Condemning President Trump’s Disrespect of Indigenous Peoples & Retweeting Anti-Muslim Propaganda
A Statement from Parliament of the World’s Religions Board Chair Dr. Robert P. Sellers and Executive Director Dr. Larry Greenfield
In these times of extraordinary tension and danger, leaders—whether political, socio-cultural, or religious and whatever their nation, tradition, or spiritual path–have a special obligation to be unquestionably truthful, intentionally civil and respectful, and particularly careful to avoid being inflammatory and polarizing in any way. Instead, they need to be relentless in seeking a common good for their nation and its diverse peoples.
The Parliament of the World’s Religions is committed to holding leaders to such standards, because the religions and spiritual communities of our world expect this of their own leaders and those in power in other spheres of human society. It is out of this commitment that we condemn the irresponsible retransmission of false and racist videos against the great religious tradition of Islam by the President of the United States, as well as his entirely inappropriate words to demean a political opponent at an event meant to honor Native Americans who served the United States with the deepest of commitments.
We invite other religious and civic leaders to join together in condemnation of the dangerous and disrespectful behavior by the President, who should apologize and exercise the discipline required of his office, his nation, and his position on the world’s stage.
Now is exactly the time for religious and spiritual leaders, especially in the United States, to use the power entrusted to us and to empower our colleagues in religious service to take persistent actions that reveal to the wider public our deep solidarity for truth-speaking and peace-seeking, justice-advancing, and compassion-sharing.