Marriage Rights For All

Dear Friends,

In 1961, when a white woman decided to marry a Kenyan, this interracial marriage was illegal in 22 states. They probably had to pick a place where this union was legal. Today the world celebrates with us on our choice of a president born from this marriage. Back then, Montana was on the right side of this issue.

States supporting this marriage ban thought it was best for them to decide against this union. It was probably their fear of unknown that kept this law for far too long. Today these arguments from our history, may sound ridiculous to hear it again. Or is it? We still have a few fear mongers who instead of celebrating our diversity, find ways to divide us. Ballot measures like prop. 8 allow states to impose their will on the humanity of others. It is important we continue our struggle for equal rights, so there are no laws that discriminate on gender, race, religion or sexual orientation. We have come a long way, but we have work to do. This Thanksgiving, let us thank those who work hard to bring justice to our humanity.
Srinivas Mondava
Coordinating Council Chair

Open House at JRPC

Dear Friends,

We live in such an incredible time.  Hope and transformation are juxtaposed with tragedy and fear.  There is both great abundance and growing poverty.  What is clear is that we need each other as individuals and as organizations.  The times we live in call us to move beyond our individual concerns and be willing to risk being vulnerable in order to contribute the best of ourselves to the greater good.  What abundance do we each have that we can share?  What hope and perspective can we impart that will lighten the loads of those around us?  These are the questions I ask myself in my own daily interactions, but they are also relevant to the continuing work of the Peace Center.  The Coordinating Council recently had a conversation about how best we can support our members and be a resource for the community during this time of change.  It’s a conversation I hope you will join in.  You can go to http://jrpc.org/about_jrpc/blog.html and respond to this and all of our opening letters so it is a true dialog.  And on Sunday, we will be having an open house – fair trade refreshments, peace crane-making and a wide selection of new gifts of justice from around the world.  Please stop by and tell us how we can serve as your best peace and justice resource.

Looking forward to seeing you,

Betsy

Peace and Justice Film Series

Dear Peace Community,

We came together as a country last week and elected a candidate who spoke out for change. While this is a comforting victory for America, we cannot expect true change to occur without some elbow grease on our part. Let us be ever vigilant in protecting our democracy. A healthy democracy requires an informed citizenry. Don’t forget about one of Missoula’s most valuable information resources, the Peace and Justice Film Series. Tonight, the fall 2008 Peace and Justice Film Series continues with a documentary entitled “At the Death House Door.” This film provides an intimate and personal look at the death penalty, through the eyes of Pastor Carroll Pickett, who served 15 years as the death house chaplain to the infamous “Walls” prison unit in Huntsville, Texas. Pickett presided over 95 executions and recorded an account of each of his trips to the death chamber. The film also focuses on the story of Carlos De Luna, a convict Pickett counseled and whose execution troubled Pickett more than any other. He firmly believed De Luna was innocent, and the film tracks the investigative efforts of a team of Chicago Tribune reporters who have turned up evidence that strongly suggests he was. “At the Death House Door” will be screened twice tonight at 5:30 pm and again at 7:30 pm at the University Center Theater (on the third floor of the University Center at the University of Montana). The screenings are sponsored by the Jeannette Rankin Peace Center, the UM Students for Peace and Justice and the Montana Abolition Coalition. For more information on the film series, please visit the following website: peaceandjusticefilms.org

Yours in peace,

Sean Gibbons, JRPC Board Member

Celebrating the Hope for Change

Dear Friends,

As you celebrate the hope for change that our election has given us, please remember two things: It is not one man, or even one group that is responsible to make this change happen. It is all of us. And secondly, as Obama himself said, we must reach across the aisle to those on the other side in order to climb that steep path toward change. Let’s consider this as our challenge in the weeks and months ahead. This week, I had the opportunity to celebrate a woman who inspires me regularly because she takes this challenge seriously. Kathi Wood, who many of you know, is our representative at the Missoula Aging Services recognition of all the things that senior volunteers contribute to our community. In addition to helping out here at the Center, she really lives what we are about. Kathi makes it her goal to do one thing each day for peace. How many of us can say that? And many of those things involve reaching out in compassion and respect to others. Please join me in thanking Kathi for all she does for the Center and our peace efforts. Inspiration comes from many places. Let us honor those who inspire us by passing it on in actions that inspire others.

In hope, Betsy

Remembering

Dear friends,

On Sunday, our community will join other around the world in celebrating the Day of the Dead. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and relatives who have died. The belief is that on the Day of the Dead, it is easier for the souls of the departed to visit the living.

Women in Black will be marching in the community parade on Sunday. And I urge you to join them in remembering those whose lives have been taken in Iraq – over 4000 US and up to 1.2 million Iraqi lives – numbers that are staggering to think about. But as we elect those who will represent us in government, we cannot afford to forget these lives. And we pray in hope that their souls will touch us with the wisdom of peace.

Remembering…
Betsy