Bending the Arc references a quote by Rev. Dr. King who said, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” This digital newsletter from the CSA Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation office showcases the work of changemakers, opportunities to learn, and opportunities for you to help “bend the arc” toward justice. Full contents of the newsletter are published on this page.
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Protect People and Planet: Divest Your City
May 02, 2025
Divestment is a powerful tool being used around the world to put pressure on the companies and governments driving damage to people and planet.
Municipal Divestment has a strong history of moving our money out of humanitarian and environmental crises and holding governments accountable for breaches in human rights law. Getting your city to shift funds away from unethical systems sends a clear message about what we value as a society.
In an April 10 webinar three groups—Warheads to Windmills, World Beyond War, and AFSC—offered a conversation featuring three stories of successful city divestment campaigns across the country where individuals took a stand against companies and governments complicit in the climate crisis, the threat of nuclear war, and the genocide in Palestine. Hear where their campaigns intersected, lessons learned, and be encouraged by how we can come together to build a strong and focused message of institutional pressure to protect people and the planet.
You will also hear from a panel of divestment-oriented organizations with expert resources, tools and support on how to realize municipal divestment campaigns in your area.
Watch the recording here: https://youtu.be/arS8Q3-cAg4
Resources shared after the webinar are listed below:
- Webinar Q&A Document: https://worldbeyondwar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Divestment-Webinar-QA.pdf
- Climate Emergency Mobilization Task Force: https://www.cemtf.org/
- New York City Council divestment resolution: The New York City Council - File #: Res 0976-2019
- Amalgamated Bank: https://www.amalgamatedbank.com/
- Amalgamated's policy: https://www.amalgamatedbank.com/sites/default/files/2023_CSR_Report.pdf
- Sulheya Almatri's slides and resource templates: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TMF-auMVy92FnyKcdGVzQ-wBRXhU7l9M?usp=drive_link
- David Swanson's slides: https://worldbeyondwar.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Divest20250410.pdf
- World BEYOND War's Divestment Campaign page: https://worldbeyondwar.org/divest/
- AFSC's Divestment for Palestinian rights toolkit, which contains the BDS divestment list, model language for a human rights screen, and a list of all divestment achievements across the country over the last year and a half: www.afsc.org/divest
- AFSC's database of companies involved in Israeli occupation, genocide, and apartheid: www.Investigate.info
- Companies directly involved in the genocide in Gaza: www.afsc.org/Gaza-Genocide-Companies
- AFSC's biweekly Office Hours to support divestment campaigns: www.afsc.org/BDS-Office-Hours
- Warheads to Windmills Draft Model Divestment Bill: https://warheadstowindmills.org/draft-model-divestment-bill/
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