a letter to Jason Altmire

apologia: Some might have questions about my decision to write to Congressman Jason Altmire concerning the current Gaza situation.  I admit, I have struggled with several questions.  What is my motivation?  Will it do any good?  What can Altmire actually do?

As one who tries to follow Jesus of Nazareth, I’ve struggled with my role as as a ‘citizen’ of the United States.  I tend to ally with the Anabaptist traditions concerning the church’s relation to the nations of this world.  My beliefs are still being formed, but I definitely look with skepticism at the nations, including the United States.  I believe my ultimate citizenship is of an invisible nation, the kingdom of God.  At the same time, I cannot deny that Jesus seems to teach that we must be responsible citizens of this world.  I did not ask to be a US citizen, but I am one, and therefore I must be the best citizen that I can possibly be.  All too often Christians suggest this just means voting.  Well, I did not vote this year because I found it impossible to endorse any candidate for any office.  I do however, strive to obey the laws of this land, including the speed limit.  I think citizenship goes far beyond the political, and enters the social and economic realms as well.  I keep informed on what is happening politically, but it generally just saddens me.  It is a corrupt system run by money and power which stands in opposition to the service, sacrifice and submission taught by Jesus.

So comes the present crisis, which is just one of many which constantly hail us.  Why has this situation pushed me to actually write a letter to a congressman?  It is not so much the present crisis so much as the current state of my life.  I have written before of my ideals and my struggles to manifest them in action.  How do we connect the man of thought with the man of action?  How do we live out our convictions?  I think the unification between ideals and action is something that takes a lifetime.  I am getting better, I hope, slowly.  Gradually, I hope that I will be able to share my opinions and convictions solely through action.  And so this letter is just one of my baby steps in that journey.

One last thought, I believe that the nature of democracy demands protest.  All governments claim to be serving their people, whether their leader is Hugo Chavez, Mohmoud Amidinijad, or Barack Obama.  The United States claims to be doing all of its actions in the name of the American people.  Well, what when they do things in my name that I do not, indeed, cannot endorse?  I have a right and an obligation to speak out, and so I will attempt to.

The letter: So I have composed this letter to Jason Altmire and I placed it in the mail today.

January 7, 2009

Dear Congressman Altmire,

It is under the gravest and most sobering of circumstances that I feel compelled to write to you this letter.  Today marks the twelfth day of an Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip.  While the British Prime Minister has called the situation a “humanitarian crisis,” this could easily be seen as a politically charged understatement.  Women and children, who were living their lives normally two weeks prior, are now dead.  We hear about them in numbers, but their loss will be grieved by family until their memory too parishes.

And what of the international response to this crisis?  It appears that the United States will continue to support the Israeli offense in the region, arguing that Israel has a right to defend itself. Tell me, how long can the argument of self-defense be used to destroy the homes and lives of innocent civilians?  Some nations, like Great Britain, have verbally condemned the attacks.  Though their motives are no doubt questionable, only Venezuela has taken serious action in the situation through their removal of Israel’s foreign ambassador from their country.

Israel’s aggression and blatant disregard for civilian life must be brought to accountability.  Those responsible for the targeting, of innocent civilians and schools must be tried for war crimes. Likewise, those who ignore the humanitarian crisis, which is already present in Gaza, must be held responsible.

You, Congressman Altmire, have been elected at this time, for such an occasion as this.  You represent the American people.  I write to you as both a citizen of this nation, and as a citizen of humanity.  As both I urge you, by the means you have been grated by your office, to push for international accountability in this crisis.  Already your fellow congressman, Dennis Kucinich, is appealing that existing law be upheld and that Israel be held culpable for their breeches of humanitarian law.  I ask you to do what justice and mercy demands, by the power granted you by your election to office.

It is with sincere request that I conclude this appeal,

Dean Baldwin

the impotence of international law, the power of the individual

I thought this article was well written, and I empathize with the frustrations of the author.

Ahmed Shihab-Eldin: Obama’s ‘Hope’less Response to the War on Gaza.

But is it realistic to think that the international community would actually condemn Israel and their blatant breeches of international law?  Perhaps this is cynical, but I don’t think it is possible.  The United States, which many see as the most powerful nation in the world, has been participating in illegal wars (Iraq, for example) for years, completely  unchecked by the international community.  Is it any surprise that Israel, who the US continues to back unconditionally, would follow in US footsteps?

And, need I write of the irony of the situation?  Here, on one hand, the US and Israel condemn international aggression (Hamas, Hezbolah, and of course, Russia’s invasion of Georgia), yet all the while both nations are the worst of perpetrators of international aggressive conflict.

We tout ourselves as an ethical nation.  We’ve agreed to the UN charter and international law.  We’ve agreed to limit our nuclear arms.  All the while we’ve violated our commitments.  We have one of the largest caches of nuclear arms in the world, yet we condemn other nations for trying to create their own.  We condemn international aggression, yet we are perhaps the worst offender.

Granted I in no way support the aggression of Hamas, Hezbolah, or anyone else, I’m just continuing to find the double standard laughable.  I’m convinced that because of corruption, the only solution to these issues is grassroots.

If there is to be international peace, it will not come at the hands of agreements between corrupt governments, it will come from Christian, Muslim, Jew, et al, looking one another in the eyes and acknowledging our common humanity, our common dignity, and our common enemy which is our own desire for gain.  It will be through on-the-ground work by organizations like Christian Peacemaker Teams, that progress will be made.  I wish it could be otherwise, but I don’t think it will be possible.  It has been said that means are ends in the making.  Therefore peace, security, and safety must come through non-violent means or they will too become violent ends.

Prayers for those who are currently suffering.

Blessed art thou Lord God of the Universe, who art the only true judge…May he pour out his mercy on mankind.

on gaza

This is a video that the world needs to see:

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Inside Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital.

I found this video extremely discomforting.  I hear people keep saying that Israel has a right to defend themselves, but I fail to see the benefits of disproportionate and misappropriated force.  How many women and children have to die for the world to do something about this?

And, according to this article, Israel has lost five soldiers and four civilians to the reported 195 children they have killed (not including men and women).  It is only slightly comforting that the Israel has agreed to open “areas for limited periods of time, during which the population will be able to receive the aid” in order to “prevent a humanitarian crisis”.

The humanitarian cirsis is already beyond prevention.  It is happening now and it should stop.  Unconditional support of Israeli military offense must stop.

A peacemaking pilgrimage

This summer I will have the privilege to travel to Israel and occupied Palestine for two weeks to work with Christian Peacemaker Teams.  More information will be coming soon.  You can read about the delegation, as well as Christian Peacemaker Teams’ other delegations here:

http://www.cpt.org/participate/delegation/schedule

I’ll be writing about this more extensively in the future.  I also read a very interesting article today about the practicality of non-violent peacemaking.  Very thought provoking.  You can read it here:

http://www.gmu.edu/academic/pcs/nagler.html

Why we use the phrase “social justice”

After my last post I received an email from someone who I believe was a very well intentioned individual. They expressed some reasons why conservative Christians often have a very negative reaction when people, like myself, throw around phrases such as “social justice” when referring to working with the poor, or in the case of my last post, Christian peacemaking efforts. He suggested that this reaction is often because they have too often heard it used as code for liberal social policies which he believes actually contribute to the problems by looking to the Government as a secular Messiah rather than stressing the teaching of individual responsibility which is actually required to make a long-term difference. To quote him directly, “It seems that what you are really talking about is not social justice–as if the poor somehow deserve to have the effects of their irresponsible decisions ameliorated–but social grace.” Now, before my socially conscious readers react too strongly to this, let me just say that I have no doubt that this person is incredibly well meaning. And he is correct in pointing out that some people are poor because of their own bad choices. He also believes that regardless of the reason why someone is poor, or in a rough situation, a Christian is still called to be compassionate.

What I think he fails to recognize, and I do not think he is alone in this failure, is that those of us who seek social justice are not trying to pardon people who have made bad choices. We simply acknowledge that people do not make bad choices in a vacuum. The young man who has young children, and fails to adequately provide for them, and is accused of objectifying women, is the same young man who was exposed to pornography before he went to kindergarten. The addict who prostitutes herself to get a three dollar hit of crack-cocaine is the same woman whose boyfriend began lacing her cigarettes with crack in order to get her addicted. People make bad choices, but there are also systems of evil in place that encourage these bad choices. Social justice is concerned with exposing these systems that encourage people to make evil choices. To deny personal responsibility is to deny moral reality, but to deny that these systems exist is an equal denial of moral reality.

Injustice in the social realm exists.

• It is an injustice when African-American minors are 48 times more likely to be incarcerated for the same crimes that their white counterparts commit.
• It is an injustice when inmates are forced to manufacture lingerie for companies like Victoria’s Secret for about a dollar an hour.
• It is an injustice when Palestinians are denied their natural rights because of Israeli occupation.
• It is an injustice when the poor of our country have no representation in government because it costs so much to run a political campaign.
• It is an injustice when alcohol and tobacco companies spend disproportionate amounts of money to target youth and minorities in poor communities.
• It is an injustice when our military uses depleted uranium munitions which causes radioactive materials to enter people’s food and water systems.
• It is an injustice when almost 900 Palestinian minors have been killed by Israeli security forces since September of 2000.
• It is an injustice when our nation, one of the key figures in the United Nations and a signer of the U.N. charter, willfully breaks U.N. policy by executing minors, waging preemptive war, and torturing prisoners.
• It is an injustice when U.S. soldiers rape and murder Iraqi women and murder their families and are not held accountable for it.
• It is an injustice when American Christians sit back and do not hold their government to accountability in these areas.
• It is an injustice when Americans are overweight and obese when millions in the world are starving.

If these are not examples of social injustice and oppression then I do not know what are. These are the reasons we use the term “social justice.”