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January 15, 2007

Mr. George W. Bush

President of the United States

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Bush:

Today would have been Martin Luther King’s 78th birthday.  For over twenty years now, we have been honored as a country to celebrate a national holiday in his name.  Each year, Dr. King’s family has called upon the public to perform acts of community service to best honor his memory. 

This year, we are requesting from you a singular act in the spirit of the work and principles for which Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his life.  King’s commitment was to ending poverty, eliminating racism and stopping war.  We ask you to continue his work through your presidency by bringing the war in Iraq to an immediate end.

Many times in his life, Martin lifted the principle of non-violence as the roadmap to peace and social-political change.  Today he would denounce the violence in Iraq as steadfastly as he condemned the war in Viet Nam.  We call upon you to pull the troops out of Iraq immediately and to use only non-violent means to achieve a settlement there. 

He would not approve of torture or bombs as a means to an end.  Therefore, we ask that you take the occasion of Dr. King’s birthday to begin a new approach to the situation in Iraq.  Be bold, seek out the world’s experts on non-violence and explore with them how to resolve the issues of violence, poverty and racism in the world without weapons of destructions of any size or type.  Then, act on your conclusions immediately: in the face of the cautious, the militarists, the profiteers and the nay-sayers who will surely denounce your newfound direction and commitment to peace.

We are not trying to make a political statement with this letter to you, Mr. President.  Instead we are contacting you as one human being to another.  You have the power to end the violence and save lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Martin Luther King tried very hard to get us all to understand the ineffectiveness of war and violence as means to achieve peaceful ends.  His words and deeds are clearer now than they have ever been.  Honor him with an immediate, new approach to seeking security in the world.  Then focus our nation’s attention with yours on eliminating poverty in the United States and around the world, achieving full employment in America, providing decent housing and healthcare for all and making sure that everyone in the United States gets a quality education. 

You know who Martin Luther King, Jr. was, you eulogized his widow, Coretta Scott King.  Now is the time to best honor who he  was and what he did with his life with a big, meaningful statement of and deeds displaying a commitment to non-violence: end the wars immediately and work assertively to eliminate poverty here and throughout the world.  It will not be easy to change course, but if you become, in Dr. King’s words, a true “co-worker with God” a way  will be shown to you.

Therefore: peace,

Ralph E. Moore, Jr.                                                                              

Director of the Community Center                                             

Nawal Rajeh

Assistant Director

St. Frances Academy Community Center

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