This year on #GivingTuesday millions of Americans will donate to nonprofits and charities. We set an ambitious goal for our largest single fundraising day in SFI’s history. Can you help us get there?
Secure Families Initiative was created by military spouses, for military spouses. We work to harness the individual voices of military families to act as a powerful chorus promoting diplomacy and preserving democracy. Because we understand better than anyone the consequences that decisions over war and peace have here on our homefront.
We know from direct experience that sending servicemembers into protracted conflicts exacerbates factors facing our community. Veterans suffer from a suicide rate that is double the civilian average. Frequent deployments and a wartime operational tempo mean that care-giving responsibilities fall disproportionately on spouses and partners. Military children are more likely than their peers to receive a mental health diagnosis and suffer from higher levels of stress and anxiety.
This is why SFI was formed a few short years ago, and this is why we’ve been working non-stop to end protracted wars and reprioritize diplomacy as our foreign policy tool of first response. Because, for us, it’s personal.
Here’s a few of our accomplishments from 2022:
- Defended the right for military families to participate in free and fair elections. We know our votes matter and that is why we protect this right so fiercely. Whether it was clapping back at a State Senator in Michigan when she suggested military spouses aren’t deserving of equal voting rights because we’re not in “foxholes” or speaking out when a legislator in Wisconsin threatened to sequester all military ballots.
- Championed to return war powers Congress. In the past two months alone, our team has met with over a dozen US Senators whose votes are critical to repeal the 2002 Iraq War Authorization. SFI members have flooded offices across the country with letters and phone calls connecting this important repeal to our experiences as military families.
- Worked to pass an 2022 Executive Order limiting the 1033 program, which allows the Department of Defense (DoD) to transfer excess military-grade weapons and equipment to local police departments. In 2023 we will continue to fight for a permanent repeal of this program in Congress.
This #GivingTuesday, consider a contribution of $25, $50 or $100 to ensure that we can continue to take up and expand this tough work in 2023.