ACTION ITEM: Oppose Discrimination in the House
Happy 2007 and best wishes for the new year! Today marks a series of milestones in the American Congress. Among them is the swearing in of Rep. Keith Ellison as America’s first Muslim member of the U.S. House of Representatives. As you may know, Ellison’s fellow Congressman, Virgil Goode, has been less than hospitable in his welcome. See the note below from the petition organizers for a quick way you can take action and speak out as a person of faith on behalf of tolerance and religious freedom.
As religious people from diverse traditions, we call upon Virginia Congressman Virgil Goode to re-examine his opposition to newly-elected Representative Keith Ellison, a Muslim, taking his unofficial oath of office using the Qur’an, and to apologize for his statement that, without punitive immigration reform, “there will be many more Muslims elected to office demanding the use of the Quran.” Please read the statement and add your signature.
I was really impressed with Keith Ellison’s “On Faith” column in the Washington Post Today (Read it here: http://www.faithinpubliclife.org/content/news/2007/01/choose_generosity_not_exclusio.html). This guys really seems to be one to watch.