Columbus Day overlooks a painful colonial history and minimizes the important contributions made by Indigenous peoples throughout this continent’s history. That’s why FCNL has chosen to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day instead.
On any given day, I am outraged and saddened by the violence of injustice in the world. Yesterday it was Philando Castile and the day before that it was Alton Sterling. This morning, we wake to the murders of police officers in Dallas. The week before that it was the violence against civilians in Baghdad, Ankara, Orlando. That’s only the past 30 days.
Welling Hall served as the Friend in Residence at FCNL. Her perspective as a longtime Quaker educator and civil servant is useful in strengthening FCNL’s educational outreach.
It’s been a little more than three months on the job, and I can confidently say that the Spirit is alive and well within the FCNL community. Here’s a look at what I am seeing and hearing as I travel among Friends.
Friends believe that through the Spirit there is always a chance for reconciliation, rehabilitation, and personal transformation. Too often, the presence of guns at critical times cuts short potential opportunities for redirection and renewal, resulting in tragic consequences. We support efforts to reduce gun violence by such measures as regulating gun ownership, possession, and use through the implementation of universal background checks, bans on military-style weapons, and public health-oriented research and education.
More than 400 Quakers and friends came together from across the country to engage in worship, listening, and advocacy as we lobbied together to end endless war!