As the Interfaith Council for the Santa Monica Area (SMAIC), we advocate for human rights and work to foster peace and justice for everyone regardless of religious affiliation or belief. We stand against the persecution of any faith community that is under attack or threat.
We collectively find the news of intensified persecution of the Baha’is in Iran, including arbitrary arrests of its peace-loving adherents, demolition of their homes, and confiscation of their land and properties heartbreaking and appalling.
We call on the authorities in Iran to immediately stop these persecutions and grant the Baha’is of Iran their rightful freedom to practice their faith in accordance with the Declarations of Human Rights by the United Nations, of which Iran is a signatory.
We also call on the US government and all people to lend their assistance to the cause of ensuring the freedom of the Baha’is and all religious minorities in Iran. We ask all for their support in various ways, including reminding the Iranian authorities repeatedly that they must immediately stop these persecutions.
We further ask all members of Congress for their wholehearted support of Resolutions H.Res.744 and S.Res.183 currently pending in the United States House of Representative and Senate, respectively, condemning the persecutions of the Baha’is and other religious minorities in Iran. Individuals whose legislators have not yet cosponsored these resolutions can contact their offices and ask them to become cosponsors now. The texts of these resolutions may be viewed using the following links:
https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-resolution/744/text
https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-resolution/183/text
Rev. Janet Gollery McKeithen, Church in Ocean Park
