Friends,
Is freedom really free?
Some view the beginning of this month as time to recognize our country’s fight to obtain its independence, and/or for time off to enjoy barbecue and lemonade. The general thought is that freedom must still be fought for to remain secure.
Unfortunately, this thinking can lead to an acceptance of violence and military aggression as a viable means for living life the way one wants. I don’t share this perspective.
It is my belief, and I believe yours as well, that it is critical for us to remain steadfastly committed to lifting up a life philosophy that is grounded in the principles and practices of peace and nonviolence.
Friends, can you donate $max) max=parseFloat(d.amount);
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?> to help us continue this work? Please make a contribution today!
With great pride and mixed emotions, I viewed portions “The Freedom Riders 50th Anniversary” program on the Oprah Winfrey Show this spring. Our own George Houser was present, and identified as the last surviving member of the “first freedom ride,” the Journey of Reconciliation in 1947.
Several weeks later, I enjoyed a story about Bayard Rustin, who together with his friend and colleague Houser, organized the Journey of Reconciliation on behalf of FOR and the Congress of Racial Equality. Because of the government’s racist response to his participation in the Journey of Reconciliation, Rustin told of having to work on a North Carolina chain gang for 5 weeks. In serving his time, Rustin chose to be kind to a guard who he thought to be “the toughest and most hostile redneck.” At the end of Rustin’s sentence, this guard came up to him, actually shook his hand and said, “It has been nice to know you, Mister Rustin.”
This is FOR’s heritage! Rustin’s seemingly simple, yet powerful, sacrificial act of choosing to share love in response to hate, continues to remind and inspire me that what we do is as relevant now, as ever.
We are reminded during these days of patriotic fervor and the celebration of independence, that the United States has not yet lived up to the vision for which it was founded, the dream to which it is called, or the promise which it holds out to the world. The founding principles are as much at risk today as they have ever been.
This year, as you take time to reflect on what freedom means, reflect also on what the Fellowship of Reconciliation means to you, and how you can ensure that our work continues.
I hope that you will answer this call for financial support today.
There is a privilege in the association of this Fellowship, and a responsibility to ensure that it is sustained. The freedoms we seek to secure and ensure are not free, but they are of a value beyond measure.
We are still on a journey of reconciliation.
Sincerely,
Mark C. Johnson, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Fellowship of Reconciliation
P.S. I also invite you to read more of my reflections and pictures from my two-month tour across the United States earlier this year, visiting FOR chapters and affiliates across the country. |
If you’re able to support FOR with a donation of $100 or more, we'll send you “Bayard Rustin The Singer” (1952). This excellently reproduced CD includes the albums “Elizabethan Songs,” “Negro Spirituals” and “Twelve Songs on the Life of Christ.” Two additional songs have been added: “Careless Love” and “You Don’t Have to Ride Jim Crow.” The lyrics to the latter song were co-written by Bayard Rustin and George Houser, based on their experiences during the 1947 Journey of Reconciliation.
