Speech at the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI) General Assembly
Hyatt Regency Hotel
Washington, D.C. – July 29, 2000
[On the occasion of the Bishop being presented with the A. Philip Randolph-Bayard Rustin Freedom Award]
My brothers and sisters, I would like to open my speech by quoting St. Paul to the Ephesians:
"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. He destined us in love to be His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved."
[The letter of Paul to the Ephesians 1:1-6]
It is a great honor to have been chosen as the 30th recipient of the A. Philip Randolph-Bayard Rustin Freedom Award. Last year, this award was given to a prominent Sudanese, Mr. Bona Malwal, an exemplary Christian, a politician and a journalist who dedicated his life to the service of his suffering people. I stand before you today, a Sudanese, but not a politician, rather a shepherd and a pastor who stood up for the dignity and the human rights of the oppressed. Granting this award to two Sudanese who work and toil in two different fields is not purely coincidental. I see in it the Lord’s Will and Providence.
Last year, when I was given the William Wilberforce Award, I said that I had never dreamed of receiving an award in my lifetime. I wanted to save it for Heaven. But, I consider myself fortunate to receive this award on earth as I continue to hope for the Lord’s reward in Heaven. Tonight, I am being presented with the second award in honor of A. Philip Randolph, a labor leader, and Bayard Rustin, a civil rights leader. They both dedicated their lives and energy in the pursuit of the dignity and civil rights of their brothers and sisters. They fought for the equality of people who are oppressed because of their ethnic group.
It is a well known reality that when a person stands in defense of the poor, of the oppressed, of the persecuted and the enslaved, that person shares in their humiliation and their persecution, in their alienation and even in their death. This is my conviction based on the life of the Founder of the Church, Jesus Christ Himself. He sided with the poor, with the marginalized, with the hungry, with the sick, and consequently, he was falsely accused, insulted, spat upon, and crucified. Indeed I quote Christ’s words "there is no greater love than to give one’s life".
You have chosen to honor me with this award in memory of two of your brothers and sisters who shared the humiliation of the African American through their courage and their faith. My brothers and sisters, who originally belonged to the African continent, have gained their status and dignity and equality in the American society. African Americans, while still pursuing more and more respect, did not shy to stand up by their brothers and sisters in South Africa to fight apartheid. And, we have to give them credit because apartheid has become an issue of the past. Brothers and sisters, in Sudan today, a country of religious persecution, ethnic cleansing, rape, slavery, and man-made famine is cause for your solidarity, for your tenacious defense of their dignity and human rights. The situation in Sudan is worse than what it was in South Africa. While apartheid in South Africa was discrimination based on the color of the skin, and physical features, in Sudan it is based on ethnicity and creed.
To arrive to what the Islamic Fundamentalists have in mind, the regime of Khartoum has declared Holy War (JIHAD) on the non-Muslim population of Southern Sudan, the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile; and, at the same time through the Islamic militias, slavery is encouraged as well as the rape of our girls. Through these shameful acts, the intention is to Arabise and Islamise the non-Arabs and non-Muslims.
Brothers and sisters, it is so unfortunate that there are some African Americans who deny the existence of slavery and deny the rape of our women and our girls, they deny the persecution of the Christians in Sudan. May the Lord forgive them. I would like to invite any African American to come with me and see the scarred children. These children are scarred both physically, emotionally, they are branded on their arms, on their cheeks and on their temples by those who have abducted them and enslaved them. I would invite people from the United States to come and see girls at the age of 12 and 13 with babies in their arms, babies who are the fruit of rape! I will show them the victims of crucifixion of my catechists and mutilation of innocent children due to aerial bombardment on the civilian population. I will show them the destruction of churches. I will accompany them into areas where no visitors have ever visited to see the drama of my people who are reduced to beggars and mendicants. They eat once a day IF they find food. There are no doctors, no nurses, no education, and no clothes to cover their nudity. Those who choose to come and see the conditions for themselves will stay with me to share the agony and the humiliation of my people, with no electricity, no running water, no vehicles. We walk for hours on foot. I want these friends of mine to come and experience all these hardships so they may experience a conversion of the heart and mind and return to the United States to stand up for the truth.
Brothers and sisters, my people look at you seeking your solidarity and love, seeking that you stand by the truth even if it costs you time, energy, and wealth. I am aware that the African Americans can play a major role to bring justice and peace to their brothers and sisters in Sudan. I am sure you will speak with the African American caucus to take up the issue of religious persecution and ethnic cleansing, and slavery, which are all part and parcel of human rights. By taking this mission to heart, you will be called "Blessed" by Jesus Christ. "Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called children of God."
The Lord has called upon you, He has anointed you through your vocations as Christians to preach the good news to the poor and the afflicted and He has sent you to release captives and to set at liberty those who are oppressed. Your vocation is based on the new commandment Christ has given you "love one another as I have loved you."
Love, dear brothers and sisters, is not the virtue of the weak, the cowards and the egoists. Love, is the virtue of the strong, of the courageous, and of the selfless. You are the ambassadors of peace based on justice following the footsteps of your brothers, A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin.
Sudan, my brothers and sisters, is a multicultural, multiracial, and multi-religious country. This pluralism and diversity, which forms one nation, is a sign of strength and not of weakness. The Good Lord in His wisdom and love created our universe based on this diversity and plurality so that we may enrich each other, benefit from each other and walk together for a common goal.
The present Islamic Fundamentalists in Sudan do not represent Islam. This is another dangerous ideology, both political and economic that uses religion to kill, to rape, to terrorize and to eliminate people of different cultures, traditions and religion in order to arrive to a conformity both racial and religious in order to call Sudan an "Arab Islamic country".
I believe in dialogue, I believe in dialogue with different races, with different religions, with different cultures, and with different traditions, BUT NEVER at the expense of my religious beliefs and moral principles. I believe in what I call a "living dialogue", that is, mutual respect, mutual trust, and mutual cooperation to create a better world and to bring justice and peace. Dialogue is not monologue as the Islamic Fundamentalists of Khartoum pretend. Dialogue cannot be imposed by the barrel of the gun. Dialogue is not to rape, enslave and terrorize. Dialogue is the acceptance of the differences and the respect of people’s rights.
I conclude by thanking the A. Philip Randolph Institute and its President, Norman Hill, for honoring me with this award which I shall receive this evening with humility. I accept the A. Philip Randolph-Bayard Rustin Freedom Award in the name of my people who are the true heroes. Thank you and God Bless you.
