The Peace and Jobs Coalition (PJC) was an organization comprised of an alliance of individuals from church, labor, and community organizations working for peace. The PJC formed in response to the loss of jobs related to the growing number of nuclear weapons and increased defense spending. The group supported world peace, weapons reductions, weapon freezes, and union activity. They also took a strong stance against U.S. involvement with the Contras in Nicaragua.
Forty-four people attended the first PJC meeting on December 6, 1981. As the group became organized, general membership was lead by a coordinating council made up of ten persons. Six members of the council were elected from the general membership. Four of the ten persons were elected by each of four standing committees. Those four committees included the Finance Committee, the Public Relations Committee, the Political and Legislative Research Committee, and the Internal Communications Committee.
Usually PJC meetings included a business portion and an educational portion. The educational part of the meetings included information related to the purposes of the coalition and work on PJC projects.
Projects and events undertaken by PJC included rallies and marches, workshops and presentations, fundraising, guest editorials to the La Crosse Tribune, several press conferences, annual leafleting on April 15, and several retreats.
The PJC worked to include a referendum on the November 1982 La Crosse election ballot asking the Common Council to request the president and Congress agree with the Soviet Union to stop the testing, production and installation of nuclear weapons. The referendum passed by a vote of 7,408 to 4,213.
Members also participated in the Freeze Voter '84 campaign during which members walked door-to-door in neighborhoods to enlist voters to elect candidates to national and state offices who favored weapon freezes.
The organization became dormant and published their last newsletter in January 1990. Reasons given for the dormant status included lack of funds and people to carry on the organization's objectives.
