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Samina speaks at national interfaith
gathering to honor Dr. King birthday
Leaders of diverse national religious groups gathered in Washington DC January 19, 2009 to mark the historic confluence of Barack Obama's inauguration and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday.
Olive Branch Interfaith Peace Partnership sponsored the event titled: "Rebirthing King, Rebirthing America.”
"Rebirthing King, Rebirthing America" celebrated this historic moment in our nation's history by putting forward a positive vision, in the spirit of Dr. King, to end poverty, war, and discrimination on the basis of race, religion, gender, and sexual orientation.
"At this historic moment, I am honored to join with other people of faith to pay tribute to Dr. King's legacy," said the Rev. Bill Sinkford, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. Sinkford, the first African-American leader of the denomination, said, "Dr. King understood that we can't choose one just cause at the expense of another; we can't wait for 'a better time' to do the right thing.”
He understood that the forces threatening peace, prosperity, and equality had to be fought simultaneously if there was to be any true progress. “It is my hope that our new administration will be inspired by his example when facing the complex challenges that lie ahead,” he added.
The event, held at All Souls Unitarian Church, featured an extraordinary gathering of representatives from Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian, and other faiths. Included among them were:
Dr. Vincent Harding, a close friend of Dr. King and the speechwriter for much of King's famous 1967 "A Time to Break the Silence" speech;
Andrew Marin, an Evangelical Christian leader, who spoke on homophobia;
Rabbi Michael Lerner, founder of the Tikkun community and best-selling author;
Rev. Sharon Watkins, president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), who made media headlines for accepting President-elect Obama's invitation to preach on Wednesday morning at the National Prayer Breakfast;
Mabruk Awad of Non-Violence International;
Samina Faheem Sundas, the founding Executive Director of the American Muslim Voice.
Here is Samina’s speech:
(Video by Grow the Hope)
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