House strongly condemns hate crimes, religious bigotry

Rep. Mia Ackerman
Posted 3/24/15

When Roger Wil-liams first set forth his “lively experiment” to create a state that guaranteed “full liberty in religious concernments,” it set a chain of events into motion that would …

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House strongly condemns hate crimes, religious bigotry

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When Roger Wil-liams first set forth his “lively experiment” to create a state that guaranteed “full liberty in religious concernments,” it set a chain of events into motion that would ultimately make religious freedom not only the right of every Rhode Islander, but the law of the land in the United States.

Other colonies thought we were crazy – or worse, dreadfully immoral. They predicted that such a rule would lead to the worst kind of lawlessness and anarchy. Instead, the world watched as Rhode Island prospered peacefully, without religious wars, lynchings or witch hunts.

Society has come a long way since Rhode Island first rocked the world with those words in 1663. Religious tolerance is now the norm.

At the entrance to the chamber of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, there’s a large plaque on the wall to the right of the door. It honors the four chaplains – one Catholic, one Jewish and two Protestant – of the doomed ship USS Dorchester, who gave their life jackets to save the lives of fellow crewmen in 1943. With arms linked, these four men of different religious backgrounds drowned together in an act of solidarity, showing just how far we’ve come in America since the religious intolerance of the old world.

But despite acts such as these, we still see an increase in religious-based hate crimes from time to time.

In response to recent crimes aimed at Muslims, Jews, Christians and people of other faiths, the Rhode Island House of Representatives has passed a resolution I sponsored condemning hate crimes and religious bigotry.

We’ve seen the murders of cartoonists in France and anti-Semitic hatred against French Jews that included the deaths of 17 innocent people. In North Carolina, three Muslim college students were recently murdered. But in the words of Zeeshan Abdullah, a student who organized a peace circle of Muslims around a synagogue in Oslo, Norway, “There are many more peace-mongers than warmongers.”

Here in Rhode Island, most recently, we’ve witnessed hateful graffiti painted at the Islamic School of Rhode Island. We can’t stay silent when people try to intimidate others for exercising a personal freedom – particularly religious freedom, which is so closely tied to the heritage of all Rhode Islanders.

Shortly after the United States set up the federal government in 1790, newly elected President George Washington sent a letter to the Touro Synagogue in Newport. That letter is still read publicly at the synagogue every year.

In it, he assured the Jewish congregation that the Untied States government “gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance. May the children of the Stock of Abraham, who dwell in this land, continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other Inhabitants; while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and figtree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”

And that’s more than just a sentiment that’s 225 years old. It’s more than just a string of words. And it’s more than just the law – it’s part of the fabric of who we are and what we all hold dear. And it applies to everyone, whether it be Christian or Jew, Muslim or Hindu, atheist, agnostic, or any other belief – or non-belief.

Religious freedom spread from Rhode Island quickly. It became a right of such great importance that it’s the very first sentence in the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Here in Rhode Island, religious tolerance is so ingrained in us, that the Muslim school I just mentioned is comfortably nestled right between two Catholic churches in West Warwick. It’s not unusual to see Christian churches display giant menorahs during Hanukkah. And the interfaith services that are held throughout this state are just too numerous to list here.

But freedom always has to be defended in order to be kept – even one so basic as religious liberty. So as long as there are those who would try to harass or intimidate anyone because of their beliefs, we have to make it clear that we just won’t stand for it.

This is Rhode Island. We will not only accept everyone’s beliefs – we’ll celebrate them.

Rep. Mia A. Ackerman of Cumberland is a Democrat representing District 45, including portions of the towns of Cumberland and Lincoln, in the Rhode Island House of Representatives.

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