BAY-Peace supports and empowers Bay Area youth to confront militarism and other forms of violence through youth organizing and artistic resistance. We are the only group of our kind in the Bay Area to focus on issues of militarism, offering a unique model that brings youth to the forefront of the movement for peace and justice. BAY-Peace cultivates creativity, critical thinking, and understanding among working-class students of color who are the targets of institutions and cultural norms that increase the level of violence in their lives.
We call attention to the impact of having over half of our taxes spent on war, and engage in positive alternatives that support our communities. In addition, our Youth Action Team is getting the word out to young people in Oakland and around the country about their right to opt out of the JAMRS private military recruiting database.
BAY-Peace provides youth-led workshops and trainings to give other young people real information about the military that recruiters wouldn’t want you to know. We are reaching out to youth all over the Bay Area to organize for better alternatives.
We thank our many individual donors and monthly sustainers for their generous donations. Please visit our donations page if you can make a contribution at this time.
We appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with our community partners:
- The Peace Development Fund (our fiscal sponsor)
- AFSC Youth and Militarism
- AYPAL
- Cas de Paz
- Full Picture Truth in Recruiting
- headRush
- Homies Empowerment
- Met West High School
- National Network Oposed to the Militarization of Youth
- Oakland Emiliano Zapata Street Academy
- United Roots Oakland
- Urban Peace Movement
- Youth Together
- 67 Sueños
We couldn't do it without our funders!
Supportive individuals like you, and:
- Agape Fund at PDF
- A.J. Muste Foundation
- Left Tilt Fund
- Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia
- People's Life Fund
- Resist
- Rose & Sherle Wagner Foundation
- Sparkplug Foundation
- David R. Stern Fund of the Common Counsel Fnd.
And we certainly couldn't do it without our volunteers!
Many thanks to Jeanne and Judith and for helping us keep our finances in order!
And thanks to Susan B. (who never sleeps!) for LOTS of help with this website!
A quick look at the first six years of BAY-Peace
2011-12 has been a great year!
Our Youth Action Team this year included Lawrence Newsome, Tele'Jon Quinn, Jasmire Gibson, Isaiah Teague, Sy Wilson, Megan Torio, Kendra Ligon, and Guayo Cartagena, with Program Leader Abe Velazquez.
Check out this video "BAY-Peace Recap 2012" made by Youth Action Team member Megan Mansalas Torio:
PLAY VIDEO
The 2010-11 Youth Action Team included returning members, Luis, Egypt, Sokthy and Aracely, as well as Guayo. Tele'Jon, Hector, Kadeem, Kenan, Kenny, Brian, Jabari, and Mario. Phuong and Susan were on staff. Some highlights included presenting a skit about protecting student privacy from the JAMRS military recruting database at high school assemblies along with our video "The List." Students in the BAY-Peace class at Oakland Emiliano Zapata Street Academy conducted a year-long service learning project that allowed them to experience first hand the work of organizations that are struggling to meet human needs while so much of our resources are spent waging war. They produced an amazing music video called the BAY-Peace Anthem set to an original score by Luis.
In 2009-10 marked our Youth Manifesto Campaign victory when the Oakland Unified School District adopted our Student Privacy policy. (Read more about the Youth Manifesto Campaign and JAMRS here.) We also created two award wining videos; "No We Can't" (in cooperation with AFSC) about the high cost of military spending, and "The List" (in cooperation with The Factory) about the JAMRS military recruting database. Team members included Stephanie, Elena, Sokthy, Luis, Evaristo, Manuel, Italia, Junior, EiEi, Alba, Adam, Olivia and Aaron. Pablo (c/o American Friends Service Committee) and Susan were on staff.
In 2008-9 the Youth Action Team continued to organize the Youth Manifesto Campaingn, offered truth in recruting workshops in schools and community organizations, and created a Youth Manifesto video. We also organized a summer Road Trip to bring a bus load of young people to participate in "It's Your World—Change it!" a National Counter Recruitment Conference in Chicago. Team members included Stephanie, Elena, José, Xavier, Abraham, Eric, Arwa, Aaron, Juan and Luis. Pablo (c/o American Friends Service Committee) and Susan were on staff.
BAY-Peace became an independent organization in 2007-8 and began to host internships through Met West and June Jordan High Schools, as well as Youth Employment Partnership and the Metta Center for Nonviolence. We kicked off the Youth Manifesto Campaign and organized the "Beyond the Recruiter Boot Camp Tour" for youth who were considering enlisting inthe military. Team members included Amy, Stephanie, Ezekiel, Josh, Chalontae, Portia, Eric and Kay. Pablo (c/o American Friends Service Committee) and Susan were on staff.
The Youth Action Team started as a project of Alternatives to War through Education, as part of the Central Committee for Conscientious Objection. Team members, together with military veteran presenters, led truth in recruiting workshops and spoke at rallies and community events bringing the targetting of youth of color by aggressive military recruiters to thousands of Bay Area youth. Team members included Escentio, Elihu, Jacquieta, Eric, Ruby, Lizzy, Aurora, Samora, Agnes, Latysha and Carrie. Tasha and Susan were on staff.
The Youth Action Team began with a group of three interns from the Youth Empowerment School—Ruby, Zamil and Kahlif. They developed truth in recruiting curriculum, made countless presentations together with military veterans, and helped to organize the On the Frontlines: Options for Youth in Times of War conference at UC Berkeley as part of the Military Out of Our Schools-Bay Area coalition. Their summer internship developed into a year-long after school class for students at Youth Empowerment School and the East Oakland Community School.
