A statement calling for protection of religious freedom and understanding for minority religious groups during America's terrorist crisis was released September 20 by James Standish, director of legislative affairs for the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
A statement calling for protection of religious freedom and understanding for minority religious groups during America’s terrorist crisis has been released by James Standish, director of legislative affairs for the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
“Our hearts go out to the American Muslim, Middle Eastern, Afghani, Sikh and other communities that have been targeted in recent ‘revenge’ attacks,” reads the statement entitled Freedom in Times of Fear.
At a press conference, held September 20 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Standish, along with representatives from some 150 religious and civil rights groups, called for increased vigilance against intolerance. The groups, ranging from the Baptist Joint Committee, to the American Civil Liberties Union, to the Anti-Defamation League, are far from unified on many issues, says Standish. “But they speak with one voice on the need to preserve freedom and protect innocent people during this time.”
Since the terrorist attacks in the United States, people of Middle Eastern appearance or those dressed in Islamic religious garb have increasingly been targets of harassment and assault. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is currently investigating more than 40 reported hate crimes in the wake of the events of September 11.
Standish has been in contact with Sikh leaders in the Washington, D.C. area, many of whom have experienced verbal abuse. “The Sikh community in the United States has been victimized by a number of ‘reprisal’ attacks, including two murders,” says Standish. “And they are neither Muslim nor Middle Eastern. This demonstrates the ignorance that drives bigotry.”
“We have offered assistance in finding ways to raise people’s consciousness about this issue—anything to stop these so-called ‘reprisals,’” says Standish. “This is not a theoretical issue. People are suffering and we’re going to stand with them.”
In past conflicts, civil liberties in the United States have sometimes been suspended, says Standish, pointing to the infamous decision to intern Japanese Americans during the World War II.
