Category Archives: Human Rights

April 5, 2012 · 11:05 pm

Maundy Thursday 2012 makes me wonder

Maundy Thursday this year fell on an interesting day on the calendar. Wednesday marked the anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Friday marks the anniversary of the beginning of the Rwandan genocide.

On the night of his arrest, the night before his execution, Jesus shared bread and the cup and gave his followers a new commandment: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another (John 13:34).”

On the night before his assassination, Dr. King proclaimed that he had been to the mountaintop.

Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!

On the night before Juvénal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira died in a plane crash, the night before hell engulfed Rwanda, what did the people do? What did they feel? What did they think?

I wonder.

See you along the Trail

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April 5, 2012 · 3:40 pm

Ask for clemency in Oklahoma

Something rare has happened in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board has voted to recommend clemency (mercy) for a person facing execution. They do not do that often, but they did so by a vote of 4 to 1 in the case of Garry T. Allen. The State of Oklahoma is scheduled to execute Allen on Thursday, April 12, 2012 for his murder of Lawanna Gail Titsworth. A number of reasons are cited to support the vote.

  • Allen does not recall the crime. This could result from either  extreme intoxication and/or being shot in the head when apprehended.
  • Despite this lack of memory, Allen has accepted responsibility for shooting Lawanna Gail Titsworth in a domestic dispute.
  • His behavior during the shooting when Allen asked Titsworth her if she was all right, and later, at the hospital, he asked where she was point to Allen being mentally impaired at the time of the crime.
  • Allen’s family reported instances of delusional thinking even as a child. It is also reported that he suffered head injuries during a beating. It is further reported that the “frontal lobe of Allen’s brain, the part involved in planning and moderating behavior, is damaged, perhaps because of earlier head injuries or perhaps because of the gunshot in the head, or both.”
  • Allen accepts the fact that he killed Titsworth – though he does not remember but was told by others that he committed the crime. In an effort to spare both Titsworth’s and his own family painful legal proceedings, Allen plead guilty to the crime.

I grieve for the family, friends, and all who loved Lawanna Gail Titworth. They have suffered a loss I cannot imagine.

But I fail to see how executing Garry T. Allen serves a purpose other than revenge. And the State of Oklahoma – any state – should be better than that. The State of Oklahoma should not execute this mentally ill and remorseful man. He should serve the remainder of his life in an appropriate state facility.

I signed a petition asking Governor Mary Fallin of Oklahoma to show mercy and, as the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board recommends, to grant clemency to Gary T. Allen.

You too can sign the petition.

See you along the Trail.

I regret that I have not made time to address issues of capital punishment and the death penalty over the last couple months.

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April 4, 2012 · 11:57 pm

Remembering

Ghosts pass through this week – they probably do so every week – this week they seem more real.

April 4 – the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Thanks be to God for his life and witness and for all who follow in his footsteps.

April 6 – genocide commenced in Rwanda. Thanks be to God for all who seek to rebuild their lives and country.

The fires of memory burn.

Painful, wrenching though it be, I remember.

See you along the Trail.

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April 4, 2012 · 8:17 am

Lend a leg …

… to raise awareness about landmines.

April 4 is the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action.

Here are several things to do:

Roll up your pant leg as part of the Lend Your Leg campaign.

Ask the Obama Administration to submit the Mine Ban Treaty to the Senate for ratification.

Support the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

Make the Trail safer – ban landmines.

See you along the Trail.

 

 

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March 26, 2012 · 9:33 pm

Another point of view

The New York Times posted an article today that contains information from George Zimmerman who shot Trayvon Martin:

In an account given to Sanford police that was passed on to the state attorney’s office, George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26, said that Trayvon had punched him and then repeatedly slammed his head into the sidewalk in the moments leading up to the shooting.

It is a reminder that there is at least one other point of view in this story. And a reminder of why a full, fair, transparent investigation is needed so that justice can be done for all who are involved.

See you along the Trail.

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March 26, 2012 · 5:52 pm

Not the answer

Vigilante justice is not the answer.

The Boston-Herald reports that, “Members of the New Black Panther Party are offering a $10,000 reward for the ‘capture’ of George Zimmerman, the Neighborhood Watch volunteer who shot Trayvon Martin … The bounty announcement came moments after members of the group called for the mobilization of 10,000 black men to capture Zimmerman, who shot Trayvon in a gated Sanford community on Feb. 26.”

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

Vigilante justice is not the answer.

This way of vengeance fails to honor Trayvon Martin. It further tears at a wounded community. It fuels the cycle of violence.

A fair, full, transparent investigation of the events that led to Trayvon’s death is needed. Such an investigation can determine what steps should be taken to seek justice for all. Justice is the answer.

On the Southern Poverty Law Center‘s website the New Black Panther Party is identified as a black-separatist group founded in 1989, that is “virulently racist and anti-Semitic” and whose leaders have “encouraged violence against whites, Jews and law officers.”

Vigilante justice is not the answer.

 

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March 25, 2012 · 11:37 pm

An action, a liturgical reflection – Trayvon Martin

The NAACP offers an opportunity to sign an open letter to Florida Prosecutor Angela Corey who will handle the case of the death of Trayvon Martin. The letter asks her to “to pursue this case with the energy and gravity that it warrants.”

Michael W. Waters acknowledges that:

Symbols have long been important for religious and spiritual reflection. These symbols have been employed to provide greater understanding to transcendent truths, to provide comfort amid chaos, and to inspire the faithful to put their faith to action towards the common good. Many times, these symbols have emerged from rather mundane objects closely associated with a historical event

He goes on to reflect about the symbols contained in Trayvon’s death: Skittles, iced tea, and a hoodie.

Let Skittles, iced tea, and the hoodie become symbols of truth, inspiration and comfort for a new generation of protesters against the on-going crucifixion of innocent flesh at the hands of a corrupt system of oppression and marginalization that has for too long tortured the masses and tainted our country’s legacy.

See you along the Trail.

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March 23, 2012 · 11:52 pm

I prayed for Trayvon

I prayed for Trayvon Martin today during the Training Day sponsored by the Presbyterian Compassion, Peace and Justice ministries.

I had called my friend and colleague J. Herbert Nelson, the director of the Presbyterian Office of Public Witness on Wednesday saying that we should remember Trayvon’s death in some way. He agreed. I said I would bring one of my hoodies.

I arrived in D.C. on Thursday and J. Herbert asked if I would pray and include a prayer for Trayvon. After some reflection and prayer, I came up with an idea.

I put my hoodie in my backpack and carried it with me to New York Avenue Presbyterian Church. After J. Herbert preached, we sang A Mighty Fortress. During the next to the last verse, I went up to the chair beside J. Herbert, put down my backpack, and got the wireless mic. When the hymn ended and the congregation sat down, I moved into the pulpit and began.

“Sometimes we pray with words. Sometimes we pray in silence. Sometimes we pray through symbolic actions. Today we will pray in all three ways.”

I left the pulpit, picked up my backpack, and moved to a table set up in the center of the pulpit area. The table would later be used for a panel presentation.

In silence, I opened my backpack, and removed my hoodie. I deliberately shook it out so all could see. I then held it as high above my head as I could and slowly rotated it so that it faced each part of the congregation. It also prevented me from making eye contact with anyone and bursting completely into tears.

After I had shown the hoodie to the whole congregation, I snapped the hood back and showed it to everyone again.

Then I put on the hoodie and slowly rotated so everyone could see me.

Finally, I raised the hood to cover my head and moved back to the pulpit.

There I prayed with words for Trayvon and for all children who are victims of overt violence – children whose names are known and whose stories are told, children who are known only to the family and friends who love them.

I prayed for all children who are victims of structural violence – economic injustice, racism, homophobia – the systemic realities that shape our lives and too often stunt and snuff out the lives of children.

I prayed for those who gathered in Washington, D.C. to engage in advocacy for justice in Jesus’ name. May we have the grace to move from a love of power and the wisdom and courage to continue our ministry of speaking truth in love to power – this weekend and always. May it be so.

I uncovered my head and stepped down from the pulpit. As I moved back to my seat I again made sure not to make eye contact.

I am grateful to J. Herbert for this opportunity. I wish I could do more. I will.

See you along the Trail.

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March 21, 2012 · 10:39 pm

I wish I had made a sign like that

It isn’t the best photo, but her sign conveys a powerful message. I wish I had thought to make such a sign for the Million Hoodie March that started on New York City’s Union Square. I thanked her.

Hoodies were not required – I went straight from work.

Check out #millionhoodiemarch for more about the evening.

See you along the Trail.

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March 21, 2012 · 3:34 pm

All our sons, all our daughters

Trayvon Martin

Our position of privilege tells me that what happened to Trayvon Martin is less likely to happen to my sons than it is to the sons or daughters of many of my friends. Less likely than it is to happen to the sons or daughters of people I do not know. Less likely than it is to happen to children of color.

I grieve for Trayvon and for his family and for every family that has had to endure such a heartbreaking experience. I grieve for all who have been victimized by violence. I grieve for our society in which such acts occur.

I grieve that there have been calls for a bounty on George Zimmerman. Vigilante justice is wrong. It is not the answer.

I grieve that for all our efforts to dismantle racism and overcome racial prejudice – for the significant progress we have made on the journey toward the Beloved Community – so far remains to go.

I tremble as I ponder the trust and friendship that I receive from people of color. Trust and friendship that provide continuing definitions of grace.

I confess that I have spoken too late and too timidly on behalf of Trayvon and his family.

I acknowledge that I have failed to work as faithfully or diligently as I should have done to address the racism upon which our society is structured.

I grieve. I tremble. I confess. I acknowledge. I will do more.

I will sign a petition started by Trayvon’s family. I hope that the investigations that have been announced will be fair, full, and transparent. Only in that way can justice be done for everyone involved.

I will be on Union Square for the Million Hoodie March this evening.

I will look for additional opportunities to speak and act.

I will place a hoodie at the front of the workshop I will lead at a Presbyterian gathering on peace and social justice on Friday.

I will pray for Trayvon Martin’s family and friends; for George Zimmerman and his family and friends; for those who investigate this event; for the people of Sanford, Florida; for our country; for peace, for justice.

For in the end, our lives intertwine in this country and on this small rock hurtling around the sun.

In the end we are made, not for ourselves alone but for each other.

In the end, is not Trayvon my son? Is not George my son?

We are brothers and sisters. We are all each other’s sons – all each other’s daughters

See you along the Trail.

This post has been revised in response to comments and observations made on Facebook and in other places. Some language has been edited; other material has been added. I am grateful to all those who took the time to read and comment.

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