Public Forum:
In the Brookfield-Elm Grove area there is a group called BEGIN (Brookfield-Elm Grove Interfaith Network). This group consists of local leaders from various faith traditions: Baha'i, Jewish, Catholic, Lutheran, Mormon, Presbyterian, United Church of Christ, United Methodist, Unitarian Universalist, Islamic and Hindu communities. The primary purposes of the group are to learn about one another's beliefs and faith traditions through dialogue and grow in understanding and respect as we share a common humanity. We all feel strongly that the peaceful expression of religious freedom is a right that all humanity shares. When any peaceful faith tradition is subjected to persecution, it is a threat to all traditions.
While the current Iranian government is suspicious of most religious traditions that do not espouse their particular interpretation of Islam, and most other traditions are relegated to a second-class citizenship, the Baha'i faith has been singled out for extreme persecution. The United Nations, governments around the world, Amnesty International, major international print and electronic media and peer-reviewed academic literature have repeatedly stated the members of the Baha'i community in Iran have been subjected to unwarranted arrests, false imprisonment, beatings, torture, unjustified executions, confiscation and destruction of property, denial of employment and governmental benefits, denial of access to higher education, and denial of the most basic civil rights and liberties.
We know there are many Iranians who yearn for a peaceful, free government. We stand in solidarity with those Iranians. We also call upon peace- and freedom-loving people of all religious communities to raise their voices to protest the blatant violations of human and civil rights in Iran. We also encourage people of all faiths to pray for those brothers and sisters all across the world who are experiencing religious persecution of all types, and especially those of the Baha'i faith in Iran.
Steven Adams
Glen Allgaier
Phillip Bogacki
Marsha Fensin
Mushir Hassan
John Horner-Ibler
Mary Janowak
Mina Khorshidi
Ken Knippel
Sherrie Lorbeck
Suzelle Lynch
Ron Retherford
Richard Strait
BEGIN (Brookfield-Elm Grove
Interfaith Network)
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