Responsible for Equality and Liberty has received a report of the human rights violations of two women in Lahore, Pakistan. International human rights sources have advised that Christian sisters, “Hina” and “Marina” from Lahore have gone into hiding, after attempts by extremist to kidnap them, to force marriage on them, and to forcefully convert them to deny their Christian religion.
The sources state that Hina and Marina are from Lahore city near the Nishter police station area. The reports state that Hina and Marina have been followed and harassed by extremists, including one individual with a “green turban.” The reports state that extremists have sought to abduct the two sisters, force the sisters into marriage, and to force the sisters to reject their Christian religion and convert them to Islam. The reports state that according to police sources, Mulan’a Abdul Attiq took his son and nephew Hafiz Nasir and Abid Attri to arrange a forced wedding to both Christian sisters. The forced wedding attempts have been rejected by the Christian sisters and their families.
As a result of the sisters rejecting such attempts at forced marriage and forced religious conversion, reports indicate that the Punjab police in Lahore have stated that those two sisters and family have committed blasphemy when Muslim clerics sought to talk about the wedding attempts. The report states that police have filed FIR (under Pakistan law 295-C) against the family.
In accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Responsible for Equality And Liberty continues to support the universal human rights, religious liberty, and freedom for all people, including religious minorities oppressed in Pakistan. We urge the Pakistan authorities to drop any charges against minority Christians being oppressed, harassed, and threatened, including these two Christian sisters, who have reportedly been threatened by attempts at abduction, forced marriage, and forced religious conversion. Responsible for Equality And Liberty also calls for the Pakistan government to end the oppressive blasphemy law used to oppress and harass religious minorities and so many other individuals. Responsible for Equality And Liberty also calls upon on our colleagues in human rights organizations to share this story and call for human rights protection for these sisters.
Pepsi-Cola Public Relations –
My name is Jeffrey Imm, I am a human rights activist. Pepsi is on the board of directors of the U.S.-Pakistan Business Council promoting business in Pakistan. Human rights activists have been expressing their concern about the growing human rights abuses against Hindus and Christians in Pakistan, including forced marriage and forced religious conversion of Hindu and Christian girls. This is against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Pakistan constitution. We are looking to see if your company is willing to make a positive statement in support of human rights for all people, including Hindu and Christian girls in Pakistan.
We are holding a public rally in support of univesal human rights for all on Saturday, April 14 in Washington DC. If you have such a statement, we would be glad to share this with the public.
Thank you.
Jeffrey Imm
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) human rights coalition
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PepsiCo responds:
“Dear Jeffrey,
Thank you for contacting us to share your concerns about human rights abuses.
As a global corporation, PepsiCo strongly supports fundamental human rights for all people, and we commend the efforts of all those who are working to protect those rights around the world. In our own businesses, we have a very clear global policy on human rights in the workplace (which is communicated annually to our associates in more than 20 languages), and we do not tolerate any infringement or abuse of human rights. In addition, we are a signatory of the United Nations Global Compact, which also guarantees human rights in the workplace.
We agree that the protection of human rights around the world requires constant vigilance on the part of international organizations and human rights coalitions such as yours. Please know that we will continue to do our part to strengthen and promote that commitment.
On Saturday, April 14, a rally will be held in support of human rights and dignity for Hindus and Christians in Pakistan. The event will be from 1:30 to 3:30 PM at 1615 H Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20062 – in front of the U.S.-Pakistan Business Council and across the street from Lafayette Square Park. It is a short walking distance from either the Farragut West or Farragut North Metro subway stops. The part of H Street we will be on will be between 16th St NW and 17 St NW, however, the closest intersection will be H Street and Connecticut Ave/Jackson Place.
U.S.-Pakistan Business Council, 1615 H Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20062
The coalition supports our Universal Human Rights for all people, including freedom of conscience for all people in every part of the world.
Organizations represented will include: Pakistan Christian Congress, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.), American Friends of Balochistan, and other activist groups and individual human rights activists. R.E.A.L. has submitted an Assembly Notification to the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia.
The coalition objects to the efforts to deny universal human rights and dignity to religious minorities in Pakistan. As reported by human rights groups, there are hundreds of abductions and forced conversion cases of Hindus and Christian women every year in Pakistan which go unreported.
Recent news has reported on a Hindu family reporting the kidnapping of a 19 year old Hindu girl in Sindh, Rinkle Kumari, who was forced to convert from her religion. The Hindu American Foundation has reported on this as well and the Pakistan Hindu Post issued an online petition to U.S. Secretary of State Clinton, for those concerned about human rights to sign, calling for the U.S. Government to intervene on behalf of Hindu girls kidnapped and forced to deny their religious beliefs.
According to the BBC report, “Human rights activists say that other reported abductions of members of minority communities in Pakistan, which is overwhelmingly Muslim, have not been properly investigated by the authorities.” The Pakistan Tribune also reports on Hindu and Christian girls who have been forcibly converted to Islam.
The Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) coalition calls for the universal human rights of all people, including their freedom, their freedom of conscience, and their right to human dignity. We urge the Government, courts, and the people of Pakistan to act immediately to end abuse of religious minorities, to stop and punish the ongoing kidnappings, and to stop and punish those who would forcibly deny anyone their universal human right of religious freedom and freedom of conscience.
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Event Logistics
Date: Saturday, April 14
Time: 1:30 to 3:30 PM
Location: on the sidewalk area outside 1615 H Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20062 – in front of the U.S.-Pakistan Business Council and across the street from Lafayette Square Park. The part of H Street we will be on will be between 16th St NW and 17 St NW, however, the closest intersection will be H Street and Connecticut Ave/Jackson Place. There is a Starbucks coffee shop near H Street and 18th St NW at 801 18th Street.
Walking Directions from Farragut West Metro
FARRAGUT WEST METRO STATION to H ST NW:
Exit station through 18TH & I (EYE) ST NW entrance.
Walk approx. 2 blocks E on I St NW.
Turn right on Connecticut Ave NW.
Walk approx. 1 block S on Connecticut Ave NW.
Walking Directions from Farragut North Metro
FARRAGUT NORTH METRO STATION to H ST NW:
Exit station through CONNECTICUT AVE & K ST NW entrance.
Walk a short distance S on Connecticut Ave NW.
Bear left on Unnamed.
Walk approx. 1 block SE on Unnamed.
Turn left on I St NW.
Walk a short distance E on I St NW.
Turn right on Connecticut Ave NW.
Walk approx. 1 block S on Connecticut Ave NW.
The part of H Street we will be on will be between 16th St NW and 17 St NW, however, the closest intersection will be H Street and Connecticut Ave/Jackson Place.
Get off at the Farragut West Stop
Exit onto 17th Street
Walk towards the Park Place Gourmet (down I Street)
Take a right onto Connecticut Avenue one block to H Street, make a left
U.S. Chamber is on your left (Corner of Connecticut and H Streets)
Red Line
Get off at the Farragut North Stop
Exit onto K Street
Walk across K Street to Farragut Park
Walk south across the park toward the White House
At the Corner of Connecticut and I Streets walk 1 block south to H Street, make a left
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Building will be on your left (Corner of Connecticut and H Streets)
From Virginia:
From 95
Take 95 North (stay in left lane) across the 14th Street Bridge
Stay on 14th Street until I Street
Left on I Street
Left on Connecticut Avenue
Left on H Street
U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be on your left (Parking on I Street)
From Fairfax/Falls Church Area
Take I-66 East to Constitution Avenue
Left on 17th Street
Right on H Street
U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be on your left
From Maryland:
From Silver Spring Area (495) Take 16th Street to DC
Right on I Street
Left on Connecticut Avenue
Left on H Street
U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be on your left on corner (Parking on I Street)
From Bethesda Area
Take Connecticut Avenue to DC
Connecticut turns into 17th Street
Left on H Street
U.S. Chamber will be on your left (Parking on H Street)
From Southern Maryland Area
Take South Capital Street
Left on Independence
Right on 3rd Street
Left on Pennsylvania Avenue
Right on 15th Street
Left on I Street
Left on Connecticut Avenue
Left on H Street
U.S. Chamber will be on the corner (Parking on I Street)
From Baltimore Washington Parkway
Take New York Avenue exit West (Route 50) toward DC
Left on 6th Street (Route 1)
Right on Pennsylvania Avenue
Right on 15th Street
Left on I Street
Left on Connecticut Avenue
Left on H Street
U.S. Chamber of Commerce will be on the corner (Parking on I Street)
Parking Research
For those driving, note that some garages are not open on Saturday.
I have found the following nearby Parking garages state they have Saturday hours:
— COLONIAL Parking. 1620 I St NW (bet. 16th St NW-17th St NW) – 202-295-8200 – I talked to them and confirmed this on the phone
— MID-TOWN Parking. 1750 K St NW (bet. 17th St NW-18th St NW) — NOTE: they close at 4 PM. 202-775-8819 – I talked to them and confirmed this on the phone
— CENTRAL Parking System. 1625 I St NW (bet. 16th St NW-17th St NW)
— I am also told there is another COLONIAL Parking lot at 1775 I St NW (bet. 17th St NW-18th St NW) – I spoke to a COLONIAL Parking attendant on the telephone that says it is open, but the Internet site for it says that it is not open
Statement by Nazir S. Bhatti, President, Pakistan Christian Congress (PCC), and Editor, Pakistan Christian Post (PCP) on Human Rights Day Regarding Human Rights Issues of Pakistan Christians, including urging the government of Pakistan to repeal blasphemy law and demand formation of Judicial Commission to investigate and to arrest killers of Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minister for Minorities who was assassinated on March 2, 2011, in Islamabad.
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Pakistan Christian Congress' Dr. Nazir Bhatti - Speaking at a previous R.E.A.L. Human Rights Day Event - National Press Club, Washington DC
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I congratulate, Mr. Jeffrey Imm, Chief Coordinator of Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) for organizing this event as commitment to Declaration of Universal Human Rights of United Nation. It is important to pay homage to REAL leadership for commitment and re-commitment of Human Rights Day every year in DC when many champions of Human Rights not even bother to raise voice for persecuted communities on this day.
Availing opportunity of this occasion on Human Rights Day, I must submit that 20 million Pakistani Christians are a forgotten community by the International forums and Human Right organizations. There are incidents of gang-rape, abduction and enforced conversion to Islam of Christian women but silence prevails in capitals of Western governments. The Pastors are gunned down, Churches are attacked, Christian properties are set on fire, worshipers in churches are sprayed with bullets and Christian women and children are burnt alive but culprits walk free from courts if they are arrested. There are arrests of Christians under controversial blasphemy law to settle scores by Muslim majority but Human Right champions have never dared to press upon government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan to repeal such black laws which are contradictory to Universal Human Rights of UN, of which Pakistan is a signatory state.
There are frequent incidents of murder of Christian victims of blasphemy law in custody of law enforcement agencies and by hands of extremist elements but none of culprit is ever arrested and brought to justice. The Christian youth is denied equal opportunities in education and employment to undermine their due rights and even in share of US AID on such programs in Pakistan.
Dear Sirs,
It will be surprising to note that Islamic Republic of Pakistan claims to be a Democratic state but 20 million Pakistani Christians are deprived of their basic right to elect their representation by their vote in Pakistan. We are forced to vote for a Muslim and then that Muslim selects our member in Parliament but Western Democratic countries have never linked their AID to Pakistan for true democracy. Pakistani Christians have long standing demand of representation in National Assembly of Pakistan, Senate of Pakistan; Provincial Assemblies of Pakistan and Local Bodies with proportional to their population which is 13% but never received due consideration.
Dear Sirs,
I must submit that there have been more than 1,500 cases registered under blasphemy law in Pakistan since 1986, in which Christians, Ahmadi, Hindu and individuals of some Muslim sects were arrested. The Christian and Ahmadi victims of blasphemy law were killed by the hands of extremist’s Islamic elements in which none was arrested to ensure justice.
On occasion of Human Right Day, I will urge government of Pakistan to repeal blasphemy law and demand formation of Judicial Commission to investigate and to arrest killers of Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minister for Minorities who was assassinated on March 2, 2011, in Islamabad; The Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab TTP accepted responsibility of killing of Shahbaz Bhatti but Joint Investigation Committee comprising of Islamabad Police and some Christian leaders have failed to make any arrest. I will also demand release of Asia Bibi, a Christian mother of 5, who was sentenced to death on accusation of blasphemy and waiting in jail for his appeal pending in Lahore High Court. Pakistan Christian Congress PCC demands release of more than 100 victims of blasphemy in jails and adequate security for those who have been acquitted from courts and forced to live in hidings.
It is also important to bring in notice of United Nation that Pakistani Christians are facing genocide in Islamic Republic of Pakistan and immediate action is required to safe 20 million Pakistani Christians by awarding Refugee Status for their safety and security of life and property.
I, President of Pakistan Christian congress PCC, Nazir S. Bhatti, on behalf of 20 million Pakistani Christians demand, His Excellency Ban-Ki Moon, Secretary General UN, on Human Right Day of 2011, to form a Commission to investigate genocide of Pakistani Christians under following Universal Conditions for Genocide.
1. Public display of ethnic and religious differences through physical features, language and communal symbols.
2. Absence in multi-religious and/or multi-ethnic societies of strong integrating institutions.
3. Absence of the rule of law and presence of authoritarian traditions of governance.
4. Deep-seated insecurity on the part of ruling elites.
5. Widespread perception of vulnerable religious and ethnic groups as potential agents of politically subversive powers.
6. Prevalence of a racially or religiously discriminatory ideology or worldview that upholds a utopian vision of a homogenous society as the foundation of political unity.
7. Institutionalization of racial or religious discrimination in statute law or social custom.
8. Widespread communication by state and/or non-state actors of hateful propaganda that portrays members of religious or ethnic communities as subject peoples, aliens within society, or as subhuman creatures.
9. Outbreaks of organized violence by mobs or individuals against members of vulnerable religious or ethnic communities.
10. Habitual denial of discrimination by state and non-state actors that engage in oppressive practices, including violence, against vulnerable groups in society.
11. Widespread militarization of society and/or widespread influence of non-state terrorist groups or militias.
We hope that formation of UN Commission on genocide of Pakistani Christians will be revival of Declaration of International Human Rights in Pakistan and around globe.
At the National Press Club in Washington DC, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) coordinated a Human Rights Day event on December 8, inviting co-sponsors from various groups to speak on behalf of human rights issues important to their organizations. The groups remembered the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations on December 10, 1948 and the inherent human rights, human dignity, respect, and social justice that all of our fellow human deserve – of any identity group and in any part of the world.
(For each individual, we have provide Internet links to their Human Rights Day Event remarks.)
The speakers discussed the need to consistently show respect, compassion, dignity, and human rights to people in different parts of the world and in different identity groups.
Human Rights Day – Remembering the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
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R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm spoke on the need to emphasize respect, instead of arrogance, in recognizing human rights, stating that it was arrogance by those who believe that they had superior rights to others that is a key problem in human rights around the world. He urged the world to make a “declaration of love” towards their fellow human beings, and to Choose Love, Not Hate, in our lives and the lives of others in our communities, our nations, and our identity groups. Jeffrey Imm spoke of the dire situation of poverty around the world and the impact on such poverty on human rights, stating that such poverty can undermine human rights for many, including individuals in the United States of America who he was working to support. He urged people to give to charities and to people in need.
R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm also spoke on the future of human rights being defined by the example we set, and the way we treat our children. He spoke on the continuing disgrace of abuse, rape, kidnapping, and murder of children around the world, as well as by those in institutions and society who have not made chidren’s rights a priority. Jeffrey Imm urged the United States to adopt the Convention on Rights of the Child.
He also spoke on atrocities against children in the United States of America (the murder of 7 year of Jorelys Rivera, the murder of children in Texas), in Pakistan (the brainwashing of children by terrorists, the rape and murder of young girls, and the killing of Christian minority girls, including the recent killing of Amariah Masih), in Sudan and Dafur (rape of young girls, killing of children, and loss of their culture and innocence), in Balochistan (over 168 children have “disappeared” with teenage boys killed by authorities in a “kill and dump” campaign), in People’s Republic of China (the lack of concern of about a 2 year old child killed in the street, the government-sponsored forced abortions and infanticide, and the killing or abandonment of minority children such as children of Falun Gong practitioners), and in Bahrain (five children killed and hundreds of children subjected to excessive force by anti-protest authorities). Jeffrey Imm also spoke on the institutional willingness to accept such abuses of children, including an Afghan girl released from prison on the condition she marry her rapist, and the reports of child abuse at the Pennsylvania State University and other institutions in America. He also decried the so-called “honor killings” of young girls and boys by those who believe their cultural or religious views justified abuse and murder of children, and called for an end to these, noting that there were 3,000 such cases in the United Kingdom alone, according to stophonourkillings.com. He spoke of the oppression against children in the United States of America, and his own efforts to stop such abuses.
Jeffrey Imm stated that these “are all OUR children,” who “are our common bond and bridge to the future.” He suggested that in this season of reflection and gift-giving in much of the world, that we should first reach out to help the children and the less fortunate among us. He stated that our greatest gift to children from adult human beings must be in making a renewed commitment to protect our vulnerable children around the world. Jeffrey Imm stated, “We must give the gift of our courage, our consistency, and our commitment for the universal human rights and dignity to all of our children around the world…. We must set an example for our children. We must provide a beacon and symbol of hope for our children. We must show that by our words and more importantly by actions, in the United States and around the world – to our children – and to each other… We are Responsible for Equality And Liberty.”
Jeffrey Imm, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.), Human Rights Day Event 2011
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Ahmer Mustikhan, a senior journalist and Balochistan area expert, spoke on the issue of supporting democracy and human rights for the Baloch people, and called the end to abuses against Pakistan minorities. Regarding the challenges within the Pakistan government, Ahmer Mustikhan called for the United States and the nations of the world to prevent the Pakistan military from interfering with the democratic government in Pakistan. “It is true the democratic government of President Asif Ali Zardari gave the Baloch 300 bodies in the last four or so years, but still we would support it against the military generals. Democracy does make a difference in the lives of people and we can not remain oblivious to this fact,” Mustikhan said. Mustikhan, who founded the DC-based American Friends of Balochistan and co-founded the International Voice for Baloch Missing Persons, also asked the world community to intervene in Balochistan on the same lines as they did in Libya to stop the genocide there and safeguard the right to self-determination of the Baloch people. He said scores of Baloch teenagers have been made victims of enforced disappearances and killed. He narrated the story of a Baloch minor boy Abdul Wahid Baloch, aka Balaach Baloch, who gained fame after his picture showing him clad in a Balochistan flag was posted on social websites last year. Ahmar Mustikhan also spoke on the issue of Pakistan minorities, including Pakistan Christians, and urged the Pakistan government to free Asia Bibi, who has been imprisoned on trumped-up charges of the “blasphemy law,” which has been used to target and oppress religious minorities in Pakistan.
Ahmar Mustikhan, Senior Journalist and Area Expert, Balochistan – regarding the oppression and abuse of the Baloch people and Pakistan minorities on Human Rights Day Event 2011
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Carolyn Cook, founder and CEO of United for Equality, spoke at the National Press Club in Washington DC on December 8, as part of a Human Rights Day Event, calling for a renewed commitment by Americans in support of the Constitutional rights for all American women, as part of our global human rights goals. United for Equality is a social justice enterprise seeking the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.) by 2015. Carolyn stated that we must change the way people think and what we tolerate in our culture regarding the rights and dignity of our fellow Americans and fellow human beings. Carolyn spoke out against the discrimination and the efforts to deny full equality to women in America, in every aspect of their lives. She stated that we need to take our system back and make it ours. Carolyn Cook stated that United for Equality’s coalition successfully introduced a bill to the 112the session of the United States Congress calling for Congress to remove the time limit on the Equal Rights Amendment (E.R.A.), as the United States previously had the ratification of the E.R.A. in 35 states, and it requires ratification in 38 states and by 2/3s of the House and Senate. She pointed out how previous U.S. government officials sought to halt the efforts to ratify the E.R.A. after 10 years when nearly all of the required states but 3 had ratified this Constitutional Amendment, and pointed out that women have no desire to “start over” the ratification of the E.R.A.
Carolyn Cook also spoke on the paradigm of options we have as activists and participants in defending human rights. Carolyn urged a more holistic approach towards addressing human rights as lifelong causes. She discussed lessons learned from the Occupy movement and other social activist efforts to bring change to the world. Her discussion on lessons from the Occupy movement are detailed in the YouTube video of her speech beginning at 6:36 minutes in on Part 1 and continuing and concluding in Part 2 of her remarks.
Carolyn Cook, CEO and Founder of United for Equality, Speaks on Behalf of American Women’s Constitutional Rights – on Human Rights Day 2011 Event
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Jared Pearman, Spokesperson for the Falun Dafa Association of Washington, DC, spoke on behalf of human rights and human dignity for the Falun Gong / Falun Dafa. He provided information about the Falun Gong as “a peaceful spiritual practice rooted in traditional Chinese culture,” which “consists of meditation, five gentle sets of exercises, and a moral philosophy centered on the values of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance.” While pointing out that Falun Gong is not political, Mr. Pearman stated that “as Falun Gong grew in popularity throughout the 1990s, China’s communist leaders began to view the practice and its moral philosophy as ideological competition.” For the past 12 years, he indicated that “China’s rulers began a campaign to eradicate Falun Gong. Since then, like underground Christians and Tibetan Buddhists, millions of Falun Gong adherents have been denied the right to peacefully practice their faith.” Despite massive arrests, torture, killings and denial of human rights for the Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist Party, Mr. Pearman stated that “Falun Gong has not been crushed, and reports from China indicate that the number of practitioners is instead growing. Ordinary citizens are increasingly standing up in defense of Falun Gong and are refusing to participate in the persecution.” He called for the Chinese government and the world to recognize and defend the human rights of the Falun Gong. Mr. Pearman offered “an alternate vision of what China could be — an alternative way of conceptualizing Chinese national identity”…. that “connects with China’s moral and spiritual traditions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, and holds that the cultivation of virtue, honesty, and humanness are the true sources of national greatness.”
Jared Pearman, Spokesperson of Falun Dafa Association of Washington DC, oppressed in the PRC and denied their most basic human rights and dignity by those who view their practice and support for traditional Chinese values as a threat to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) – Speaking at 2011 Human Rights Day Event
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Husain Abdulla, leader of Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB), spoke on behalf of Bahrainis oppressed by government forces that seek to deny democracy. He spoke of the initial protests on February 14, 2011, of those who sought to join the “Arab Spring” movement for democracy, and the brutal oppression of the Bahrain government. Since March 2011, Husain Abdulla stated that Bahrain protesters have been subjected to torture and death. 45 were killed, over 2,000 arbitrary arrests, 1,866 cases of documented torture, 5,000 prisoners of conscience, destruction of 40 places of worship, and 3,000 fired from their jobs, 500 forced out of Bahrain, 3 on death row, 477 students expelled from universities, and 300 students had scholarships taken away — all in retaliation for the willingness to protest against the Bahrain government. He stated that over 500 doctors have been detained. He noted that Bahrain is a close ally to the United States, and he urged Americans to call for the American government to end the “blind eye” to Bahrain human rights violations.
Husain Abdulla, speaking at National Press Club on Human Rights Day Event – Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) — speaking on behalf of Bahranis oppressed by government forces that seek to deny democracy
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Niemat Ahmadi spoke at the National Press Club Human Rights Day Event on December 8, 2011, to address the abuse of Darfuris and Sudanese. Niemat Ahmadi represents the United to End Genocide group. She spoke about the Genocide in Sudan which has been ongoing for over 8 years, and that have driven 4,000,000 out of their homes. Niemat Ahmadi spoke on the need for Americans to call for justice regarding Omar Al-Bashir. She noted that the efforts of Al-Bashir regime have changed their tactics and seek to use rape against women as a weapon of war against the Darfuri people. Niemat Ahmadi spoke of the continuing attacks on Darfuri cities, homes, and attempts to stop safe travel of people of African nationalities who have been fleeing to displaced persons camps. Niemat Ahmadi urged those in Arab nations seeking democracy in their nations to stand up to dictatorial Arab regimes who have supported the brutal Al-Bashir regime.
Niemat Ahmadi, with United to End Genocide, Speaks Out on the Darfur Genocide in Support of Human Rights – at Human Rights Day Event 2011
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In R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm’s concluding remarks, he urged the human rights activists to continue to work together in the coming year on joint activists. He noted that after the winter comes the spring, and in the spring, he often goes to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum during Holocaust Remembrance Days to participate in the reading of the names. Even if there is only one or two people there, Imm noted, there is someone to remember, and it is done simply because it is the right thing to do.
He urged human rights activists to remember that in their work of spreading hope, reaching out to offer dignity, justice, freedom, and consistent universal human rights to all. That is the vision and the mission of being collectively…
Responsible for Equality And Liberty….
Choose Love, Not Hate, Love Wins.
Orange Ribbon for Universal Human Rights – Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) urges you to contact your Congressional Representative on this matter to call for immediate action to continue the funding of the important work of the USCIRF. Note the House of Representatives was targeted to adjourn on December 8 – so please make that call TODAY!
December 6, 2011: “The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom regrets to have to bring to your attention the attached resolution, which we understand to reflect our legal obligations to prepare to cease all operations unless reauthorized by December 16, 2011. It remains our most fervent hope that the Commission will be reauthorized, so that it can continue its vital work in advising the President, the Congress, and the Secretary of State. The Commission expresses its sincere appreciation to all those who have supported, and remain supportive of, the continuation and reauthorization of the Commission’s mandate and work.”
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UNITED STATES COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
RESOLUTION (12/6/11)
WHEREAS the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) shall expire on December 16, 2011, in the absence of either enactment of reauthorizing legislation by the Senate and the House of Representatives that is duly signed by the President of the United States by that date, or, enactment of provisions specifically extending USCIRF’s operations in another continuing resolution or other measures, should any of these be adopted by the Congress; and
WHEREAS Federal law requires USCIRF to undertake certain fiscal and administrative measures to ensure an orderly and financially solvent closure of the agency before its expiration; and
WHEREAS the Government Services Administration has notified USCIRF of the need to initiate such measures;
BE IT RESOLVED that, effective immediately, all USCIRF personnel shall, under the direction of the Executive Director, undertake any and all steps that are necessary to ensure that, in the event of USCIRF’s expiration on December 16, 2011, USCIRF will shut down in accordance with all applicable Federal laws and regulations.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that USCIRF personnel shall, under the direction of the Executive Director, take all necessary steps to preserve and archive any and all records of the Commission.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that USCIRF’s Executive Director shall determine whether and where said records can be archived and make appropriate arrangements for their transfer upon expiration of the Commission.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Resolution be transmitted to all Members of Congress, the President of the United States, and the Secretary of State, and that this resolution be posted as well on the USCIRF website.
USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the House of Representatives. USCIRF’s principal responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and Congress.
To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, contact Tom Carter, Communications Director at tcarter@uscirf.gov, or (202) 523-3257.
— Oslo and Finding the Courage to Change — A New Dialogue (Part II)
Once again, as I write this, there are those who claim to want to threaten my hometown and America’s national capital. We have seen it many times over the past 10 years. We have seen the barriers, the security procedures, the National Guard, and the police riding our subways with machine guns.
But once again, the path to peace anywhere in the world, Washington DC or New York City, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe – begins with a dialogue of peace.
Such a dialogue requires the courage to change the dialogue of the past and embrace the opportunities that we have to work together as fellow human beings to achieve change in our societies and our world.
At the end of July, I wrote of the terrorist attack in Oslo, Norway by confessed terrorist Anders Behring Breivik. I wrote about the need to comfort those who lost their lives and families of children whose lives were lost in the July 22, 2011 terrorist attack in Norway. I wrote of the need to balance our disagreements with dignity and compassion, and the lessons that we must continuously learn and teach from such violence.
At the end of August, I wrote details about the challenges of extremists in various groups. This includes extremists in the Anti-Islam group that Mr. Breivik claimed to represent as well as the Bin Ladenists who continue to commit and threaten terrorism around the world. My Christian friends reject the oppressive message and terrorist actions of Mr. Breivik, who sought to view himself as a “Christian crusader.” My Muslim friends reject the violence and hate of the Bin Ladenist movement. I embrace the efforts of all my brothers and sisters in humanity to pursue a path of compassion and human dignity.
These terrorists do not represent us, and we must not allow them to claim that they represent the “culture” of our faiths. It is the responsibility of people of such faiths to continue to make this clear to the world, not just with their words, but more importantly with their actions.
We must find the courage to seize the opportunity for a new dialogue on our freedom of speech and responsibility, to develop a new approach to our cultural ownership, to choose a new dialogue regarding religion and human rights, and to choose love, not hate not just in our hearts, but in our minds, in our words, and in our actions.
1. A New Dialogue on Freedom of Speech and Responsibility
We cannot have any dialogue without freedom of speech. When we fear to communicate and to disagree, then people stop talking and start plotting on how to overthrow “the other” (whoever that may be). So whether we agree on someone else’s views or not, let’s remember that if we deny their freedom of speech, we undermine the ability to build any type of dialogue in the future. I talk with a lot of people that I disagree with – in many different areas. Some people may choose to view me as an “enemy.” But I have no enemies; I only have brothers and sisters in humanity. That is what all must seek, no matter how disagreeable or how difficult that may be at times.
But while we work to support the freedom of speech for all, we must also work to build a greater sense of responsibility to use our words constructively. We can use our words to build, not destroy. We can use our speech to heal, not to divide. We can use our rhetoric to hope, not to hurt. We have a choice, and we also have a responsibility to our society.
We cannot legislate responsibility or our brothers’ and sisters’ thinking. They have universal human rights to say and think what they choose. While we have laws to protect people from violent threats and danger, the real work in building responsibility is by showing responsibility ourselves. We must spend less time pointing fingers and more time extending our hands in human fellowship. We must spend less time in dialogue with those who share our views, and more time listening to others with whom we disagree. We must set an example in being responsible for both freedom and dignity.
Building responsible speech in our societies is hard, grueling, thankless societal construction work. We will win no awards, get no supporters, obtain no donations, and get no accolades for the construction work of building respect and dignity for one another in our communications.
But imagine how our society would struggle if we had no construction of roads, of sidewalks, of building, of electricity. Imagine our homes with no windows or no doors. We depend on such thankless construction for our daily lives and our daily interaction with the world.
We must make a renewed commitment to such construction for peaceful, respectful construction in communications with our human brothers and sisters. A new dialogue begins with choosing to be responsible for showing dignity towards one another.
2. A New Approach to Cultural Owners
Imagine a home with no windows, no doors. It would be a tomb, or perhaps even a cell. In many parts of the world, our brothers and sisters in humanity live in such prisons. They are imprisoned for choosing freedom, for choosing dignity, and some simply because of their identity, including their religion. We see people of all types of faith imprisoned around the world in oppressive states for their faith, or by those who discriminate and oppress them for their faith.
But the jailers are also in jail themselves.
We must seek and work towards a new approach to cultural ownership, where our homes have windows and doors, where our cultural homes allow us to see and talk to one other, where our cultural homes allow the light of day and the stars at night.
Mr. Breivik’s terrorist attack was for what he called a “Christian culture,” and the Bin Ladenist movement seeks what they call an “Islamic culture.” My Christian and Muslim friends reject both extremist views. But we must do more than just reject extremism. We must also answer the more difficult questions in our societies about our insecurities regarding our cultures.
Many are adverse to change, and the globalist movement of the 20th century has caused many great concern. They fear local and traditional views will be challenged and even lost. Some have rationalized that the answer should be found in cultural tariffs to keep people of other cultures, other races, other ethnic backgrounds, other religions, other identity groups – OUT – of a culture that they don’t want to change.
But history has shown that the effort to build such cultural tariffs and cultural walls are doomed to failure. Oftentimes, such efforts have had catastrophic and horrific results. We have seen some examples with Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany, racist segregationists in the United States, Communist totalitarian nations, genocide in Darfur, and the endless waves of violence against religious minorities in the Middle East and Asia. History shows that the efforts to build walls around our cultures have many, many bad endings.
There is a great misunderstanding that comes with the closed minded views on isolated cultures. We have seen this with the manifesto of the terrorist Anders Breivik, who also used his attack (not unlike the Bin Ladenists) to reject what he calls multiculturalism. This misunderstanding comes from a basic confusion over what our responsibilities are involving multiculturalism.
Multiculturalism is not about submission or surrender. It is not about sacrificing our cultures. We do not have to agree or even like other cultures. Multiculturalism is not about any of that. The important point for human dialogue is simply that we show dignity and respect for others and their differences, regardless of whether we agree or whether we like them, simply because they are fellow human beings.
Fear and doubt can be greater motivators to build walls. But if we are serious about building security not just for this moment, but also for our children and the generations to come, we must build more doors and more windows. We must not be afraid to look outside.
A new dialogue begins with the realization that we must share our Earth together. Not only do we need to be heard, but also we need to be able to listen.
3. A New Dialogue on Religion and Human Rights
People of faith must seek the opportunity to build a new dialogue on religion and human rights. We have to reject the idea that our faith does not allow human rights, human freedoms, and religious freedom for our human brothers and sisters.
To people of all faiths, I ask you to look not only to your heart, but also to your soul. We must find something other than fear, hate, anger, bitterness, and rejection in ourselves, in our thoughts, in our words, and in our lives.
We are better, we are bigger, we are more decent than what we have seen in the dialogue over the past 10 years since the 9/11 attacks. We are more courageous than to let people of faith suffer in prison cells and in oppression around the world, simply because of their faith. We have more confidence in our faith than to seek to deny our brothers and sisters their own houses of worship and their freedom of conscience – anywhere and everywhere in the world, without exception, without caveat, without condition.
We have greater voices and greater power together than the extremists among us who would denigrate others, oppress others, and even cause harm and violence to others. We outnumber even the greatest mobs with torches, with our countless masses that can choose to stand for freedom and dignity for all.
We must not let the Breiviks or the Bin Ladenists speak for us. We must not our silence ever be interpreted as apathy, or God forbid, consent.
We do not pray for fear, we do not pray for hate, we do not pray for indifference, and we do not pray for weakness. To people of faith, I say that we must be who we say we are, and take the responsibility to live as courageously as we pray.
We must lose the mask that too many wear of cowardice, indifference, and despair. We are more powerful than that. We are people of faith, blessed by a higher power to give us guidance and courage.
We are not better than our fellow human beings, but we are blessed to offer the chance to reach out to our fellow human beings. We must never let ourselves believe that blessing is a license to reject, to oppress, to demean, to hate, and to hurt our fellow human beings. Our blessing of faith must be cherished like the gift that it is.
My Muslim brothers and sisters have stood by my side many times, in many forums. They have stood by me in women’s rights events, in challenging stoning, in standing for religious freedom, in defying violence and hate, and in remembering those who have lost their lives to extremists. They have shared their heart break with me over the abuse of Christians, other Muslims, and other religious minorities in many parts of the world. They have stood with me in challenging the Bin Ladenists and their views. While this may get little reporting by the news media, I know this is true, I have seen this over and over with my own eyes, and heard this with my own ears. We need to reach out to greater numbers of our brothers and sisters on these issues.
My Christian, Buddhist, Jewish, and Hindu brothers and sisters have also stood by me in these and similar human rights events, over and over again, in different parts of America, and in joint event for human rights in Europe. We still need to encourage more of our brothers and sisters to be involved in such issues.
I don’t offer a message for a new dialogue on religion and human rights based only optimism, but it is also based on years of personal experience witnessing this dialogue developing, seen with my own eyes and heard my own ears.
A new dialogue is developing and will continue to develop among people of many faiths and none at all – while we continue to remember our shared humanity, and while people of faith remember their shared blessing.
4. A Message to My Christian Brothers and Sisters
I am a Christian. Therefore, I also have a special direct message to my Christian brothers and sisters on this need to build a new dialogue of hope, respect, and dignity.
The terrorist attack of Anders Breivik and his calls for “Christian culture” was a deep insult to Christians around the world. A number of Christian commentators dismissed Mr. Breivik by stating that he was not really a Christian, but viewed himself as a “Christian agnostic” who liked what he viewed as the “cultural” traditions of Christianity, without actually having any faith.
While it is easy to dismiss Breivik, I would caution my Christian brothers and sisters not to do so too easily. While millions seek to promote a different type of “Christian culture” than the one that confessed terrorist Anders Breivik sought, he is not an “isolated incident.” There are too many others to believe this. We have seen the Hutaree, the racist “Christian Identity” movement, the African Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), Ugandan extremists, and the Westboro Baptist Church. We have seen pastor after pastor join marches to deny religious freedom, and some who have led Qur’an burning campaigns. We have seen dozens of Christian pastors joining groups that seek to deny the rights of other religions. We have seen well-known pastors on television call for violence attacks on Washington DC, and some who have called for natural disasters as religious justifications to push a political agenda.
For every one of these extremists, there have been hundreds, thousands of Christians who actively reject their views. These very vocal extremists are a small fraction of Christians. But does that diminish our responsibility to reach out to them, counter their views, and offer a different dialogue?
So yes, it is no doubt that Mr. Breivik was not really a “Christian,” as we know it. But let us not get so arrogant to ignore the plank in our own eye, and the growing climate of intolerance, of disrespect, and even of violence that continues to grow in some corners of people who seek to redefine what we view as “Christian culture.”
While I may offer advice to my fellow Christians, let me be clear that I do not suggest that I am a “Christian leader” or an authority of any kind. Hardly. I am nothing of the kind. I am a poor sinner, weak, and imperfect. I am an average person, who has made enough mistakes to fill any book. But our God gives us all a chance, even to the least of us, to make a difference. If we believe in our Christian faith, our evangelism is not what we say, it is what we do.
What we do – is not enough. Not nearly enough. That is hard is to say and it is hard to hear, when we must feel that in this difficult world and economy that we do so much.
But whenever we believe we have right to be arrogant, disrespectful, cruel, and thoughtless, then we are allowing the definition of “Christian culture” to be undermined and attacked. Even a poor sinner like me can see this.
Our Christian culture is nothing if it is not first based on humility, respect, mercy, and kindness. We may suffer and struggle. We may be abused and disrespected. But to my Christian brothers and sisters, we have faith that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and our opportunity for eternal life. Our Christian culture is a culture of sacrifice, selflessness, compassion, and love. It is not simply enough that we Reject Hate. To the Christian culture, it is also imperative that we Choose Love.
5. Our Unity and Dialogue in Our Shared March of Life
Whatever our identity group, our religion (or none at all), our nationality, our race, our ethnic group, or our gender, we are ONE. We march together every day of our life in solidarity. Our solidarity is in our lives together in the human race that we share.
That march of life that we take every day together around the world allows us to share the dawn, the sun, the sky, the sea, the air, and the stars together. Our home. Our shared Earth for all of us.
On some days, that march of life is a struggle, for others it is an adventure. To all of us, our march of life is a constant opportunity not only for ourselves, but also for our society and the future for all.
For our shared march of life, we need more than the stones of angry words. We also need the building blocks of respect, patience, and the willingness to listen, even (especially) when we disagree. We can grow beyond the history of where we have been and where we have failed, and we can work towards our possibilities of what we could achieve by respecting and gaining faith in one another.
The march of life requires more than closed cultures with border gates that prevent us from walking together. We need pathways to see and understand one another.
Our march of life together requires that we not only have faith, but that we demonstrate that faith in showing dignity, mercy, and respect to one another.
But most of all, our march of life requires more than just the faith in our religions (or none at all) or in our ideas. We need to work to build a new dialogue with our fellow human beings so that we can trust each other more. We have don’t have to agree with each other to respect each other. We don’t have to share each other’s views to love one another as fellow human beings.
Our march of life together does not just have to have the background of rush, confrontation, and conflict. Our march of life can be to a new anthem, a new dialogue of respect, compassion, and love for one another.
This new dialogue must not just be in our words, but also must be an internal dialogue as to how we think about each other, and how we act towards one another. We have seen enough violence, we have seen enough pain, we have seen enough suffering, and we have seen enough hate.
We can make another choice, and work to build a new dialogue for future generations.
We can choose a new dialogue based on respect, dignity, compassion, and love for one another.
This year, as so many mourn the 10th anniversary of the terrible terrorist attacks in America on 9/11, let us remember more than just victims. Let us honor their lives, their joys, and their hopes. Let us honor their dreams, their faith, and their hearts.
Let us Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.
Orange Ribbon for Universal Human Rights - Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
Their Coptic Christians’ courage and resiliency should be an inspiration to all who believe in human freedom and human dignity, but it should be an inspiration most of all to those who defend our human rights, including our human rights of freedom of religion and worship for all. No one would blame the Copts for avoiding such services or finding more private ways to hold services. But their example today shows that there is no enemy powerful enough to destroy human freedom and human rights for all people, no matter how determined their mission of hate.
On Friday, January 7, 2011, the Coptic Christmas Day, there will be thosewho have called for rallies in Egypt to defend Copts freedom of religion. Those individuals who have spoken out and offered human fellowship not just despite, but also because of our diversity, deserve commendation. In addition, we must also congratulate those such as Al-Ahram newspaper’s editor Hani Shukrallah who has openly and fearlessly challenged those that promote religious bigotry against the Coptic Christians and called for change.
But today, Coptic Christmas Day, I have a message to people of all faiths and all beliefs.
While we rightly defend the human rights of Copts and of all people, I urge people of all faiths to find the pluralism and respect for other human beings’ faith in God to respect their eternal rights with their God. It does not matter if you share those beliefs or not. But if you are a person of religious faith, and your life is shaped or even driven by that faith, then you know that no one and nothing can take your faith, your religious beliefs from you.
So it will be with the Copts. We must recognize and defend their human rights as human beings. In conflicts between people of religious identities, we often speak of human rights, but perhaps we also need to speak of eternal rights that people of faith have with their God.
To people of faith, I ask you on the Copts Christmas Day, to respect their eternal rights with their God, their savior, as rights that no one can or will ever take from them as well, just as no one could take your faith from you. Those eternal rights – the bond between you and your God – the bond between you and your Messiah – are just as inviolable, universal, and deserving of respect and honor as our universal human rights.
So today on Coptic Christmas Day, I ask you to think and respect the Eternal Rights of the Copts and of all people of faith around the world.
And to the brave Christian Copts, I wish you a Merry Christmas. No one and nothing can ever take Christmas away from you.
Coptic Christians Do Not Lose Faith, Despite the Violence and Oppression Against Them (Photo: LA Times)
Washington DC: Americans Join Together on 9/11 to Defend Freedom of Religion
September 11, 2010
On September 11, 2010 in Washington DC, American volunteers from diverse faiths, races, and identity groups, came together in a community unity rally in support of freedom of religion, freedom of worship, and freedom at Freedom Plaza. Washington DC’s Freedom Plaza park was named after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who worked on his “I have a dream” speech in the nearby Willard Hotel in 1963.
The community public gathering of concerned Americans was a response to the growing anti-Islamic hatred spreading across America, efforts to deny Muslims houses of worship in California, Tennessee, Kentucky, and New York, violence and vandalism against Muslim mosques, and violence against Muslim Americans. About 30 Americans from Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, and some as far as from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Seattle, Washington joined together on 9/11 to stand in solidarity on our freedoms. The event was sponsored by Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.),Muslims for Progressive Values, United for Pluralism, and the Muslimah Writer’s Alliance (MWA)
Muslim, Christian, and Jewish Americans spoke on behalf of the Constitutional religious freedom for Muslim Americans, as well as the need to ensure enforcement of the Religious Land Use Act federal law ensuring all people, including Muslim Americans, have equal opportunity to houses of worship without restrictive zoning or other acts designed to unfairly burden any American from creating a house of worship. The group circulated our petition to ask President Obama and Attorney General Holder to enforce these laws to ensure Muslim Americans equal rights to create houses of worship.
Photo Below: Washington DC – Some of the Individuals at Community Rally for Freedom of Religion
The Muslims for Progressive Values (MPV)’s Fatima Thompson spoke of the need to remind Americans that Muslims are our fellow Americans, who also suffered in the 9/11 attacks. She told the audience “Let’s not repeat the actions of those who would instill fear on others. Let’s consider the US Constitution and its guarantee for freedom of religion, freedom of worship and freedom of conscience. Let’s unite as Americans and demonstrate those values we cherish in order to allow all to enjoy these freedoms regardless of creed. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
Photo Below: MPV’s Fatima Thompson Speaks Out for Freedom of Religion, Worship, and Conscience
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)‘s Jeffrey Imm extended the nation’s continued sympathy to those who lost loved ones, family, friends and associates in the 9/11 attacks on 2001. He urged the nation not to allow those who spread anti-Islamic hatred to divide us as a United States of America. He stated that the answers to such anti-Islamic hatred require both enforcement of the Constitution and law, as well as a renewed effort to combat the forces of intolerance with tolerance, meeting the forces of hate with love, and meeting those with an upraised fist with “an outstretched hand in healing and hope.” He stated “Winning minds without winning hearts will give us no victory over hate. We must Choose Love, Not Hate – Love Wins.”
Photo Below: R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm Urges Respect and Love for Our Fellow Americans
R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm went around with the microphone to gather comments from the assembled audience, which shared their individual messages of peace, and support for freedom of religion, worship, and respect for their fellow Americans. (When additional YouTube videos of such messages are available, they will posted on R.E.A.L.’s YouTube page and updated to this web site.)
Mike Rychlik and others urged individuals to also join the Interfaith Youth Action Unity Walk on September 12 starting at 1:30 PM at Embassy Row, in Washington DC – for more information see, 911UnityWalk.org.
Another attendee, Andra, sang “Let There be Peace on Earth,” as other members of the community rally joined in.
Photo below: Concerned American Andra Waves Peace Flag, Sings “Let There Be Peace on Earth”
The group then sang, as our final “surprise” part of the event, a sing-a-long to an American folk song – “This land is your land.”
You can hear and see their solidarity in supporting Muslim Americans and all Americans in our shared America, our shared Constitution, our shared law, and our shared nation – in their singing of “This land is your land, this land is my land” – for ALL Americans.
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.
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American Folk Song: This Land Is Your Land
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.
As I went walking that ribbon of highway
I saw above me that endless skyway
I saw below me that golden valley
This land was made for you and me.
I roamed and I rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts
While all around me a voice was sounding
This land was made for you and me.
When the sun came shining, and I was strolling
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
A voice was chanting, As the fog was lifting,
This land was made for you and me.
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.
At another one of the 9/11 attack sites, the Pentagon in Washington DC, a daily Islamic prayer service has been held in November 2002 by the Office of the Pentagon Chaplain, whose mission is “meeting the spiritual needs of the Pentagon.” Neither of the Pentagon chaplains are Muslim, and according to the AP, the Friday Muslim worship service at the Pentagon is ” run by an imam from a local mosque.”
Mission of Office of Pentagon Chapel (Photo: Pentagon Web Site)
At the Pentagon Interfaith Chapel, it has a stain glass window, inscribed “United in Memory,” designed by a veteran. But the memory of 9/11 is intended to be unifying for the armed forces of all religions, races, and identity groups, rather than a source of division.
Pentagon Chapel Near 9/11 Attack: "United in Memory" as All Religions Worship Together (Photo: Pentagon Web Site)
AP reports: “Muslims pray daily at Pentagon’s 9/11 crash site.” In the AP report, it states that: “Americans are debating bitterly the proposed building of a mosque near New York’s ground zero, but for years Muslims have prayed quietly at the Pentagon only 80 feet from where another hijacked jetliner struck. Pentagon officials say that no one in the military or the families of the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks has ever protested. They describe the 100-seat chapel as a peaceful place where some 300 to 400 Pentagon employees come to pray each week. The chapel hosts separate weekly worship services for Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Mormons, Protestants, Catholics and Episcopalians.”
The goal of the Pentagon chaplain office, which runs the chapel, is to ‘provide assistance and support for the religious, spiritual and morale needs of all service members and employees,’ said Army spokesman George Wright. In 2001, hijacked American Airlines flight 77 flew into the west side of the Pentagon, plowing through three of the building’s five office ‘rings’ and killing 184 people. As part of its massive renovation and to honor victims in the attack, the Pentagon opened the chapel in November 2002.”
“The chapel includes no religious symbols, except Catholic holy water at the door; religious accouterments are brought in for various worship services. Wright said that Muslim employees can gather for a daily prayer service Monday through Thursday, and attend a Friday worship service run by an imam from a local mosque. Two in-house Army chaplains run the chapel, neither of which are Muslim. Col. Daniel Minjares is associated with the Church of the Nazarene; his deputy, Lt. Col. Ken Williams, is Southern Baptist. Wright said the chaplains provide religious services for their denomination, but can provide services such as grief and marital counseling to employees of any faith.”
