April 7, 2000, WASHINGTON, D.C. – Thousands of people of faith are expected to
gather beginning at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, April 9, at the National Mall to be part of the
“Jubilee 2000” massive public witness supporting debt cancellation for the
world’s poorest countries.
“The National Council of Churches and Church World Service are proud to be
sponsors of this historic event,” said the Rev. Bob Edgar, General Secretary of the
National Council of Churches.
Commenting that
debt cancellation is among the NCC’s five legislative advocacy priorities this year,
he continued, “In my memory I cannot recall a previous instance where we have had so
many people planning to come to Washington in support of something like this –
helping the poorest people in the poorest countries of the world.”
“Often when
there is a rally of this nature,” he said, “it is to protest AGAINST some deep
concern. Here we have thousands who plan to
be in Washington to say they are FOR debt cancellation for the world’s most
impoverished countries!”
Noted the Rev.
Rodney I. Page, Executive Director of Church World Service, the NCC’s humanitarian
assistance ministry, “The response across the country to this Jubilee Sunday shows
that Americans do care about what our government does to help people around the world. Not only are thousands coming on Sunday, but
hundreds are planning to stay over an extra day and visit with their members of Congress
about this issue on Monday, April 10.”
The Rev. Page
will be taking part in a delegation of religious and organizational leaders who will be
visiting the offices of Congressional leadership.
“I think
the whole day will be tremendous!” said Lisa Wright, Acting Director of the NCC/CWS
Washington Office. “People are planning
to spend a beautiful spring day in Washington, listening to speakers and music, and then
join in a massive human chain that will extend from the Capitol Building to the World Bank
and International Monetary Fund. I cannot
remember any other event like this on the Mall that has ever had a Children’s
Tent!”
Lisa Wright
represents NCC/CWS on the Steering Committee of Jubilee 2000/USA. She coordinated planning of speakers, the
Children’s Tent and the Lobby Day for the April 9-10 events.
Speakers are to
include: Archbishop Oscar Rodriguez,
Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras; John Sweeney,
President, AFL-CIO; The
Rev. Jim Wallis, Editor-in-Chief, Sojourners; Rabbi David Saperstein,
Director, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism; Ann Pettifor,
Director, Jubilee 2000 UK; and Ricardo Navarro,
President, Friends of the Earth International. Musicians
are to include: singer-songwriter Mary Black, singer Dar Williams, the Waza Bakula African
band, the Grace Lutheran Church Rainbow Choir, the Washington Conservatory Brass
Ensemble, and the Equal Exchange Coffee Singers.
The rally is
sponsored by the Jubilee 2000/USA Campaign, a coalition of national environmental, labor,
religious, and social justice groups calling for lifting the crushing burden of debt from
the world’s poorest countries through a fair and accountable process, by the end of
the year 2000.
-end-
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