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 Friends,
On Monday, we celebrate the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life. Instead of simply observing this holiday, let us heed his words and practice his teachings, living into the values and example he provided.
In this moment of national soul-searching in the wake of the violence in Tucson, Arizona, we hope you'll take a moment and consider what Dr. King's teachings might mean for your own work for peace, justice and nonviolence today.
Dr. King understood that there is one human family, and that geographic, economic, and racial social distinctions were not the definition of who we are. While the U.S. civil rights movement was his primary concern, he understood that his work could not be isolated from other injustices around the planet.
"Here we see racism in its more sophisticated form: Neocolonialism. The Bible and its annals of history are replete with tragic stories of one brother robbing another of his birthright and thereby ensuring generations of strife and enmity. We can hardly escape such a judgment in Latin America."
the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
"The World House," from Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?
Dr. King's words have inspired the Fellowship of Reconciliation to embrace in 2011 a concern for the demilitarization of life and land.
Demilitarization of life and land
Wars are fought for resources, land and to produce profits for a war economy, and they are fought with people.
Resisting the militarization of territory -- high schools, farm lands, military bases and whole nations -- and of our bodies, through military recruitment, weapons sales, threats and acts of war, FOR's campaigns advocate peaceful relations through grassroots diplomacy, protective accompaniment of threatened communities, and a federal budget with new priorities.
Prayers for the Sudanese
The Sudanese have begun the process of deciding their future through a plebiscite, with voting taking place through this Saturday.
The inhabitants of Southern Sudan may vote whether they will separate themselves from the rest of the country. This would result in two independent countries: Northern Sudan, predominantly Muslim with the capital at Khartoum, and Southern Sudan, predominantly Christian with the capital at Juba.
Among those in our prayers for a peaceful transition, whatever the outcome of the vote, is the work of the Sudanese Organization for Non-Violence and Development, the new International Fellowship of Reconciliation branch in the Sudan.
Read more about SONAD.
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We will pursue our vision of a world "demilitarized," where the resources are available to use for the well-being of people, and not used as subjugation to wars that protect the powerful and the wealthy.
Latin America
Building on Fellowship of Reconciliation's effective work for closing military bases, groundbreaking research and protecting human rights in Panama, Puerto Rico and Colombia, FOR's Task Force on Latin America and the Caribbean is undertaking a pilot project to oppose U.S. militarization in Latin America at bases and military commands in the United States.
Working with partners in Latin America, activists in the United States, and a coalition of sister organizations, FOR is documenting the way naval ports, the U.S. Southern Command, and training sites like the former School of the Americas intervene militarily in Latin America. And we are organizing actions to challenge the legitimacy of sending expensive gunships to Central and South America to control our neighbors, instead of investing in education, treatment for addiction, fiscal health and jobs in the United States.
As we've written to you before, we are encouraging FOR supporters to send postcards to President Obama urging "No U.S. guns in Latin America."
The Middle East
Each year, we lose billions of dollars and thousands of lives of women and men in our military operations in the Middle East. FOR has asked experts from the Middle East to collaborate with us to design a way toward the demilitarization of life and land in that region.
Domestically, FOR will work to educate the U.S. public on the expenses of our military presence across the globe, and how this money could be spent in our interests here in the United States, particularly on education and job creation. Additionally, we maintain interfaith dialogue and speak out against the current wave of Islamophobia. This is essential to peace both in the United States and the Middle East.
Internationally, FOR will work with local partners and activists in the Middle East to educate people living there how much their governments are spending on military goods, especially in Israel, Palestine, Egypt and the countries of the Persian Gulf.
Toward a beloved community
Thank you for your continuing efforts for peace and the work of justice. Dr. King reminds us all -- please, pray for peace, preach peace, practice peace.
Yours sincerely,
Mark Johnson
Fellowship of Reconciliation Executive Director
P.S. Your donations are important, and we thank you for your support in the past year. If you'd like to help us kickstart our programs around the Demilitarization of Life & Land, we invite you to make a donation and continue the work of FOR. Thank you!
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