Ask the Senate for a World Without Nuclear Weapons!

BACKGROUND:  
On April 8, 2010, U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) that will reduce the number of deployed nuclear weapons in both countries.  This treaty is one of the most significant arms control agreements in the last two decades. It represents a major constructive step in the goals of advancing U.S. security and moving toward ridding the world of the threat of nuclear weapons.

This dramatic step has the potential to create political momentum for an international nuclear non-proliferation effort. At the same time, both nations take seriously the threat of a nuclear Iran, as well as the danger of these weapons falling into the hands of terrorists or nations that seek to use them to impose their will on others.

The U.S. and Russia signed the START treaty in the Czech Republic on the one year anniversary of a speech President Obama delivered in Prague on the subject of nuclear non-proliferation. This landmark address included bold commitments to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons and made “a world without nuclear weapons” the goal of American nuclear policy. Now that Presidents Obama and Medvedev have signed the new START agreement, the Senate must ratify the treaty by a two-thirds majority to implement important weapons reductions and make our nation and world safer.

JEWISH VALUES: 
As Jews we are firmly committed to the belief that nations must “beat their swords into plowshares, their spears into pruning hooks” (Isaiah 2:4) and that people must act toward one another in a spirit of kindness and humanity. Moreover, we recognize our unique role as active participants in bringing about this era of peace and harmony as we live the mandate to “seek peace and pursue it” (Psalms 34:15). These ethics have inspired decades of Reform Movement activism against nuclear weapons proliferation.

TAKE ACTION:
Urge your Senators to support START treaty ratification to actualize the vision of a world free of nuclear weapons. The Capitol Switchboard can be reached at 202.224.3121, or you can send an email by entering your zip code below. 

For more information, contact Legislative Assistant Liz Piper-Goldberg at 202.387.2800