Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice (Ann Arbor, Mich.)

Formerly the Interfaith Council for Peace, organization concerned first with opposition to the war in Vietnam, later with questions of amnesty, human rights, and world hunger.

In December 1965, members of various Ann Arbor religious congregations established an organization with the purpose of coordinating their opposition to the Vietnam War. Eventually named the Interfaith Council For Peace, the group's key organizer was Barbara Fuller, a representative of Memorial Christian Church in Ann Arbor. The Interfaith Council was chartered as a local chapter of the larger, national anti-war coalition, Clergy and Laity Concerned about Vietnam (name later changed to Clergy and Laity Concerned).

As opposition to the Vietnam War grew, both CALC and the IFC arranged a continuing series of activities and events designed to increase public dissatisfaction with the war and bring the conflict to a speedy conclusion. Barbara Fuller, in addition to her responsibilities in Ann Arbor, became an important figure in CALC. She served as the organization's regional coordinator for the Midwest and also was a member of CALC's national executive board.

The eventual conclusion of the war led to a re-evaluation of purpose among all anti-war groups. In Ann Arbor the Interfaith Council for Peace turned its attention to questions of social justice, particularly amnesty, human rights and world hunger. The IFC became the coordinating agency for an annual "hunger walk" in the community, an event designed to both dramatize the plight of the starving and to educate local residents about this problem. In 1988, the organization formally changed its name to the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice (ICPJ).

Through the 1990s and 2000s, the ICPJ was highly involved in a wide variety of activities at the local, state, national and international levels. The group's yearly and monthly listings of events attest to their ongoing dedication to peace and justice and their high level of activism during this time. They continued their administrative role of the annual CROP Walk and also raised awareness regarding local hunger, homelessness, and welfare issues. They also held numerous protests and vigils to raise public awareness about the war in Bosnia, the "School of Assassins" at Fort Benning, support for a nuclear test ban, and opposition to U.S. bombings in Iraq. In addition, they hosted annually a day of "peaceful" events in remembrance of the bombing of Hiroshima, and in the late 1990s began training and coordinating a "Peace Team" to staff the local KKK rallies and anti-KKK protests in Ann Arbor.