US-Kenya Coalition for Peace with Truth and Justice

Dear all Kenyans and friends of Kenya,

I am desperately trying to reach out to other people in the US who are concerned and outraged about the current situation in Kenya, and to see ways that I and others may help take unified action in any possible way. In that vein, I am reaching out to all Kenyans living in the US and friends of Kenya, and am proposing the idea of trying to form and expand a network of people in the US in order to establish a kind of united front to vigorously advocate for the US to play a more neutral, multilateral and transparent role in the negotiation process for peace with truth and justice in Kenya. For those who have been following the situation you will recognize the last line as the name of the coalition of Kenyan human rights and civil society organizations, "Kenyans for Peace with Truth and Justice," whom I think we should be showing solidarity with by amplifying their demands and statements, particularly regarding US involvement in Kenya, to leaders and media outlets here in the US by forming a "US Coalition for Peace with Truth and Justice in Kenya." An additional focus for those in the US is to raise awareness of the situation in Kenya and to educate members of the press to stop inaccurately depicting the situation as an extreme "shock," as a result of just "tribal conflict," and underestimating the US's interests and role in the situation. Also, the disproportionate affect of the humanitarian situation on specific groups must be highlighted without trivializing or sensationalizing it, particularly violence against women and children, and the disruption in the flow of essential goods and services throughout eastern Africa (especially medicines such as antidiarrheals, antibiotics, malaria meds, ARVs, etc.).

There are certainly many people and organizations in the US who are already doing great work on this, and this is not an attempt to be purposely ignorant of the great work they are doing, it is merely an effort to try to reach out and connect as many people as possible who are concerned and want to take united action on this issue. If I, like I imagine I may be, am ignorant enough to not know that such a unified network already exists, then I will immediately withdraw my proposal and humbly ask to be included in the previously established network(s). Nevertheless, there is the need for an organized listserv in order for such a campaign (if that's what it is) to stay up-to-date and to communicate effectively with each other, that is if such a listserv/group is not already established either. If no such organized group/listserv already exists then I have created a simple google group for now, but perhaps more tech savvy people have better suggestions. The name of the google group is "US Coalition for Peace with Truth and Justice in Kenya" and the email address of the group is [email][email protected] Please suggest any other better ideas, otherwise PLEASE DISTRIBUTE THIS WIDELY.

One initial proposed action is to encourage lots of people to submit questions to the upcoming US Presidential candidate debates to pose questions to the candidates in order to get them to publicly address and raise awareness of the situation in Kenya and propose what as President they would do to promote peace, truth and justice in Kenya, and the surrounding Horn and East of Africa (i.e., will they continue to prioritize US "national security" interests and actions of the "war on terror" in the region, or rather will they prioritize investing in community healthcare capacity, for example). Pending the response I get from people here, I will post more contact information on this. A basic idea is also for a massive US organizational sign-on letter, unless this is already underway by anybody?

I am also including people in Kenya and Kenyan organizations, including those part of "Kenyans for Peace with Truth and Justice," on this email and would greatly appreciate any and all comments, concerns and suggestions that you may have for us here in the US who are seeking ways to help in both the humanitarian situation and the political situation by taking account of the interests and actions of the US government and other US actors in Kenya.

Thank you all for your stern devotion and commitment to peace, truth and justice in Kenya! I am desperately eager to hear back from any and all of you.