Paul Raushenbush: May 2009 Archives

In a statement issued through Tiller's lawyers, his family -- a wife, four children and 10 grandchildren -- said their loss "is also a loss for the City of Wichita and women across America."

"George dedicated his life to providing women with high-quality health care despite frequent threats and violence," his family said in a written statement. "We ask that he be remembered as a good husband, father and grandfather and a dedicated servant on behalf of the rights of women everywhere."

"George Tiller was a mass-murderer. We grieve for him that he did not have time to properly prepare his soul to face God. I am more concerned that the Obama Administration will use Tiller's killing to intimidate pro-lifers into surrendering our most effective rhetoric and actions. Abortion is still murder. And we still must call abortion by its proper name; murder.

Those men and women who slaughter the unborn are murderers according to the Law of God. We must continue to expose them in our communities and peacefully protest them at their offices and homes, and yes, even their churches."

Additionally, Sotomayor's critics are up in arms over the fact that she has admitted that her ethnic background has an affect on her decision making process. Who does she think she is? Well, as it turns out, she probably thinks she's being very similar to Justice Sam Alito:

ALITO: Senator, I tried to in my opening statement, I tried to provide a little picture of who I am as a human being and how my background and my experiences have shaped me and brought me to this point. ... And that's why I went into that in my opening statement. Because when a case comes before me involving, let's say, someone who is an immigrant -- and we get an awful lot of immigration cases and naturalization cases -- I can't help but think of my own ancestors, because it wasn't that long ago when they were in that position. [...]

And that goes down the line. When I get a case about discrimination, I have to think about people in my own family who suffered discrimination because of their ethnic background or because of religion or because of gender. And I do take that into account.

John Glenn Gooch's military stone had only recently been placed in the cemetery when we arrived to plant flowers to honor him this Memorial Day weekend.  Glenn died this winter and is now buried near the town where he arrived in America from Wales at the age of six.  An American by choice, Glenn served in World War II directing warplanes in Greenland, and during the last year of his life he often told me of his fond memories and proud days of service in the American Armed Forces. 

I kneeled down to clear the ground of some fresh growth and break up the dirt while my partner Brad and his mother Bette waited to hand me the more "masculine" flowers she had picked out for him.   Bette and Glenn had been married sixty-four years having met in high school in this northeastern corner of Pennsylvania.  Both were from mining families - not the owners, but the miners - and Glenn was able to go to college because of the GI Bill that greeted returning veterans and later rose to become the President and C.E.O. of a major utilities company in the area.

Glenn's grave had an American flag waving over it, and as I dug I felt deep appreciation for his service, and for the service he and so many others have given to allow me to live a relatively free life in this country.  I recalled reading an essay written by my father Walter Raushenbush at Harvard lamenting that he had narrowly missed the opportunity to fight in WWII, which had ended just before he turned 18.   At the time it shocked my young leftist soul that someone should be so eager to fight, but now I appreciate much more the call to serve my country.  (My father later joined the Air Force rising to the rank of Colonel.)

That neither Brad nor I are eligible to serve because of our sexuality is not the point of this brief essay, but it is a point that needs to be made.  In reflecting upon his father's service, Brad commented that WWII was one of the last common calls upon all Americans.  The universal draft made everyone part of a unified effort including  both Brad's family and my own.  Although plagued by racial segregation, the armed forces brought people of every background together and made plain our common identity as Americans.  Today, only openly gay and lesbian people are restricted from this opportunity.  

Of all my identities, including my religious one, nothing is stronger than my national identity as an American, and my appreciation for the ideals upon which this country was founded.   The longer I live, and the more countries I visit, my pride in my country only grows.  This Memorial Day I give thanks for the memory of John Glenn Gooch, for the service of Walter Raushenbush, and for all of those who have served in our armed forces to keep our country safe.   May we continue to become a more perfect union - the land of the free. 

Word has it that Rep Paul Broun (GA) has introduced new legislation called National Year of the Bible Resolution a.k.a. the Bible Bill making the year 2010 the Year of the Bible.   The Bible Bill panders to Rep. Broun's bible base, but it isn't really an American endeavor.  Since the beginning, our country has been intently pluralistic (not atheist mind you, but pluralist) and celebrating the Bible would be fine if we were to have the Bhagavad Gita Bill in 2012. 

A few years ago, I wrote an op-ed that ecouraged an interfaith caucus in the congreess. In Rep. Broun's misguided bill there might be something that would work.  There is a new movement of people of different religious traditions reading one another's sacred texts as a means of better understanding the tradition, the moral principles and world vew held within. Even Evangelicals are getting involved.  If Rep Brown were to team up with other members of congress from different faiths (Keith Elison of Minnisota comes to mind) to declare a year of sacred texts then this might be more American, and would be a very worthwhile bill.

But my guess is that he is not interested in a true recognition of the plurality of sacred traditoins in America and that this is just a small ploy in the "America is a Christian Nation" effort.  I'm sure it will die a timely death.

The plot to bomb a Riverdale Synagogue in the Bronx makes all of us sick and angry about the use of religious violence and terror against ordinary citizens.  The four accused men claim that their actions are in reaction to the attack on Muslims in Afghanistan by the United States - and, by their own admissions, their hatred of Jews. That, of course, is no excuse at all and these individuals should be prosecuted to the legal limit with life in prison. 

This terrorism attempt brings into sharp focus two dueling policies and the drama of a former vice president facing off against a sitting President in opposing speeches today. Dick Cheney speaking to the American Enterprise Institute accused President Obama of "recklessness cloaked in righteousness' as he defended torture and the degradation of the constitution as necessary components of the Bush approach to the war on terror. 

President Obama in a speech at the National Archives argued for the closing Guantanamo Bay as well as adhering to the international conventions against torture as part of the effort to win the war against al Qaeda, What Dick Cheney calls recklessness, Obama argues is part of what it means to be President of the United States saying:

 

I took an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution as commander-in-chief, and as a citizen, I know that we must never -- ever -- turn our back on its enduring principles for expedience sake. 

But not only is the approach that President Obama taking principled - it is a pragmatic. The President knows that part of a successful strategy to the war against Al Qaeda involves convincing Muslims that America is, in fact, on their side and wants the best for them and their religion. 

The great majority of American Muslims already know this and are, I'm sure, the most sickened by the attempted attack by the four men earlier today.  I have heard Dr. Ingrid Mattson, President of the Islamic Society of North America, say on many occasions that America is one of the best countries in the world for Muslims to freely express their faith.  ISNA has been a great partner with the United States in anti-terrorism efforts, and Muslim Americans may have  even helped to foil the plot against the synagogue in the Bronx as there are many Muslims who serve on the NYPD.  ISNA also combats anti-Muslim sentiments and policies that still exist in this country, so that we might truly be the most religously free of all countries.

As Obama has said, we need all hands on deck in this war against Al Qaeda.  We need to win hearts and minds of people of all faiths, but especially Muslims - and that is not done by torture and the removal of habeas corpus.   It is done with firm prosecution of wrong doing while repecting due process of law.  Dick Cheney might pause to remember that 9/11 actually did happen on his watch, have a little humility and step down and let the President handle this.