"Justice We Pursue" Blog

Here's the letter I'm having distributed to the House Government Operations Committee, chaired by Rep. Pelowski, in advance of the hearing we are expecting on this bill next Thursday, March 4th. JRLC's Impartial Judiciary issue paper is here.

Dear Members,

We continue to thank you for your public service. We write today to urge you to pass the Impartial Judiciary Bill, SF 70 (Rest) and HF 224 (Simon).

As people of faith we are committed to bring about justice. Access to a fair and impartial judiciary is a cornerstone of a just society. Peaceful resolution of disputes and fair access to courts without regard to social standing are necessary to safeguard freedom and human rights.

An interesting story: When Moses was no longer able to keep up with the number of disputes brought before him, his father-in-law, Jethro, called for a panel of judges to help adjudicate disputes. Jethro wisely counseled that four characteristics were key in selecting judges (Exodus 18:21):

• Accomplished people with good judgment, knowledge of the law, and the ability to recognize truth;
• Righteous and just people, who would not be swayed by flattery or threats;
• People of great integrity, who love truth;
• People untainted by money, who would not be subject to bribery.

We recognize that Minnesota’s judicial canon of ethics that served our state so well no longer has legal standing. Thus we must act to safeguard our judiciary from partisanship, special-interest financing, and to preserve the very high confidence that Minnesotans currently have in our judges and courts.

We ask you to support a merit selection, retention election, and public evaluation system.

Brian Rusche
Executive Director

There is an African proverb that says it takes a village to raise a child.  To me, this means that as a community we are collectively responsible for ensuring that the children in our midst are respected, cared for and protected. Child abuse is a very high profile issue that is of concern in our society, and most people are very aware of the harmful effects it has on a child's development.

Child neglect, on the other hand, is the more common form of child maltreatment and can be equally damaging in a person's life, and more difficult for the broader community to recognize. According to Child Maltreatment 2007, the most recent data-set from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, 753,000 children are the victims of maltreatment in the US, 59% of whom suffered from neglect.  

Neglect in the past has been narrowly translate to mean inattentive or under-involved parents. This definition has allowed the blame to fall entirely on parents and failed to take into account the effects of unequal socio-economic status or poverty.  

The US Government's Child Welfare Information Gateway broadly defines neglect as an inability to provide for a child's basic needs. This means that neglect can be physical (an inability to provide necessary food or shelter); medical (inability to provide basic medical needs); educational (failure to educate a child); and emotional (inattention to a child's emotional needs). 

Now I am no expert on child development, but I know that children respond to the attention that they receive from adults, any and all adults. Prevent Child Abuse MN has a great analogy for this, they call it the serve and return:

Just like in a tennis game, children “serve the ball” to adults when they reach out for interaction through a look or a smile or a coo or a cry. We each have the chance then to choose whether or how to “return the ball.” Will we let it go by? If we respond in a caring, loving way, and continue in a back and forth exchange with the child, we are helping to build strong, healthy brain pathways.

As members of congregations and adults of faith it is our responsibility to respond to the children around us in caring and loving ways. We need to each do our part to ensure that our interactions with children are positive and reinforce their value in our communities. When a child attends a mosque, church, or synagogue it is not just a parents responsibility to show care and love, it is the entire worshiping communities responsibility as well.

This April, iCAN will be raising awareness about about issues of child abuse and neglect in Minnesota with help from our partners, Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota. Stay tuned for more by receiving Wednesdays4Kids and following us on Facebook!

Governor Pawlenty last night vetoed the GAMC bill passed in both the State House and Senate of Minnesota.

We'll provide more information on how to proceed shortly.

Until then, you can listen to and read the coverage of JRLC's Vigil yesterday in MPR's story on the veto.You can also view photos of the vigil.

Let us continue to pray for the recipients of GAMC, and for the state of Minnesota.

This morning, a group of committed JRLC advocates gathered before the House meeting on SF 2168 to hold a vigil for the recipients of General Assistance Medical Care, and prayed that partisanship not stand in the way of protecting human dignity.

Indeed, human dignity won out today, as the House overwhelmingly voted for the bill, 125-9.

When GAMC was first line-item vetoed last May, many felt that no one would notice; that the program would end, and 85,000 people would lost their health care coverage unnoticed. This was not to be.

An incredible partnership garnered support for the most vulnerable among us. All that waits for this bill now is to be signed into law. Let us continue to be inspired by the words of our vigil in the same way our friends read these words this morning:

Leader 1: We are gathered here at the apex of a movement. For months, local advocates and activists have labored to reinstate health care as a fundamental right for all the people of Minnesota.

Leader 2: The provision of health care is an abiding issue of justice for Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike. In the Abrahamic traditions, healing, binding up wounds, restoring to wholeness, and preventing illness are ways people make sure that human dignity is protected and enhanced.

Leader 3: The loss of General Assistance Medical Care puts in danger the lives of 85,000 Minnesotans. Most will have no way to pay for adequate health care if GAMC ends.

Leader 4: When so many human lives are endangered by a lack of access to health care, we fail to uphold human dignity.

ALL: God of Compassion, be present in this space today. Guide our hearts, that our neighbors be as if they were our selves. Let us honor those who have been asked to sacrifice their bodies for the sake of a balanced budget.

Leader 5: We reject the false notion that some must give their lives in order that others need not give from their pockets.

Leader 6: We abhor the thought that a human’s worth might be designated in dollars.

Leader 7: We mourn the world’s failure to cherish all human life.

Leader 8: Each of you have been given a small, electric candle. At this time, please light your candle, recalling a face, a story, or a fact about a recipient of General Assistance Medical Care.

(A moment for reflection. At this time, participants may share a story relating to GAMC if any person feels so moved.)

Leader 1: We light this candle in honor of those in need.

ALL: We light this candle in hope.

Leader 2: May this light illuminate the faces of those who are struggling.

Leader 3: May we always remember they are our mothers, our fathers, our children, our friends, our neighbors, and ourselves.

ALL: God of Justice, help us to see You in each person that surrounds us. Let these candles flicker with the intensity of hope. Commit us to act in solidarity with our neighbors, remembering your vision of human dignity and wholeness.

Leader 4: We pray today for wisdom: that our leaders may discern a way of equality, compassion, and justice.

Leader 5: We pray today for courage: that our leaders might summon strength beyond themselves for the health and well-being of many.

Leader 6: We pray today for reconciliation, remembering that caring for the basic human dignity of all people is not a partisan concept. It is a human concept.

Leader 7: We pray for comfort to the weary. We pray for warmth to those who are cold, food for those who are hungry.

Leader 8: What else do we pray for?

(A moment to share prayers, if any person feels so moved.)

ALL: God of Wisdom, guide our hearts to reach beyond our own understandings. Inspire us to imagine fair and equitable policies, providing adequate care for all those in need. Provide us with generous hearts and creative minds to solve difficult problems. Be with those whose health is endangered, and help us all to turn to one another for comfort, strength, and solidarity. We pray with hope for the future. Amen.