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Washington, DC 20011
Fax: (202) 545-8873
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September 20, 2001
On behalf of the Board of Directors of the National Association for Community Mediation, we wish to express our deepest sympathy to the victims, their families and loved ones, and others affected by the terrorist acts committed on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. We are grateful and proud of the heroic rescue workers for their immediate response to the events and they are in our uppermost thoughts and prayers as they continue their arduous work. We commend our political and military leaders for their quick response in grounding airplanes and taking actions to minimize the threat of further attacks. We ask our national leaders to be measured and thoughtful in their response to this attack. We fully expect that those responsible will be held accountable for their actions. At the same time, we have great concerns that the focus of the nation not be riveted on acts of revenge and reprisals. Angry rhetoric has already fanned the flames of bigotry here at home, and has resulted in violence against many of our friends and neighbors who are Arabs and Muslims. From our experience of over 30 years of conflict resolution work, we know very well that continuing the cycle of violence will lead to further violence. We are concerned for the loss of life both here and abroad. Justice will not be achieved through orphaning the sons and daughters of victims of future retaliatory attacks launched by the United States. Such behavior only calls forth more violence than hatred. We urge each of you as human beings to look within to begin to find a place of understanding. In doing so, we encourage you to look at the wealth of peaceful resources that exist in this country. Finally, we ask our leaders to rise to this incredible challenge to lead our nation to a better place. Dialogue across international borders, just as dialogue across the backyard fence, is key to building relationships and understanding one another. We urge our leaders to find the courage to engage in sincere dialogue. We can predict the cost of human lives and misery that we will be forced to pay for a war effort as a response; can it possibly cost more for us to look at alternative creative responses? In Peace,
Lori Burkey, NAFCM Co-chair
Tim Hedeen, NAFCM Co-chair
Dan Joyce, NAFCM Vice-chair
Where to begin:
Communities of Faith
Local conflict and resolution and mediation centers
Facilitated Community dialogues
Study circles on violence and race
Open dialogues with community leaders and legislators
Books, articles, and stories on peace, understanding, conflict resolution, communication, and compassion
Dialogue with state and national leaders
The National Association for Community Mediation (NAFCM)
The Victim Offender Mediation Association (VOMA)
Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR)
Study Circles Resource Center
Peace Petitions
The Office of Community Dispute Resolution, U.S. Department of Justice
The American Humane Association, Family Group Decision Making
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