AMERICANS FOR PEACE NOW



American for Peace Now is an organization designed to support the activities of Shalom Achshav (Peace Now in Israel). Founded in 1981, APN is the leading U.S. advocate for peace in the Middle East. Their mission is to help Israel and the Shalom Achshav movement to achieve a comprehensive political settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict consistent with Israel’s long-term security needs and its Jewish and democratic values.

Franklin M. Fisher serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the organization. The entire peace movement which has its roots in Israel all began with a petition to the prime minister in 1978. What would become the largest grassroots movement in Israel history began at this point and was specifically founded by the 348 reserve army officers and combat soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces that originally signed the petition. It would only take three years for sister groups to form in the United States and finally merge in to one national organization.

The organization strives to better educate the American public about the benefits of peace by sponsoring a wide array of educational programs that reach out to communities around the country. In doing so, they hope to especially spur an awareness of the benefits of the Shalom Achshav programs in Israel. In addition, they seek an active engagement from the White House ,State Department and Congressional support in the peace process. Finally, AMN seeks to be a firm financial base for Shalom Achshav activities in Israel.

With regional offices across the country, one is located in Southern California. This specific office works to accomplish all of the goals mentioned above specifically in the Southern California area. They most recently hosted the Shalom Achshav Secretary Yariv Oppenheimer at a gathering.