Monday, June 10, 2013

An Open Letter to Clergy and Attendees of Moral Mondays

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

10 June 2013

Contact:      Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, President, 919-394-8137

                   Mrs. Amina J. Turner, Executive Director, 919-682-4700

                  Mr. Rob Stephens, Field Secretary, 336-577-9335\

Today many rejoice because of your moral stance to "defend the poor and vulnerable" as was instructed in Psalm 82.

Your words, wisdom and works speak and sound a clarion call for all people of faith to stand in this moment for a more moral land just society.

I am not able to be there with you today physically because we are currently at Highlander Research and Education Center in Tennessee with key faith, labor and legal experts thinking through how to organize throughout North Carolina and other parts of the South to resist this extreme agenda that hurts the most vulnerable among us.

You will remember that Highlander is where Dr. King and others came in the 1950's to strategically plan for what would become the modern Civil Rights Movement.

As we gather today we are all buoyed by what is going on in North Carolina: a Movement not a Moment; a modern-day Pentecost and revival of spirit of righteousness, truth and  justice.  As we pray and protest we believe all things are possible to those who believe.  We still believe in the power of love and truth.  We still believe goodness can over-turn greed; wrong can be made right; we can build community; we can find better ways going forward rather than going backward; that the common good and good of the whole are more noble than the politics of division and hate and we still believe that loving and lifting our neighbors is greater than a political ethic of domination.

We still believe justice shall roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.  This is a Movement built on faith  and not a moment.  It's not about any one person but about what we can do together with God's spirit guiding us.

As we go forward together I pray that your moral position expressed in such a powerful unified way will please God.  And that God will blow upon us a fresh wind of the spirit, causing bones to live and people to stand up for what is just and loving  and merciful in ways that transforms us and takes us a little closer towards the vision of God's beloved community.

Yours in service,

Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II

President

North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP

Meeting Participants

United Steel Workers

International Association of Machinist and Aerospace Workers

The Communications Workers of America

Service Employees International Union (SEIU)

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 1199

American Federation of Teachers

Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC)

AFL-CIO of North Carolina

The Coalition of Black Trade Unionists

Beloved Community Center

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Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors. 

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