CFPA Will Feature Nation Magazine’s Katrina vanden Heuvel
By Donald Gilpin
Katrina vanden Heuvel, publisher, editorial director, and former editor of The Nation magazine, will be the keynote speaker this Sunday, June 9, at the Coalition for Peace Action’s (CFPA) annual membership gathering at the Christ Congregation, 50 Walnut Lane, adjacent to Princeton High School.
A sponsor reception with vanden Heuvel will take place from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., with the program, which will also honor three individuals for their work for peace, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday.
CFPA Executive Director the Rev. Robert Moore, in a June 3 phone interview, emphasized the significance of this event and the urgency of working for peace during this troubled moment in history. “It’s important to have these kinds of events where we gather and feel better informed, but also strengthened in our determination to continue with our movement and hopefully grow it,” he said.
Moore went on to note the wars in Ukraine and Gaza as well as the ongoing threat of nuclear conflict. “We’re coping with a lot of very urgent, crisis-type situations, more so than in a long time,” he said. “We need a peaceful way forward, so we’ve been advocating for a ceasefire in Gaza and also for the release of the hostages.”
The Princeton-based CFPA has been collaborating with sister organizations in southeastern Pennsylvania, Moore added, and has recently held Zoom meetings with six different members of Congress. “Five of the six have come out publicly in support of a ceasefire,” he said. “We feel that has been a big accomplishment.”
At the June 9 gathering Moore anticipates that vanden Heuvel, who is president of the American Committee for U.S.-Russian Accord and a regular columnist for The Nation and The Washington Post, will be commenting on Russia, the war in Ukraine and other current issues.
“She has remained heavily involved in matters related to Russia,” he said, “and has a deep background in that area.”
A 1981 Princeton University graduate, vanden Heuvel’s senior thesis was titled “American Victims: A Study of the Anti-Communist Crusade.” She was the editor of The Nation from 1995 to 2019, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, serves on several boards,
and is a recipient of a number of awards, including the Norman Mailer Prize, a literary distinction for writers.
She was married to Princeton University Russian Studies professor Stephen F. Cohen from 1988 until his death in 2020.
Honorees at the June 9 event will be nuclear weapons expert Stewart C. Prager, Princeton University professor emeritus of astrophysical sciences; Yael Niv, Princeton University professor of psychology and neuroscience who has been a major proponent for abolishing the “party line” election ballots design; and Ram Chelluri, longtime chair of the CFPA Peace Education Committee.
Pre-registration is required by noon of June 7 for the 1:30-2:30 p.m. sponsor reception with vanden Heuvel and for the 2:30-4:30 p.m. keynote address and program. The registration fee is $10 for the program and $100 to attend the pre-program reception.
CFPA, founded in 1980 and headquartered in Princeton, is the largest peace organization in the region, with more than 8,300 member and supporting households. For registration and more information, visit peacecoalition.org.