Brooklyn Chapter of the United Nations Association of the U.S.A.

Dear UNA Brooklyn Chapter and YPIC – SNYSD Members who live in Brooklyn –

The UNA Brooklyn Chapter endeavors to meet with all of Brooklyn’s congressional representatives in the week leading up to UN Day – which is on October 24th – to advocate positions that are critical to the work of the UNA and UN. The positions are outlined at the end of this message and links can be found to background information on these positions in the following post –UNA Brooklyn Advocacy Positions.  Please note that I have added the position of “support for the Millennium Development Goals” but it is still subject to a vote by the Board.

This cannot and will not happen without your participation. Members of Congress will often only schedule meetings of this type for their constituents, meaning YOU.  I’m asking for volunteers to contact your congressional representative, as a member of the United National Association of the U.SA., to schedule a meeting for October 21-23 to discuss issues of importance relating to the United Nations, international law, and multilateralism. We only need one person from each district so we’ll do this on a first-come first-serve basis. Keep in mind that we will help you schedule the appointment.

For those of you who are interested in advocacy and want more experience this is an amazing opportunity. UNA Brooklyn Chapter member Cristina Grisham has graciously agreed to conduct advocacy training specifically geared toward our efforts for late October. Cristina is an expert in this area and it’s likely you’ll have a lot of fun working on this. The advocacy training is scheduled for September 15th at 6:00p (probably to be held at the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University).

By scheduling an appointment, you’ll commit to either leading the meeting with your congressional representative or at least showing up with others to the meeting. If you wish to be the “leader” then we ask that you attend the advocacy training on September 15th (even if you’ve done this before!).

Most of you know who your congressional representatives are, but in case you don’t or are new to the city, please review the following in formation. You can also find out who your member of Congress is by typing in your zip code on the following page: http://capwiz.com/unausa/dbq/officials/?lvl=C.
Member of Congress – District – Neighborhoods
Ed Towns    10    Fort Greene, Bedford Stuyvesant, Brownsville, East New York, and Canarsie.
Yvette Clarke    11    Park Slope, Crown Heights, Flatbush, East Flatbush and Prospect Heights
Nydia Velazquez    12    Bushwick, Williamsburg, Red Hook, and Sunset Park
Anthony Weiner    9    Much of central and southeastern Brooklyn, as well as portions of south-central Queens
Jerry Nadler    8    South Brooklyn including Coney Island, Seagate, Brighton Beach, Boro Park and parts of Bath Beach. It also includes the piers in Red Hook and Sunset Park.
Michale McMahon    13    Bay Ridge and Bensonhurst and all of Gravesend and Dyker Heights.

If you’d like to volunteer to schedule an appointment with your congressional representative then please let me know by August 31st. You can contact using our website form here or by email at unabrooklyn@gmail.com.

Gabriel Levitt
President
UNA Brooklyn Chapter

UNA Brooklyn Chapter Advocacy Positions  – subject to further refinement:
1.    Urge congressional representative to join the American Engagement Caucus.

2.    Urge congressional representative to appropriate full funding for the UN regular and peacekeeping budgets; and create the necessary administrative funding procedures to not fall behind on future payments.

3.    Urge congressional representative to support US actions that will lead to joining the International Criminal Court and to repeal the American Service Members’ Protection Act of 2002.

4.    Urge congressional representative to support UN actions to tackle the emergency that is climate change.

5.    Urge congressional representative to voice support for international treaties that the US has yet to sign and/or ratify:
a.    Rights of Women (CEDAW).
b.    Rights of the Child
c.    Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
d.    Cluster Munitions Convention
e.    Mine Ban Treaty

6. Urge support for the Millennium Development Goals (recently added, subject to a vote by the Board).

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Other Interested Parties –

In an earlier post, I’ve mentioned and somewhat discussed the “strategic alliance” negotiations between the United Nations Association of the U.S.A. and the United Nations Foundation, mostly in my review of the UNA Annual Meetings. The best way to learn about the potential alliance is to read public communications and documents on this issue. The UNA has a page where just such information can be found: http://www.unausa.org/unaunf. On this page, I highly recommend reading Questions and Answers About the Proposed UNA-USA and UN Foundation Strategic Alliance.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Other Interested Parties –

Short on time today, I’ll simply leave you with a link to a nice story about the great work of the UN in Namibia, which I initially found on the UNA website: http://lacrossetribune.com/news/opinion/article_089e7726-4e46-11df-9e45-001cc4c002e0.html.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Other Interested Parties –

I’ve mentioned in past posts that we are working on drafting UNA Brooklyn Chapter policy positions that will be the foundation for our Chapter advocacy efforts for October 24th, UN Day. To come to these positions, the Board and membership had the opportunity to review a rather extensive list of possible positions and topics to choose from. The Board was invited to attend a meeting on May 11th to discuss and vote on what we will advocate for to our congressional representatives here in Brooklyn.  Below is the result of that vote.

UNA Brooklyn Chapter Advocacy Positions  – subject to further refinement:
1.    Urge congressional representative to join the American Engagement Caucus.
2.    Urge congressional representative to appropriate full funding for the UN regular and peacekeeping budgets; and create the necessary administrative funding procedures to not fall behind on future payments.
3.    Urge congressional representative to support US actions that will lead to joining the International Criminal Court and to repeal the American Service Members’ Protection Act of 2002.
4.    Urge congressional representative to support UN actions to tackle the emergency that is climate change.
5.    Urge congressional representative to voice support for international treaties that the US has yet to sign and/or ratify:
a.    Rights of Women (CEDAW).
b.    Rights of the Child
c.    Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
d.    Cluster Munitions Convention
e.    Mine Ban Treaty

As stated above, this is not the final draft. Please feel free to comment and even criticize. For example, I believe that we should add some position on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the final draft.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Interested Parties -

As you enjoy your Memorial Day Weekend, please don’t forget to reflect on the reason for this holiday: to memorialize U.S. soldiers who have died during their service to our country, and honor them. Reflecting on this holiday should motivate us in our efforts to support the United Nations in its work to lessen violent conflict and lead to a world where war gives way to legal means of settling international and civil disputes.

As I reported in March, June 6-8, next weekend, is the UNA’s Annual Conference. Please read more about this event and know that it’s not too late to sign-up! June 8th is Day On The Hill, where UNA members meet with their congressional representatives to advocate for the UN. All attendees can meet with their senators, which are scheduled by UNA National staff. You must contact your own House representative to set up a meeting, however. It’s short notice but you never know! For a step by step run down on accomplishing this: http://www.unausa.org/dayonthehill.

I will be meeting with my representative, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez on June 8th at 5:30pm. If you live in her district then you can definitely join me. If her office permits it, I would be happy for other Chapter members who do not live in her district to join me.

Best regards,

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Interested Parties -

As our Chapter continues its advocacy planning to make our voices heard by Brooklyn’s Congressional representatives, I thought it worthwhile to recommend that you engage in something I’m going to call “easy activism.” If you were not aware, the UNA website offers a simple console to write our elected officials about issues you care a lot about. For instance, right now if you go this site http://capwiz.com/unausa/home/?external_id=10481.0 – you can easily write the president to encourage U.S. support for the International Criminal Court, signing the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms Of Discrimination Against Women, or just to thank the Obama administration for its renewed commitment to global engagement.

You may think that using this online console to show your support for the UN and multilateralism is not that important (I just said “you may”). But when thousands, tens of thousands, and more letters are written, our elected officials usually respond as you’d like them to because they want to please voters. Also, if you’re feeling that you just don’t do enough to make the world a better place, but you’re too darn busy, then this easy activism is just the thing you need. As you help change the world, you’ll just have a better week as well.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Interested Parties -

Since my last update, I had the pleasure of reading a new UNA publication entitled “Renewing America’s Committment To International Law,” by Lawrence C. Moss. This work provides an excellent overview of U.S. positions on international law and treaties, past and present, and demonstrates that we are neglecting our global leadership responsibilities by not signing and ratifying dozens of treaties that serve to build a more just and peaceful world. Included in the list of treaties to which the U.S. is not party to are the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Woman, Children’s Rights Convention, The Law of the Sea Treaty, and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

With the exception of the Children’s Rights Convention, the Obama Administration has called on the Senate to ratify the aforementioned treaties and clearly would like to see the U.S. become party to many treaties in the areas of peace and security, human rights, and the environment. And it’s important to reflect on the fact that we’re headed in a better direction and the unilateral impulses and policies of the last administration have given way to a more multilateral direction. But this publication highlights how far the  U.S. has fallen behind as a leader in the development of a rules-based international society.

As we prepare for the advocacy work of the Brooklyn Chapter, this publication serves as a great reminder, and hopefully motivator, of how crucial our efforts are. The more Americans tell their leaders that the UN is important to them, the more the U.S. will follow a path dedicated to international law and multilateralism.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Interested Parties -

First, to all affected readers — a very Happy Easter!

The advocacy work of our chapter is now my first priority. Today, I will be emailing chapter members a Word document with a  list of important UN issues that US leaders can greatly influence with their votes and actions. The document contains links to research and reporting that can help us all understand these issues. At our next meeting we’ll vote on the advocacy points we wish to raise to our representatives in Brooklyn. Please respond to my email if you would like to add more issues that might become part of our advocacy agenda.

Much of “my” advocacy agenda is that developed by the UNA-USA through its bi-annual consultative process.  I recommend that you read UNA’s An Advocacy Agenda for 2010.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Chapter Members and Other Interested Parties -

The UNA-USA Annual Meeting is June 6-8 in Washington, DC. For more information see http://www.unausa.org/annualmeeting2010. These dates coincide with “Day On The Hill” – http://www.unausa.org/Page.aspx?pid=8910 – when UNA members meet with their representatives in Washington to make their pro-UN positions known loud and clear. I would like to make this part of the Brooklyn Chapter’s advocacy work and will send out an email with a plan of action, pending discussions with Cristina Grisham, who will be working with me on advocacy in 2010. Please do consider attending the meeting in Washington.

Gabriel

Dear UNA Brooklyn Members and Interested Parties:

Our first event on March 3rd, 2010, a screening of the “The Reckoning”, a documentary about the International Criminal Court, with remarks and Q & A with John Washburn, was very successful.  Carla Hung, our chapter Vice President was most responsible for this event and deserves great accolades. Special thanks to Professor Lester Wilson from LIU, Hannah Dunphy from AMICC, and UNA board member Jay Hammond. We had a nice turnout from our membership which was great to see!

After consulting with Carla, we will provide a more detailed re-cap on the event, including the numbers of new members who signed up!

Nathifa Morris, our chapter treasurer, and I finally have the paperwork we need to open up a UNA Brooklyn bank account. We endeavor to have that done by the end of the month.

Our next “event” is really not an event but our chapter’s advocacy work,which focuses on setting up  meeting with members of Congress who represent Brooklyn to communicate our positions on the UN and global affairs. Those positions still need to be agreed upon. Members will finally be receiving a document today with some suggested issues for our advocacy work. I’ll be calling a meeting for the first half of April.

I endeavor to make this bi-weekly update truly bi-weekly starting this month.

Sincerely,

Gabriel Levit