March 17, 2021
Reports of the Atlanta shootings that left 8 people dead are appalling and of grave concern. On behalf of Religions for Peace USA, we lift up our prayers for the victims, their grieving families and the community. We condemn the tragic attack that took eight lives, six of whom were women of Asian descent.
We strongly denounce the rising hatred and violence against Asian Americans and stand with the Asian American and Pacific Islanders communities who have been targeted with increasing racial violence since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our religious traditions are those of peace and hope. We as religious communities are called to love our neighbors in the presence of evil in the world. We call upon all Americans to live together peacefully, knowing that whatever challenges we face, we face them together, and that our personal identities are enriched, not diminished or threatened, by love and peace.
Religions for Peace USA (RFPUSA) is the largest and most broadly-based representative multi-religious forum in the United States, with participants from about 50 religious communities, representing diversity within each of the major faith traditions and many of the minor ones. The mission of RFPUSA is to inspire and advance common actions for peace through multi-religious cooperation among our nation’s religious communities. We envision a nation in which people of faith and goodwill live
together in respect and mutual support, creating paths to peace and justice.
In Faith,
Rev. Youngsook Kang & Bruce Knotts
Co-Moderators, Religions for Peace USA