US Friends issue ‘call to action’ over values
'The call echoes the concern of Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) about the decline of truth and integrity in UK public life.'
A group of US Friends has issued an ‘urgent call to action’ about what it sees as the undermining of Quaker testimonies in wider society.
The ‘Call to Action’ – which was presented by the Peace and Justice Committee of Newtown Meeting this week – was put together by a group of nineteen Quakers from across the country, more than half from the Philadelphia area. The statement, entitled ‘An Urgent Call to Action to the Religious Society of Friends’, claims that three Quaker values – equality of all people, truth-telling, and deep listening – are being eroded in the country.
As part of the call, Quakers met in person and on Zoom this week to discuss how they can take action to defend these key values, as both individuals and wider Meetings. The four areas are: defending truth; working for true equality and justice for all; promoting free and fair elections; and preparing for nonviolent resistance.
The call echoes the concern of Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) about the decline of truth and integrity in UK public life. BYM wrote to the new prime minister Liz Truss earlier this month and has also been lobbying parliamentarians, with Quaker Ruth Cadbury, a Labour MP, raising the issue in a Westminster debate.
