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| Christian Clergy and Lay Leaders Tackle Tough Issues During Fourth Annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days, March 10-13 |
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WASHINGTON – What is really going on in Iraq? This is one of the most pressing questions facing the nation and the answer is mired in controversy. But this weekend, more than 900 Christian activists from across the country will try to find answers to this and other critical issues during the fourth annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice, March 10-13 at the Doubletree Hotel in Arlington, Va. Based on the theme, "Challenging Disparity: The Promise of God, the Power of Solidarity," attendees will explore real solutions and develop strategies and tactics to advocate for building a just global community that nurtures peace, alleviates poverty and the impact of HIV/AIDS, and protects the integrity of God's creation. Hurricane Katrina, ending the war in Iraq, raising the minimum wage, genocide in Darfur, climate change, immigration reform, torture, the global AIDS epidemic and the Voting Rights Act are just a few of the issues that Ecumenical Advocacy Days participants will grapple with in workshops, briefings and discussions. Addressing this year's participants will be E.J. Dionne, a nationally renowned speaker, Washington Post columnist and Brookings Institution Fellow; Rev. Dr. Suzan Johnson Cook, who is senior pastor of Believers Christian Fellowship in the Bronx, New York and president of the 10,000 member Hampton (Virginia) Ministers' Conference, a body which represents all the historically African-American denominations, as well as a former domestic policy advisor under President Bill Clinton; and Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, who is widely regarded as a leading voice in the ecumenical movement and currently serves as the Allen and Dottie Miller Professor of Mission and Peace at Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis and is the Chair of the National Council of Churches SA Justice and Advocacy Commission. More than 30 faith-based groups* are sponsoring or supporting this year's Ecumenical Advocacy Days, which will provide church leaders and laypersons interested in advocacy, with a mix of worship, music, prayer, issue briefings, plenary speakers and advocacy training workshops. Participants will also visit with Members of Congress or key staff to communicate their concerns about domestic and foreign policies that they do not believe reflect Christian principles. (*see below for complete list). An overview of the Ecumenical Advocacy Days schedule is below. Highlights of this year's conference include: • E.J. Dionne, nationally renowned speaker and Washington Post columnist • Issue briefing and update on housing and efforts to rebuild the Gulf Coast region. • Canadian Medal of Peace Recipient and U.N. Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Stephen Henry Lewis • "Jerusalem Core of the Conflict and Key to Peace" panel discussion with Debra DeLee, President, Americans for Peace Now; Rafi Dajani, Executive Director, American Task Force on Palestine; and, Jon Greenwald, Vice President, International Crisis Group. • Rev. Dr. Haruun Ruun, Executive Director, New Sudan Council of Churches, discusses the genocide in Darfur • Wahu Kaara, All Africa Council of Churches on breaking the chains of debt • Plenary sessions and workshops on: Immigration Reform, living wage issues, the hopes and fears of Middle East Christians, torture and U.S. policy, "What s Really Going on in Iraq?," China, Sweatshops and Wal-Mart and U.S. Global AIDS Policy: Through the Eyes of Women in the World. • An Interfaith Prayer Vigil for Peace in Iraq on the West Front Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. 2006 ECUMENICAL ADVOCACY DAYS AT-A GLANCE Friday, March 10 7 p.m. Opening Worship Service: Rev. Dr. Suzan Johnson Cook, President, Hampton University Minister's Conference Saturday, March 11 9-10:30 a.m. "Jerusalem – Core of the Conflict and Key to Peace" Challenging Double Standards – Building the Political Will to Fund the Fight against HIV-AIDS in Africa against HIV-AIDS in Africa, Stephen Lewis, U.N. Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Genocide in Darfur – Rev. Dr. Haruun Ruun, Executive Director, New Sudan Council of Churches Overview of the Human Rights Struggle in the Philippines – Ms. Marie Hilao, General Secretary of KARAPATAN, a Philippine human rights organization and a political detainee underthe Marcos regime Let Justice Roll Living Wage Campaign – Rev. Dr. Paul H. Sherry, National Coordinator 10:45a.m.-12 p.m. What's Really Going on in Iraq? Humanitarian Efforts on the U.S.-Mexico Border Justice for the Gulf Coast – Brad Paul, National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness Voting Rights and the American Promise – Erica Swanson, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, and Alaina Beverly, NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund 2:45-4 p.m. U.S.-China Relations Supporting Peaceful Co-Existence U.S. Farm Bill: New Vision for Rural America Debt, Trade, Poverty and the Millennium Development Goals 4:14-5:30 Welcoming the Stranger: Prospects for Immigration Reform Hopes and Fears of Middle East Christians – Bishop Vicken Aykazian, Legate, Armenian Orthodox Church and President-Elect, National Council of Churches USA China, Sweatshops & Wal-Mart: How Do We Get Corporations (and Consumers) to Do the Right Thing? U.S. Global AIDS Policy: Through the Eyes of Women in the World Sunday, March 12 9-10:30 a.m. Closing Worship Service: Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, Allen and Dottie Miller Professor of Mission and Peace at Eden Theological Seminary and Chair, Justice & Advocacy Commission, National Council of Churches USA 10:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Economic Justice and Wage Inequality 7 p.m. Keynote Address: E.J. Dionne, Washington Post Columnist and Brookings Institution Senior Fellow 8-10 p.m. Musical concert: Emma's Revolution Monday, March 13 Noon Interfaith Prayer Vigil for Peace in Iraq West front lawn of the U.S. Capitol 2006 Ecumenical Advocacy Days Sponsors and Supporters: |
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