Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘We’re not all in this together’: Black communities are reeling from pandemic and economic hardships September 30, 2020 The first segment of “COVID at the Margins” featured C...
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘We’re not all in this together’
Today in the Mission Yearbook - ‘We’re not all in this together’: Black communities are reeling from pandemic and economic hardships September 30, 2020 The first segment of “COVID at the Margins” featured C...
WCC NEWS: In COVID-19 trimmed Meskel festival, Ethiopian Orthodox Church Patriarch urges peace
WCC NEWS: In COVID-19 trimmed Meskel festival, Ethiopian Orthodox Church Patriarch urges peace: By Fredrick Nzwili * H.H. Abune Mathias, patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Photo: Peter Williams/WCC, 2017. In Meskel cel...
Tuesday, September 29, 2020
PCUSA Joins Faith Groups in Call to Senators to Lead Global Covid-19 Response
WASHINGTON, DC—On September 17, 2020, seventeen faith-based national organizations, representing thousands of members serving poor and vulnerable people around the world, delivered a letter to Senators urging them to pass legislation that includes international assistance to address the social and economic impacts of COVID-19.
September 17, 2020
Dear Senator,
Our fears grow more urgent–sparked by the International Monetary Fund’s prediction in June of a decline in global growth of almost 5 percent in 2020 and UN reports indicating that 265 million people could face starvation by the end of the year and half-a-billion people could be pushed into poverty by the global economic crisis–as each month passes without significant action by the United States. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported that coronavirus-related starvation is leading to the death of 10,000 children a month, 50 percent of whom live in Sub-Saharan Africa. “Without urgent action, the global number of children suffering from wasting could reach almost 54 million over the course of the year,” UNICEF said on July 27. “This would bring global wasting to levels not seen this millennium.”
The U.S. has an opportunity to restore and demonstrate global leadership at this critical moment in history.
The growing, grave threat to life and livelihood the coronavirus poses to people in countries less well-off than the United States, and recognizing that our nation’s economy and efforts to contain the coronavirus are interconnected with those in other countries, we ask that you co-sponsor S.4139, the Support for Global Financial Institution Pandemic Response Act, and ensure its provisions (Special Drawing Rights) move forward alongside a funding package that includes $20 billion for foreign assistance.
There are three key components of an effective international response:
Support for the issuance of 2 trillion in IMF Special Drawing Rights (SDR)
At no cost to the U.S. taxpayer, around $2.8 trillion (using current exchange rates) could be freed up through an International Monetary Fund (IMF) issuance of 2 trillion Special Drawing Rights (SDRs). The allocation will supplement a country’s foreign exchange reserves providing developing countries with needed liquidity that can be used to address urgent food, health needs and social services. Congressional action is needed to instruct the U.S. representative to the IMF to support this important action, which is why your co-sponsorship of S.4139 is critically needed. This issuance of SDRs by the IMF would have an important impact on the lives of vulnerable people around the world and would enable developing countries to purchase U.S. exports, ultimately benefiting the U.S. economy. In addition, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has stated that the IMF issuance will have no impact on the U.S. budget.
The IMF last issued SDRs in 2009 in response to the global financial crisis which helped ease the impact of the crisis on developing economies. The allocation is not a loan and does not need to be repaid, but it will save lives by enabling developing countries to use the precious resources they have to invest in health care to slow the spread of COVID-19 and address other growing needs for social services.
Support expanding debt relief
Now more than ever, sovereign debt means death. Our members see this in poor countries like Kenya and Ecuador where governments spend more on servicing debt than on health care. Across 46 countries, debt payments for this year are currently projected to be 400 percent of their health budgets. With millions of people in developing countries without a social safety net and facing job loss, economic depression, food insecurity, and sickness from COVID-19, our call for debt relief for developing countries is about both compassion and recovery. It is impossible to recover without debt relief.
Following recommendations made in the latest UN Secretary-General report, we urge the Senate to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to support expanding the moratorium on debt service payments owed by the world’s poorest countries, canceling and restructuring debt by the IMF to bolster healthcare in developing countries affected by Covid-19, and increasing debt relief and aid through the IMF’s Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust and Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust Fund and other expanded processes.
No less than $20 billion in foreign aid
The global public health, humanitarian, and economic fallout from the pandemic has worsened as the year passes and the resources needed to address the problems created by the global pandemic have grown. Now we urgently request that no less than $20 billion be included in the next supplemental spending bill. We echo humanitarian experts at The One Campaign and InterAction in calling for foreign assistance to respond to the desperation of our brothers and sisters abroad.
We feel this is a moral issue and believe that the go-it-alone approach by the Trump administration has crippled the international response to the largest international humanitarian crisis in the past half-century. Without leadership by the United States in coordination with other wealthy developed nations, the World Food Program and UNICEF have been unable to raise enough contributions to adequately address the public health, humanitarian, and socio-economic fallout of the pandemic. In addition, we are deeply concerned that the United States has decided not to participate in the ACT Accelerator, an initiative of the World Health Organization and the European Commission to pool international resources to cooperatively develop, finance and distribute coronavirus vaccines and medical treatments. Without U.S. leadership, the initiative has received pledges of just $3.4 billion, far short of the needed $31.3 billion. Without significant foreign aid, we also fear gaps in infrastructure to support existing programming in vital sectors like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria will grow and without United States support for emergency funding to support meals and tele-education to children in places like Haiti and Central America, a generation of children will be left behind, and contribute to the desperation that fuels out-migration.
Time is running out. Funding is needed immediately to save lives.
The three components of an international response – SDRs, debt relief and foreign aid – can save lives, bolster health care, and protect workers and social welfare. Our faith in God and the teachings of our spiritual traditions require that we act on behalf of those most in need at home and abroad. All of our lives and recovery from COVID-19 depend on it.
Thank you for your consideration and leadership.
Sincerely,
Africa Faith and Justice Network Bread for the World
Church World Service
Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach
Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, U.S. Provinces
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Friends in Solidarity, Inc.
Islamic Relief USA
Leadership Conference of Women Religious
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Washington Office
Missionary Oblates JPIC Office
National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
Office of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation, Society of the Sacred Heart United States Canada Province
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team
Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate
Black and Presbyterian in America
I sit in many spaces.
I have sat in many spaces.
This space is the hardest.
This space I can never escape.
This space hurts the most because it numbs,
It tears the heart and mind a part.
This space is where life and death happens.
Created by God, molded and called forth from the heavens,
I sit in the space of the feminine, I sit in the space of blackness
I sit in the space of the divine that became Christianity and spirituality.
“From the Heart” by Melva Lowry written 9/25/2020
Black Womanhood & Breonna Taylor
I have been doing my best to balance staying informed with the news and keeping my mental health well by watching my favorite cartoon movies or a binge of HGTV. As I began to finally sit down and write this, I can look up and see the press conference of Attorney Benjamin Crump on the screen, muted. As I continue to write this, a flip of the channel to a movie is balancing the rage and anguish I want to discuss.
During the Young Adult Round Table of the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s Week of Action, I mentioned that I was born three years before the PC(USA) became the PC(USA). I was born into a segregated church and have realized that I was born sitting between two realities. As an 80s baby I have lived the world as it was and have lived in the world as we hoped and thought it should be. A diverse and loving world is what I saw growing up. I was born the daughter of a Presbyterian minister. I was born a few years after the first Black woman was ordained into the still segregated church: the Rev. Dr. Katie G. Cannon. I was named after Dr. Melva Costen, the wife of the late Rev. Dr. James Costen who would serve as the first moderator of the unified Presbyterian Church as we know it today. By the time I was old enough to understand life and faith, the PC(USA) had been unified for years and I thought this was how the church had always been. I often reflect on the uniqueness of timing in which I was born. I usually describe myself as a bridge between life as it was and life as it is now in America.
Even now, I continue to sit between two realities because I have often been asked to choose whether I am a black woman or a Christian, specifically a Presbyterian. I have advocated for my non-Presbyterian classmates when topics become Presbyterian heavy only to then be asked if I am Presbyterian. When the conversation turns to race, I must decide whether to speak and risk being seen as the spokesperson for all black women or stay silent. It seems that I cannot speak about race from my personal experiences or advocate for non-Presbyterian voices to be included because there is no way I can hold two identities. I cannot recount the many times I have had to choose which identity I was going to align with. Often it was my Presbyterian identity that was in question since I clearly cannot deny my blackness. During this questioning, my mind races to the 90+ years my grandmother spent as a Presbyterian and the countless history of other black Presbyterians I experienced and learned about. I wanted to scream the litany of black history as proof of just how Presbyterian I am.
What does any of this have to do with the recent news coverage about Breonna Taylor? Everything. Black women have to fight and prove themselves to the world. Often described as a double negative that can never be concealed: my blackness and my femininity. I never know which one is betraying me and causing the battle. Am I being attacked because of racial microaggressions? Or am I being undermined because I am a woman? I am constantly in a mental and emotional battle. I question whether I am over reacting, but at times mad that I am not advocating enough for myself and my value. Constantly checking the compliments against the stereotypes. Am I being complacent to appease others? Am I tamping down my emotions so I will be acceptable? All too often black women settle for the crumbs given, patiently waiting for a time where their full identity and value will be embraced.
The fight for justice for Breonna Taylor is not just about the criminal justice system, it is about the worth and value placed on the life of black womanhood. The fight to justify her being is one that is not unfamiliar to many non-white persons and to white persons who try to buck the “social norms” of white heterosexual normativity, but the fight rarely finds a win if even a small one for black women. I think my efforts to find balance, outlets from listening to the daily news, was really a fight to stay out of the fight. I did not want to be tapped into the ongoing debate about if a young black woman was better off dead, free from a world infected with not only a virus, but one filled with systemic hatred that has hardened the hearts of many who call themselves Christian; or should she still be alive to fight this battle of right and wrong in a legal system designed to keep her contained. I did not want to think about how to explain my sadness, anger, pain and numbness. I did not want to fact check the ignorant. I did not want to fight. I did not have the energy to fight.
Breonna Taylor was killed while asleep in her home. She is just one of many black women who have been killed in places where they should have been safe. Even Sandra Bland died in a place surrounded by people sworn to keep to her safe. The news is rarely extensive when a black woman is killed compared to the killing of a black man. Even in the case of Breonna, the news about her death did not get as much recognition as Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd initially. The continued protest from allies helped give light to a death that would have been ignored. The weight that black women carry is hard to explain. The many arenas in which black women have to fight in can never be counted. I am not trying to increase a chasm between blacks and the rest of the world; or even between black women and other women. The conversation about the ways in which black women battle and fight with the world I alone cannot transcribe nor complete in one writing.
What I do know is that Breonna Taylor represents so many black women, young and old. The tenderness of her life and the violence of her death was felt deep in the bones for me and other black women all over. Even hearing the news that the cops were charged with endangering everyone else, but Ms. Taylor was a punch to the gut. Being charged for failing to hit their intended target emphasizes that the life of Breonna Taylor did not matter. Her body and identity were expendable. Hopefully one day we will know if the full story ever made it to court. If her voice will ever be heard. Right now, she must sit in this familiar space of not knowing. Was she the target because of her race? Did she not get justice because she was female? Did the combination of being both betray her?
What I do know as a Christian is that the death of Breonna Taylor should be mourned by all. She was created by a divine God and that life was taken violently. What I know as a woman is that the life of black women still alive should be protected by all. The wisdom and survival skills black women carry inside is valuable. What I know as a black Presbyterian woman is that when I read the comments on the PC(USA) sites, from those questioning if the Church should speak up about her death, I feel as if I am being questioned about my loyalty to the denomination all over again. I feel as if I must decide whether to be a black woman or a Presbyterian because I cannot fully be both. Jesus advocated for those who needed justice. Jesus mourned the death of others. Breonna Taylor is dead, but the fight of black women lives on. As Christians called to love one another and to seek justice for those unable to fight for themselves, we have a duty to demand for Breonna and other black women killed to find rest by obtaining justice on their behalf.
Melva Lowry is a candidate for ordination in the PC(USA). She’s a ruling elder in the Greater Atlanta Presbytery at Rice Memorial. Mel holds 3 Masters from 2 PCUSA affiliated seminaries. She recently served as one of the Hands and Feet Fellows for the 224th General Assembly.
WCC NEWS: WCC gravely concerned by escalation of conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh region (updated)
“I lament the tragic loss of lives, express my sincere condolences to the grieving families, and pray for the recovery of the injured,” said Sauca. “To stop this bloodshed, the WCC calls on all combatants to desist immediately from further military action and to return to the table of dialogue and negotiation.”
Sauca also appealed for urgent initiatives by the Minsk Group, under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, for progress towards a peaceful solution to this longstanding unresolved conflict.
“I am dismayed by the aggressively partisan stance taken by the government of Turkey, which as a member of the Minsk Group should maintain a neutral role, rather than that of an antagonist,” said Sauca. “I appeal therefore to our WCC member churches from the countries in the Minsk Group to engage with their governments to convey this message and to encourage urgent and sustained diplomatic efforts for peace in the region.”
His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, stated that the conflict, “calls on all of us to defend the rights of our nation, our sacred land, our future, and our national dignity.” Karekin II called on “our people to unite and for all the political forces to put aside their differences for the sake of the needed defense” of the homeland.
In his message, H.H. Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia of the Armenian Orthodox Church said: “The world should know that Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabagh) is a land shaped with the blood, prayers and souls of Armenians… Moreover, according to International laws and regulations its people has the right to self-determination”.
Read the full WCC statement on the escalation of conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh region
WCC member churches in Armenia
WCC member churches in Russian Federation
WCC NEWS: Interview with Torsten Moritz, general secretary of the Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe
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| Dr Torsten Moritz, general secretary of CCME, Photo: CEC/Naveen Qayyum |
The Churches’ Commission for Migrants in Europe is helping to lead a dialogue between global religious groups and the European Commission offices in Brussels.
“Let me first of all say that, if we talk about the pact, we are in reality talking about 12 different documents, almost 500 pages of text!” he said. “Like most people here in Brussels, we are still studying the details.”
The main points of change, Moritz said, involved speeding up asylum procedures and also looking at stronger protection of certain groups. “To be honest, a lot of these things we have heard before,” he said. “Member states have not really invested a lot of money in making asylum procedures faster.”
A relatively new addition to the proposed pact is a requirement that migrants will go through a pre-screening and an individual assessment of their claims.
Moritz also outlines what concerns faith-based organizations the most: “You can express solidarity as a member state by helping to send people back, which for us is worrying,” he said.
The Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe was among a dozen global and regional religious organizations that released an advocacy statement on the situation of migrants and refugees in Europe that defines their calling as Christians to “welcome the stranger,” and urges the creation of a world in which “we become human together.”
This unity in advocacy is unprecedented, said Moritz. “On the eve of the presentation of the pact it was a dozen organizations that got together—global, regional, national—and we are pretty happy with that cooperation.”
The statement is co-signed by the ACT Alliance, the Anglican Communion, the Churches’ Commission for Migrants in Europe, the Conference of European Churches, the European Region of the World Association for Christian Communication, the Evangelical Church of Greece, the Integration Center for Migrant Workers – Ecumenical Refugee Program, Non Profit Organisation of the Church of Greece, the Lutheran World Federation, the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity , the World Communion of Reformed Churches, the World Communion of Reformed Churches (European Region), the World Council of Churches and the World Methodist Council.
Link to the interview with Dr Torsten Moritz
Ecumenical statement on migration received by European Commission
Global religious leaders urge end to “broken state of European migration”
Read the full statement of 22 September 2020
Photo gallery: Ecumenical statement on migration received by European Commission
WCC NEWS: WCC gravely concerned by escalation of conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh region
“I lament the tragic loss of lives, express my sincere condolences to the grieving families, and pray for the recovery of the injured,” said Sauca. “To stop this bloodshed, the WCC calls on all combatants to desist immediately from further military action and to return to the table of dialogue and negotiation.”
Sauca also appealed for urgent initiatives by the Minsk Group, under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, for progress towards a peaceful solution to this longstanding unresolved conflict.
“I am dismayed by the aggressively partisan stance taken by the government of Turkey, which as a member of the Minsk Group should maintain a neutral role, rather than that of an antagonist,” said Sauca. “I appeal therefore to our WCC member churches from the countries in the Minsk Group to engage with their governments to convey this message and to encourage urgent and sustained diplomatic efforts for peace in the region.”
His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, stated that the conflict “calls on all of us to defend the rights of our nation, our sacred land, our future, and our national dignity.”
Karekin II called on “our people to unite and for all the political forces to put aside their differences for the sake of the needed defense” of the homeland.
Read the full WCC statement on the escalation of conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh region
On a holy day of the year, let’s act for what’s right
Join our non-partisan Moral Observer call on Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 2 pm ET.
One of the reasons I’m part of GreenFaith is that it unites my spirituality and my commitment to climate justice. I am Jewish (as well as being something of a spiritual seeker), and today is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, when Jews fast - a spiritual practice that embodies reflection and repentance. It’s one of the most important days of the year for me, and I’ll be fasting and praying - having written this email before the start of the holiday.
As I reflect on the last year, I think about the COVID-19 pandemic and the massive climate disasters that have hit so many people and communities across the world. I think of the violent racism that has been exposed through the murder - in plain sight - of Black people by police in the United States.
These tragedies have laid bare the world’s inequity and injustice. The same communities that are suffering the most from COVID-19 are also suffering the worst impacts of climate change, racism, and violence.
But as I reflect on the last year, I also have so much hope. In 5780 (the Jewish year that just ended), we saw some of the biggest climate mobilizations the world has ever seen, led by youth with new energy and vigor. We saw communities band together to help the most vulnerable when COVID-19 hit, with neighbors looking out for each other. We saw massive uprisings demanding racial justice and an end to police violence.
And so, at the same time I feel heartbroken and I have immense hope. What I know for sure is this: my faith and my values compel me to do everything I can to contribute to a world with more justice and more hope.
That’s why I’m doing everything I can to make sure that every voice is heard in the upcoming election. And I invite you to join me.
For our GreenFaith Community in the United States: This Wednesday, we’re having our 2nd Moral Observer training, and we want you to join us. We will train you to use your power and moral authority as a person of faith or a faith leader on ways you can foster a compassionate voting community in the upcoming election, and election void of suppression and inclusive of all voices.
Join us on Wednesday at 2pm Eastern Standard Time. RSVP here.
May this year be a year full of sweetness, powered by our actions.
In solidarity,
SaraP.S. You do not need to be a formal, ordained religious leader to be a Moral Observer. All people of faith and conscience are welcome to join us.
Change.org - Uber: Help Voters Get to the Polls
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I’m asking Uber to offer free/subsidized rides to polling locations on election day, particularly in areas where suppression tactics have been most egregious, and polling places less ubiquitous. With the progressive erosion of voting rights since the 2013 Supreme Court ruling, thousands of polling locations have been removed. Most of these were located in areas in which minorities live; thus disenfranchising communities of color disproportionately. One way we can help mitigate the effects of this, is by providing transportation for those who may not readily have access. By providing a ride share, it could help those for whom public transport isn’t available; or provide a more efficient method of transport to minimize the amount of time needed to take leave from work or home. Every voice & vote should be heard. This isn’t a partisan consideration. It’s an American one. No matter where you stand, everyone can agree that those who can vote, should be able to without impediment. Please, Uber, help preserve a fundamental democratic right. | ||
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Monday, September 28, 2020
A Season of Peace: Monday, September 28
A Season of Peace: Monday, September 28: Courageous Peacemaking Peace in the World Gay Harter Hebrews 13:1–2 Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to st...
WCC NEWS: Ecumenical statement on migration received by European Commission
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| Dr Torsten Moritz, general secretary of CCME , Mr Vangelis Demiris from the EU Commission and Dr Jørgen Skov Sørensen, CEC general secretary, Brussels, 25 September 2020, Photos: CEC/Naveen Qayyum |
Dr Jørgen Skov Sørensen, general secretary of the Conference of European Churches, and Dr Torsten Moritz, general secretary of the Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe, delivered the statement to Demiris, who is responsible for the dialogue with the churches and faith-based organisations.
Sørensen said he believes there is still room for improvement in the proposals launched by the EU on 23 September. "Our member churches, among other European faith traditions, remain committed to a transparent dialogue with the European Commission and the co-legislators, the council and the parliament in the context of Article 17 of the Lisbon Treaty,” he said. “Churches also remain committed to building bridges between different opinions on migration, and certainly between refugees, migrants and Europeans. We believe that churches have a fundamental role in facilitating and contributing to the intercultural and interreligious encounters in Europe in order to strengthen efforts for coherent, just and peaceful societies.”
Moritz said that, as representatives of churches from across Europe and as part of a global fellowship, they appreciate the opportunity to meet and exchange with the cabinet of Schinas. An earlier exchange took place in January during the drafting process of the EU Migration Pact.
“In the text of the EU Migration Pact, we do recognise overall good intentions and some promising ideas,” said Moritz. “However, the overall focus on border, border procedures, return and cooperation with dubious governments in third countries is very worrying.”
He added that reactions from church members across Europe have been pouring in, particularly from those who have welcomed people seeking protection, sponsored humanitarian corridors, rescued people from drowning, and, most recently, intervened to help after the fire in the Moria camp. “Some are former refugees themselves,” said Moritz. “Many of them have expressed a feeling of embarrassment for being European at this moment.”
Change.org - Dogs
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On August 31st, approximately 20 dogs were confiscated from a warehouse within Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. These dogs arrived from the country of Jordan on Royal Jordanian Airlines many days prior. On August 31st, an unrelated good Samaritan alerted a Chicago Police Officer that there were numerous dogs in a warehouse living in dire circumstances and urged investigation. Upon investigation, the police discovered that these dogs were without food and water, dehydrated and in abhorrent sanitary conditions. It is unclear what would have happened to these dogs or how long they would have languished had the unrelated third party not taken this heroic step. Royal Jordanian Airlines housed an improperly documented shipment of dogs two to a crate, without food or water for numerous days. The crates were caked with fecal matter and urine inches thick. The dogs suffered skin lesions from sitting in their own excrement as shown in the photo we have included. One puppy was found deceased after being in the warehouse for days. Upon discovering these conditions and observing the imminent danger to these animals, the Chicago Police Department immediately took custody of the dogs. An employee for the warehouse, under the direction of the Chicago Police Department, then contacted Chicago French Bulldog Rescue and asked if they would take custody of 15 French Bulldogs who were in the warehouse. The Rescue responded to this request on a moment’s notice. The Rescue arranged to have several veterinary clinics prepped and on stand-by to provide treatment and quarantine for all 15 dogs that same evening. The Rescue went to the warehouse and assisted the police in evaluating and loading the dogs into their rescue vehicle, took custody of the dogs and transported them to their veterinary partners where they have been treated, quarantined, tested for parvo and even socialized. Their medical bills exceed $20,000. “The van the rescued dogs were in was covered in flies due to the pups being covered in feces and urine,” said a rescue volunteer through tears who was on the scene when the dogs were discovered. “It was horrible for them. We couldn’t get the smell off us for days.” Royal Jordanian Airlines, has demanded that Chicago French Bulldog Rescue return the dogs to their custody so that they can fly them back to Jordan. Royal Jordanian Airlines is not the owner of the dogs. Moreover, these dogs were forcibly removed from the care and custody of Royal Jordanian Airlines because of the severe neglect suffered at its hands as well as its demonstrated disregard for life. Royal Jordanian Airlines had demanded the dogs be returned while the ds were still too sick to leave veterinary care and have not inquired as to the condition or health of the dogs other than to ask if they are well enough to fly. Chicago French Bulldog Rescue has asked that the pups be released to their custody and care permanently, where they will continue their rehabilitation and find them loving homes. If the dogs are released to their rescue, Chicago French Bulldog Rescue has agreed to absorb all incurred and future medical costs. The Humane Society of the United States support Chicago French Bulldog Rescue in its efforts to keep and rehome the dogs. The CDC and USDA are currently also pressuring Royal Jordanian Airlines to send the dogs back to Jordan, despite concerns of the dogs’ wellbeing. The CDC is demanding that the dogs be returned to the custody and control of the entity responsible for the unspeakable cruelty suffered by these dogs. This despite the fact that the dogs have been in quarantine for over 20 days and vaccinated and present no threat of infectious disease. The CDC is also not requiring Royal Jordanian Airlines to pay for the dog’s medical bills. THE CDC HAS THE SOLE DISCRETION TO EITHER KEEP THESE DOGS SAFE IN THE RESCUE OR SEND THEM BACK TO JORDAN IN THE CUSTODY OF THEIR ABSUERS. Please also consider emailing the CDC at cdcanimalimports@cdc.gov or calling 1.800.232.4636 and asking them to grant amnesty for these 15 puppies and allow Chicago French Bulldog Rescue to continue to care for them. These dogs have been failed by Jordanian Airlines who were responsible for their safety and wellbeing: • Royal Jordanian Airlines has admitted to failing them before they were shipped by not confirming that their documents were in order, including proper health certificates and vet records. Chicago French Bulldog Rescue has not and will not fail them. Dogs and puppies are sentient beings. The cruelty associated with the international trade of puppies must be stopped. This case is a prime example of the lack of care and consideration the puppies receive during these transactions. This is the second time that Chicago French Bulldog Rescue has come to the aide of sick and neglected imported puppies. This needs to stop. Chicago French Bulldog Rescue is grateful to Chicago Police Department for standing up against animal cruelty and neglect. Please sign this petition to demand that the CDC allow these dogs to stay in the United States and be surrendered to Chicago French Bulldog Rescue. *Please note that funds donated to "promote" this petition do not go to the rescue. For those who have asked how to donate to the medical bills of these dogs or toward the legal fees to keep him here, donations can be made at https://www.frenchieporvous.org/donations/ | ||||||||||||
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