Duane Shank was Associate Editor for Sojourners magazine and was on the staff from 1995 to 2014. 

Duane has been active as an organizer and administrator in the peace and justice movement for 35 years, beginning as a draft resistance and antiwar organizer during the Vietnam war. He has worked as a community organizer in the rural south, in interfaith coalitions, and in the nuclear weapons freeze and Central America solidarity movements of the 1980s. His positions have included Associate for the National Inter-religious Service Board for Conscientious Objectors; National Coordinator for the Committee Against Registration and the Draft; Deputy Director and Acting Executive Director for SANE/Freeze; and Research Fellow for the Institute for Policy Studies.

Duane attended Eastern Mennonite University. He is a Anabaptist/Mennonite, and currently an active member and serves on the worship leadership team of the Community of Christ ecumenical congregation in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood of Washington, D.C. His views on faith and politics have been shaped by (among others), John Howard Yoder, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Martin Luther King, Jr., Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Oscar Romero.

Duane is married to Ellen Kennel. They have a daughter, Celeste, a graduate of Goshen College, IN, the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, and the University of Chicago Divinity School.

In addition to family, church, and work; his passions are baseball (Washington Nationals), blues (Buddy Guy and Stevie Ray Vaughan) and bluegrass music (Ralph Stanley), and barbecue.

 

Posts By This Author

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-14-2008

The latest news on Compassion Forum, McCain & faith, Young evangelicals, Papal visit to US, Superrich keep spending, Death penalty, Food crisis, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Darfur, Kenya, Colombia, and Opinion.

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Compassion Forum. Democrats Wrangle Over Words and Beliefs "A candidate forum devoted to issues of faith and justice became another flash point for Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton to spar in their intensifying nominating fight," Clinton, Obama discuss ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-11-2008

The latest news on Iraq-US troops, Housing, US-Colombia trade, Olympics, Catholic schools, Papal visit, Faith & Politics, MDGs, Zimbabwe, Israel-Palestine, North Korea, and Opinion.

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Iraq-US troops. Bush Backs Petraeus on Indefinite Suspension of Troop Pullout in Iraq "President Bush ordered an indefinite suspension of troop withdrawals from Iraq this summer but promised that the war "is not endless" Bush Signals No Further Reduction of Troops in ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-10-2008

The latest news on Iraq-military, Economy, College loans, Olympic torch protest, Payday lending, Colombia-free trade, Iraq threat, Zimbabwe, Israel-Palestine, and Opinion.

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Iraq-military. Bush to Cut Army Tours to 12 Months "President Bush plans to announce that he will cut Army combat tours in Iraq from 15 months to 12 months, returning rotations to where they were before last year's troop buildup in an effort to alleviate the tremendous stress on the military,"

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-09-2008

The latest news on Iraq-Congress, Economy, Food, Iraq-Congress, Economy, Olympics-China, Papal visit, Food, MDGs, Israel- Peace Now, Darfur, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Nuclear weapons, and Ecuador-environment.

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Iraq-Congress. A Plea From Petraeus "Army Gen. David H. Petraeus returned to Congress yesterday seeking more time to consolidate security gains in Iraq by halting withdrawals of U.S. forces this summer," Petraeus Urges Halt in Weighing New Cut in ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-08-2008

The latest news on Iraq-US, Katina foreclosures, Immigration, Prison re-entry, Papal visit to US, Iraq, Iran, Colombia, Zimbabwe, Mideast, Opinion.

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Iraq-US. Congress To Hear Of Gains In Iraq "In a reprise of their testimony last September, Army Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker plan to tell Congress that security has improved in Iraq and that the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has taken steps toward political reconciliation and economic stability." Few see ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-07-2008

The latest news on Unemployment, Pell Grants, Housing, Prison ministry, MLK anniversary, Immigration, Iraq-Congress, Iraq war, Zimbabwe and Opinion.

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Unemployment. March data show sharpest job losses in 5 years "With the government reporting the third straight month of job losses and wages lagging behind inflation, the problems that originally centered on housing and financial markets now appear to have spread through almost every segment of the economy." Democrats Call for New Aid Package as ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-04-2008

The latest news on Economy, NATO, Special feature, Economy, Child abuse, AIDS relief, NATO, Zimbabwe, Iraq, North, Iran, Special feature, News and Opinion.

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Economy. Economy sheds 80,000 jobs in March "The employers cut payrolls for a third month in a row in March, slashing 80,000 jobs for the biggest monthly job decline in five years as the economy headed into a downturn," Surge in jobless claims stokes fears about recession "In another scary sign for the sluggish U.S. economy, the Labor ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-03-2008

The latest news on AIDS Funding, Trafficking sentence, Housing, Martin Luther King-Memphis, MDGs, Zimbabwe, Iraq, NATO, Poverty-UK, Poverty-Canada, Christian Zionism, Nuclear weapons, Interview, and Opinion.

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AIDS Funding. Bush AIDS initiative gets bipartisan renewal "A bipartisan coalition in the House voted to significantly expand a popular program aimed at combating HIV and AIDS around the world, renewing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief by authorizing $50 billion -- $20 billion more than the White House requested -- over five years."

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-02-2008

The latest news on Housing foreclosures, Immigration, Interrogation & intelligence, Turner & churches partner against malaria, Job dangers, Iraq, Zimbabwe, NATO, Darfur, Tibet, and Opinion.

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Housing foreclosures. Senate ready to help stem tide of foreclosures "Under pressure to help Main Street after the government saved a Wall Street firm from bankruptcy, senators ended weeks of partisan stalemate and agreed to try to quickly pass legislation that could help some homeowners avoid foreclosure."

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 04-01-2008

the latest news on Economy, Education, HUD, Congressional office search, Child safety, Weapons, Depression?, Global hunger, Iraq, UK troops, NATO, Israel-Palestine, and Tibet.

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Economy. Proposed Revamp Taps Fed As Uber Cop "It's a Herculean task: revamping a financial regulatory system dating back to the Civil War to deal with 21st century crises imperiling the country." Doubts Greet Treasury Plan Regulation As Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. laid ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-31-2008

the latest news on Economy-Mainstreet, Economy-housing, Economy-Wall Street, Gore-climate change, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Catholics, Iraq, Zimbabwe, NATO-Afghanistan, Iran, Israel-Palestine, North Korea, and Opinion.

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Economy-Mainstreet. States Are Hit Hard by Economic Downturn "At least half of the nation's states are facing budget shortfalls, some of them severe, and policymakers in most of the states affected are proposing and passing often-painful measures to trim costs and close the gaps."

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-28-2008

The latest news on Rice on race, Economy, Faith and justice, Deporting inmates, Iraq, President on Iraq, Zimbabwe, Nuclear weapons, Tibet, UK-France summit, Arab League, Israel-Syria, Pakistan.

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Rice on race. Rice hits U.S. 'birth defect' "Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said yesterday that the United States still has trouble dealing with race because of a national "birth defect" that denied black Americans the opportunities given to whites at the country's very founding."


Economy.

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-27-2008

The latest news on McCain-foreign policy, Dem primaries, News, Slavery-Florida apology, Slavery-Africa, Environment, Iraq, Pakistan, Education in Africa, Kenya, Russia, Israel-Palestine talks, Colombia, Tibet, Opinion.

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McCain-foreign policy. McCain, in Foreign Policy Talk, Turns His Back on Unilateralism "In a wide-ranging speech on foreign policy, Senator John McCain sought to distance himself from the unilateralism that has been a hallmark of the Bush administration,"

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-26-2008

The latest news on Supreme Court, Medicare, Money in politics, Immigrants, Global warming, Iraq, Tibet, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nuclear fuses to Taiwan, and Opinion.

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Supreme Court. Justices Rebuff Bush and World Court "The Supreme Court issued a broad ruling limiting presidential power and the reach of international treaties, saying neither President Bush nor the World Court has the authority to order a Texas court to reopen a death penalty case involving a foreign national." Supreme ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-25-2008

the lastest news on World hunger, Iraq, Iraq-US troops, Primaries, NAFTA, Pakistan, Tibet, Trash pickers.

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World hunger. World Food Program issues 'emergency appeal' for funds "With food and fuel prices soaring, the United Nations agency charged with feeding the world's hungry has launched an "extraordinary emergency appeal" to cover costs and avoid having to cut aid," UN food agency issues emergency plea ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-24-2008

The latest news on Iraq - US deaths hit 4,000, Terrorism, Immigration, Economy, Faith & politics, Darfur, Israel-Palestine, Pakistan, Tibet, Opinion, and On this day in history.

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Iraq - US deaths hit 4,000. U.S. logs 4,000th GI death "Four U.S. soldiers were killed when a bomb hit their vehicle in southern Baghdad late Sunday, bringing the number of U.S. personnel killed in the Iraq war to 4,000." U.S. Deaths in ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-20-2008

The latest news on Iraq war President, Iraq war-antiwar, Iraq-Military, Iraq-politics, McCain in Israel, Death penalty, Farm bill and hunger, Katrina, Tibet, Chad, and Pakistan.

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Iraq war - President. Bush defends Iraq war as worth it; Democrats disagree "President Bush declared that "the successes we are seeing in Iraq are undeniable" as he gave a rousing defense of the war on its fifth anniversary before a receptive but not overwhelmingly enthusiastic Pentagon audience." On War's ...

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-19-2008

the lastest news on Obama and race, Iraq, D.C. gun case, Economy, Homeowners, Justice Revival, Mission by immersion, Tibet, Mideast, Colombia, and Editorials

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Obama on race. Obama calls for racial healing "Sen. Barack Obama 's sweeping speech on race Tuesday marked an attempt to wrench his campaign out of a polarizing diversion and to reignite a discussion of the country's potential for moving beyond racial ...

What Might Have Been

by Duane Shank 03-18-2008

The Cost of War

Five years ago today, on March 18, the British Parliament debated whether or not to support the pending U.S. attack on Iraq. It was already clear that the Bush administration was determined to attack, and desperately needed support from the U.K. That morning, Sojourners

Daily News Digest

by Duane Shank 03-18-2008

The latest news on Economy, Race & Politics, New York governor, Religious right, Iraq, Americans in Canada, Tibet, Pakistan, Iran, and Opinion.

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Economy. Fed likely to stay on offensive "The Federal Reserve is poised to aggressively lower interest rates again Tuesday, perhaps by as much as 1 percent, as it continues its efforts to ease a major credit crunch and serve as a virtual safety net for investment bankers." Crises of Confidence in ...