Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore
325 East 25th Street
Baltimore, MD 21218
January 20, 2010
Representative John Sarbanes
600 Baltimore Avenue
Suite 302
Baltimore, Maryland 21204
Dear Representative Sarbanes:
On Monday of this week members of the Pledge joined others around the state and country in honoring the life and works of Martin Luther King. At the parade in Baltimore we passed out a flier with words from Dr. King's April 1967 speech at New York's Riverside Church about what the Vietnam War meant for the United States. He spoke of how that war drew "men and skills and money like some demonic, destructive suction tube... (he) was increasingly compelled to see the war as an enemy of the poor and to attack it as such."
Remembering King’s antiwar fervor, members of the Pledge have been working for years to end the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen, and we have simultaneously decried the deterioration of our infrastructure and the shortcomings in building a viable green economy in this country. It is abominable that untold billions of dollars are wasted on these awful wars, especially at a time when Baltimore and the State of Maryland are suffering through cuts to much-needed social programs.
Unfortunately, many Congresspersons keep voting to fund these terrible wars, and this means more people, including members of the U.S. military, will die. There is no visible positive return to spending tax dollars on fruitless wars, and the national debt just keeps rising at a time many citizens are suffering greatly because of the loss of jobs and the shredding of the safety net.
So again we are at your office to urge you to take action on these themes: “Hands off Social Security;” “Bring the troops home in 2011;” and “Move money from the Pentagon to our communities.” We appreciate the fact you are a co-sponsor of the Local Jobs for America Act, however we are very concerned that you do not respond to the issues raised in our letters or visits. As an elected representative, do you not consider it your responsibility to at least answer our letters and explain your perspective on the issues we raised?
As a reminder, we want you to vote "NO" to more funding to continue these wars. As well, we urge you to join the Out of Afghanistan Caucus, co-sponsor Rep. Barbara Lee’s HR 6045: Responsible End to the War in Afghanistan and support Barney Frank’s call to reduce military spending by 25%. Moreover, we urge you work to provide enough funding to care for the veterans who have served in these wars and to support the VA in serving our soldiers. Finally, we want you to sign on to Rep. Raul Grijalva’s dear colleague letter to protect Social Security.
The Out of Afghanistan Caucus was established in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 18, 2010. The Caucus reflects the diversity and strength of the movement within the House of Representatives to quickly and responsibly end military operations in Afghanistan, while bolstering the United States' diplomatic efforts. The Chair of the Caucus, U.S. Representative John Conyers, Jr., and the other 24 Members of the Caucus welcome your interest.
To conclude, forty-four years after Dr. King's Riverside speech, the challenge to us remains. Our country can make a change, a turn towards humanity and law and decency. Or we can continue down the road of deepening social injustice and permanent war...wars that are not only the enemy of the poor but which threaten the stability of this country. It's time for our government to turn to the values of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We look forward to your response and would appreciate meeting with you to discuss our concerns.
In peace,
Max Obuszewski
on behalf of the Pledge of Resistance-Baltimore
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