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February 5, 2016 (updated March 1)
The Campaign for Peace and Democracy invites you to Washington, DC, on March 5 and 6 for the first-ever two-day Summit on Saudi Arabia and U.S.-Saudi ties.
The summit is being hosted by CODEPINK, the Campaign for Peace and Democracy, the Fellowship of Reconciliation, The Nation Magazine, the Institute for Policy Studies, Peace Action, and many others.
Dates: March 5- 6, 2016
Times: Saturday, 8:00am to 9:00pm | Sunday, 8:00 am to 5:00pm
Location: The UDC David A. Clarke School of Law (4340 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008)
The new wave of hostilities unleashed by the Jan. 2 execution of prominent Saudi Shia cleric Nimr Al-Nimr shows how critical it is for us to understand the dynamics of Saudi politics and its effects throughout the Middle East.
In an effort to keep this accessible to all, the price for the entire conference is only $20 to $100 (sliding scale), including lunch.
And after you register, please be sure to let us know by replying to this email or contacting us at cpd@igc.org so we'll know to look for you in Washington.
The conference includes a great line up of more than 15 speakers, including Saudi, Yemeni, and Bahraini nationals, talks by Medea Benjamin, Chris Hedges, Vijay Prashad, as well as Mohammed Al-Nimr, son of Sheikh Nimr Al-Nimr and representatives from Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the Gulf Institute, and the National Iranian American Council.
This summit will address issues such as human rights, Saudi domestic and foreign policy, and the prospects for change inside the kingdom and in U.S.-Saudi relations.
Schedule
Saturday, March 5
8:00am-9:00am Registration
9:00am-9:30am Opening Session
- Medea Benjamin, CODEPINK
9:30am-10:15am Session I: Saudi Politics and Overview
- Ali Al-Ahmed, The Gulf Institute
- Abdulaziz Al-Hussan, Saudi lawyer and human rights defender
- Moderator: Medea Benjamin
10:20am-11:00pm Session II: Women in Saudi Arabia
- Ebtihal Mubarak, Saudi journalist
- Kristine Beckerle, Human Rights Watch
- Moderator: Jodie Evans
11:00am-11:50am Session III: Human Rights
- Sunjeev Bery, Amnesty International
- Dr. Sharat G. Lin, scholar on Middle Eastern migrant labor
- Julianne Hill, Reprieve U.S. Legal Fellow
- Moderator: Ann Wright
12-1pm Lunch Break & Keynote
- Vijay Prashad, author and professor at Trinity College
1:15pm-2:15pm Session IV: Saudi Foreign Policy
- Rabyaah Althaibani, Yemeni-American activist
- Jamal Abdi, National Iranian American Council
- Matar Matar, Bahraini politician and activist
- Moderator: Joanne Landy
2:30pm-3:45pm Session V: Oil, weapons sales, and U.S.-Saudi ties
- William Hartung, Center for International Policy
- Raed Jarrar, American Friends Service Committee
- Robert Vitalis, author and professor at University of Pennsylvania
- Phyllis Bennis, Institute for Policy Studies
3:50pm-4:50pm Session VI: Supporting Change in Saudi Arabia
- Mohammed Al-Nimr, son of executed Sheikh Nimr Al-Nimr
- Daniel Arshack, lawyer for imprisoned attorney Waleed Abu al-Khair
- Sanam Naraghi-Anderlini, Executive Director, International Civil Society Network (ICAN)
5pm-5:30pm → Wrap Up
Food and conversation available at restaurant downstairs Epicurean 4250 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008
7:00pm-9:00pm Wajda film screening
Sunday, March 6
9:30am Check in
10:00am-11am Outlining and brainstorming campaigns (with open mic)
11am-12noon Breakout sessions, including:
- supporting political prisoners
- stopping weapons sales
- getting 28 pages released
- creating an international coalition
- tracking/countering the Saudi lobby
12:00pm-12:30pm Report backs
12:30pm-1:30pm Lunch Break/Interest Groups
1:30pm-2:30pm Chris Hedges keynote
2:30pm-3:00pm Wrap-up
Co-Sponsors:
- Campaign for Peace and Democracy
- Center for Inquiry
- Coalition to End the U.S.-Saudi Alliance
- Fellowship of Reconciliation
- Food Not Bombs
- Friends Committee on National Legislation
- Historians Against the War
- Institute for Policy Studies
- Just Foreign Policy
- KnowDrones.com
- Middle East Crisis Committee
- Peace Action
- People Demanding Action
- Popular Resistance
- RootsAction
- The Gulf Institute
- The Markaz
- The Nation Magazine
- U.S. Labor Against the War
- United For Peace and Justice
- United Methodist General Board of Church and Society
- United National Anti-War Coalition
- Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones and End the Wars
- Veterans For Peace
- Voices for Creative Nonviolence
- WESPAC Foundation
- WNY Peace Center
- World Beyond War
- WILPF DC Branch
Who should attend?
You should attend if you:
- Want to learn about the roots and spread of Islamic extremism.
- Seek solutions to violence in the Middle East.
- Support a U.S. foreign policy that is based on respect for human rights.
- Oppose global weapons proliferation.
- Are working to end our dependence on fossil fuels.
At the Summit on Saudi Arabia, you will learn about a country that is a close ally of the U.S. government and business community but is at the root of many of the problems plaguing the Middle East. By attending keynotes, panel discussions and workshops by people who are from the region or have spent time there, you will gain tools and information to speak about these issues in your community and become an active part of a network of change-makers seeking to influence the nature of U.S.-Saudi ties.
Register now
Just $20 to $100 sliding scale, including lunch.
Buy your tickets here!
Don't forget to let us know when you register. And please join the Facebook event, where CODEPINK will be posting updates on additional speakers and co-sponsors!
We hope to see you there.