We are a coalition of New York City area Buddhists, dedicated to bringing Buddhist morals and values into action in order to bring about true justice. Our Mission is to organize and inspire compassionate Buddhist initiatives in advancing social, economic, and environmental justice for the benefit of all beings, undertaken through advocacy and nonviolent direct action.

We meet on the first Monday of the month. All are welcome. While we miss being in our regular meeting room at the Union Theological Seminary, we will continue to meet via Zoom for the coming months. To join us and to learn about what we’re doing, please sign up for our mailing list.

Continuing to offer this space for group meditation, for peace and justice, in Gaza, in Palestine, in Israel.

This group meditation is a showing-up different from the usual rally or protest of bullhorns and placards. It is intended to be a space where instead of loudness, we will endeavor to transform whatever anger, frustration, agitation we may have into a formidable quiet presence (the mountain!) that directs our practice both outwardly and inwardly.

While our Buddhist communities grapple with how to respond with the violence that continues to unfold in the Middle East, we at BAC are ourselves in a state of dissonance and resonance.  We want to be honest about that.  That we do not all agree on how to respond, on words and definitions.  We do agree that our practice as Engaged Buddhists dictates that we respond, that we show up.  We cannot wait until an absolute, total agreement is in place to show up.  We hope and trust that taking action together, practicing together will slowly, meaningfully bring in more understanding and resonance.

We will sit and do walking meditation in the midst of all this.  We will recite Metta prayer.  We will meet one another wherever we're at.

Please join us, rain or shine...

These monthly group meditations in the streets have been invaluable for many of us.  They've been a source of strength, a refuge, a place to grieve, an opportunity to connect with fellow activists and practitioners, a space to re-gather practice and courage for the long-haul work for peace and justice.

Deep bows and gratitude to all, for your practice, for your presence, for not looking away from the horrors that continue to unfold in the Middle East, and for continuing to show up however and wherever you can.

May our collective practice plant the seeds of the causes and conditions for peace. May our practice continuously till this field, so that the harvest is of non-separation and of the truth of interbeing.

Rain or shine, please join us on Sunday, 21 April 2024, 1-2PM US ET, Union Square Park (north), Manhattan, NYC.  We will meet on 17th Street, directly across from Barnes & Noble.  Please check our X/Twitter or Facebook for alerts. If possible, please come in your practice attire and bring a cushion and/or something to sit on.  For those outside NYC, please form your own gathering, practice with us, and let us know, buddhistactionny@gmail.com.

Please read this Buddhist petition for an immediate end to violence, and if it aligns with you, please sign and circulate.

Compassionate Action: Sanghas Supporting Refugees’ Campaign to Resettle a Newly Arriving Family

A grassroots team of local volunteers has formed Sanghas Supporting Refugees to resettle a refugee family escaping violence, persecution and hardship. We ask you to support this compassionate action at a critical moment as refugees continue arriving in the New York City area. 

Sanghas Supporting Refugees’ project will be guided by HIAS, the global Jewish nonprofit that has protected refugees for more than 140 years. HIAS offers a proven framework with five pathways to welcome refugees, help them integrate into their communities, and build new lives. Our Sanghas Supporting Refugees project volunteers will facilitate each pathway—housing, health, education, employment and community connections—to help a refugee family plant their feet on local soil.

HIAS requests that we raise up to $40,000 to support a refugee family. 

Your tax deductible donation will be doubled—a generous donor has offered to match donations one-to-one up to $20,000.

Your Support Assists Refugees

Because Sanghas Supporting Refugees operates free of administrative and overhead costs, 100% of your donation will go to supporting refugees. Your contribution will make a real difference for a refugee family by providing them with paid rent, food, and other necessities of living.

Please donate any amount to support this compassionate work. Click on the link to give: https://villagezendo.org/sanghas-supporting-refugees/

Most of our volunteers come from a wide range of Buddhist groups throughout the area. The Village Zendo, a 501(c)3 charity, is our fiscal sponsor. We also have many non-Buddhist volunteers and welcome everyone’s participation.

If you do not have resources to contribute financially, please help us to spread the word about our project. 

With palms together in gratitude, and one with all beings, the Sanghas Supporting Refugees team appreciates your generosity (dana).

Chad DeChant and Maya Petrovic 
Co-Chairs, Sanghas Supporting Refugees

For more information email sanghassupportingrefugees@villagezendo.org

24 March 2021

The Buddhist Action Coalition grieves along with the loved ones and communities of those killed in the recent mass shootings in Atlanta and Boulder. With our words and actions we will continue to support gun control policy and work towards a society free from violence, bigotry, greed, ignorance and hatred.

BAC calls upon this memory from 2018—March for Our Lives—to speak to the tragedies of the last week. Eighteen more lives, and all the lives intimately connected to those lives, and the collective trauma of Bearing Witness to this violence as a country.

May their memories give us the courage and will to finally make changes needed to become a truly life sustaining society. To make these changes, we can start with President Biden's call for a ban on assault rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines. Please take a moment to contact your representative and encourage them to support legislation which will help save lives: https://whoismyrepresentative.com/

May all beings be free from suffering.

With Metta,
The Buddhist Action Coalition

COMING TOGETHER:
How Can Engaged Buddhists Respond to
Rising Fascism and White Terrorism?

On 3 February 2021, we hosted an open discussion and strategizing session on fascism and white terrorism. Practitioners came together to share resources, actions, and ideas on ways to come together. Among those who shared their thoughts to frame the evening’s discussion were Enkyo Roshi (Village Zendo), Karen Eko Walker (Village Zendo), and James Lynch (Buddhist Council of New York). Below’s a recording of our conversation.

If you’d like to get involved in helping coordinate multi-sangha actions/initiatives and coalition-build, please email Dorotea at buddhistactionny@gmail.com.

BAC Event: The Rohingya Genocide, a Panel Discussion

On Tuesday, May 21, a diverse crowd including many from the Buddhist and Muslim communities as well as Numerous Human Rights Organizations gathered at the at Union Theological Seminary to gain a deeper understanding of the current plight of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar (Burma) and delve into the history of the atrocities being committed there. The event was created by The Buddhist Action Coalition and co-sponsored by The Buddhist Council of New York and Union Theological’s Thích Nhất Hạnh Program for Engaged Buddhism. The Buddhist magazine Lion’s Roar wrote up an article on the topic that included a bit about the event:

https://www.lionsroar.com/commentary-we-must-address-religious-nationalism-to-prevent-buddhism-from-being-perverted-into-a-force-for-evil/

Organized and moderated by Buddhist Action Coalition members Eric Manigian and Chad DeChant, “The Rohingya Genocide: A Panel Discussion” featured distinguished speakers including Dr. Azeem Ibrahim, scholar and author of The Rohingyas: Inside Myanmar's Hidden Genocide, Ms. Khin Mai Aung, Cilvil Right Attorney and U.S. Coordinator of the Free Rohingya Coalition, Brother Adem Carroll, NY/UN Program Director of Burma Task Force, Ms. Ashley Aya Aye Dun, writer and activist, and Mr. Mohiuddin Mohamad-Yusof, President of the World Rohingya Organization and a survivor of the violence. Attendees gained an in depth knowledge of the history and development of the Genocide, the resulting mass exodus and current crisis conditions in the refugee camps. In recognition of Ramadan, an Iftar meal was shared at sunset.

The Buddhist Action Coalition would like to thank all those who came out that evening to deepen their understanding of this important issue. Please stay tuned for further updates and helpful links as we follow through with the Panel to find out what our community can do to help ease the suffering of the Rohingya people.

Some organizations to support:

Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Boarders)

Free Rohingya Coalition

Burma Task Force

World Rohingya Organization

Restless Beings

IRAP International Refugee Assistance Project

BRAC Humanitarian Crisis Management

Photo credits: Amy Elizabeth Photography

Get on the list!

This movement doesn't move without you. We have organizing meetings the first Monday of the month and will be organizing gatherings, actions, and retreats in the coming months. Whether you want to help build the coalition, walk with us at the next march, or just stay in touch with what we're up to, register for our mailing list to get all the latest! Sign up below, or if the form isn't showing up for you (which sometimes happens on mobile devices), you can sign up here.

Buddhist Action Coalition in the Media

• Buddhist Action: Forming a new Moral action group - a profile of the group in compassion nyc magazine

• buddhists take action at march for our lives - Leaders from several sanghas and Buddhist groups show solidarity at an anti-gun violence rally, as reported by tricycle magazine

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