are related to overpopulation, global warming, extinction of species, pollution, and resource depletion. If people don't have enough food to live, what is the good of peace?

      Citizens for a Peaceful Planet became CITIZENS FOR A UNITED EARTH. We realized that to end the war system would require the participation of people in every country. The global problems CAN be solved, but not at the national level. Global problems require global solutions.

      Citizens for a United Earth is a group of volunteers in the area of Rochester, NY, who want a peaceful, sustainable, prosperous future for all the world's people. We believe the time has come for global citizenship, with people aware of their interdependence with others all over the world. Click on Earth Plan on the "Essays" page to learn more.

      The Peace Network newsletter has been retired. We invite you to join our [PEACE] E-mail List, which sends out articles about peace, the environment, population, and the world's future.

      We offer a FREE Earth Dot bumper sticker. Check out the messages!

      We have assembled links to groups doing related work and invite you to visit their websites.

      We invite your comments, positive and negative, and suggestions.

      Thank you for your interest in protecting our planet.