Page A4
January 23,2002
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We Must Fulfill Dr. King’s Vision
The H ouse D em o cra tic
L eader,
R ic h a r d
A.
G ephardt, released the f o l
low ing sta tem en t in hon o r
o f M o n d a y ’s na tio n a l h o li
day honoring the Rev. M a r
tin Luther K ing Jr:
Dr. K ing represented the
A m erican nation and the
A m erican people at their
bright, shining best.
He was a voice for hope for
millions o f hum an beings. He
stood strong in the face o f
oppression and injustice with
an unflagging comm itm ent to
non-violence. He challenged
us all to reach higher, tapped
the “better angels o f ou r na
ture,” in Lincoln’s memorable
p h rase, and c h a n g ed the
‘ We, as Americans, have an obli
gation to serve our communites to
help others fulfill their potential as
people; to work to ensure justice
and equality fo r all; and to strive
for a more blessed democracy in
which all participate and in which
all feel a part o f the whole.
course o f A m erican history.
O n this day o f rem em
brance and tribute to his life
time o f achievements, it is im
portant for all A m ericans to
recall his spirit and w ork to
w ards achievem ent o f “the
beloved community.”
Dr. King above all believed
in service and in equality o f
opportunity. H e laid his body
and his life on the line repeat
edly in order to create a better
w orld for al 1 our chi Idren.
W e, as Am ericans, have an
o b lig a tio n to s e rv e o u r
communites to helpothers fulfill
their potential as people; to
w ork to ensure ju stice and
equality fo r all; and to strive
for a m ore blessed d em o c
racy in w hich all participate
and in w hich all feel a part o f
the w hole. This is Dr. K ing’s
vision - and we m ust w ork to
fulfill itbecauseitis profoundly
im portant to the future o f our
great nation.
Dr. K ing is o n e o f m y he
roes. L et his heroic sacrifice
and c o m m itm e n t to ju stic e
continue to inspire all Am eri
cans as w e m ove forw ard in
th is tim e o f n a tio n a l c h a l
lenge.
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Black Hawk Down Perpetuates Stereotypes
Movie depicts Somalis as savages without human element
(A P) — Som ali leaders
have called for a boycott o f
the m o v ie “B la c k H aw k
D ow n” because it depicts
Som alis as savages and could
create abacklash against refu
gees w ho fled to the U.S.
“ W e d o n ’t know w hat
Am ericans will think o f us So
m alis after they w atch this
m ovie,” said O m ar Jam al, ex
ecutive director o f the Som ali
Justice A dvocacy C enter in
St. Paul, M inn.
A M inneapolis new spaper
invited about a dozen people
from the A dvocacy C enter to
see the m ovie in advance o f
Friday’s nationw ide release.
Jam al said they all left in
shock. The film was confusing
and d id n ’t have a story or
m essage, he said.
“The Somali people are de
picted as very savage beasts
without any hum an elem ent,”
Jam al said. “It’s ju st people
shooting each other.”
The m ovie is an attem pt to
portray the 1993 firefight in
Somalia that left 18 American
soldiers dead and m ore than
70 wounded. The mi litary mis
sion to M ogadishu w as to
capture two top lieutenants o f
w arlord M oham ed Farrah
Aidid.
In C olum bus, O hio, Abdi
M oham ud, a board m em ber
o f the C ouncil o f A m erican-
Islamic Relations, said he had
not heard about a boycott,
but added that people should
know the m ovie perpetuates
stereotypes.
“I found the m ovie to sen
sationalize the whole issue and
to put the Som alis in one cat
egory,” said M oham ud, who
em igrated from Som alia and
becam e a U.S. citizen.
“There were many Somalis
against the w arlords.”
M any in the Colum bus So
I
mali community, second in size
to M inneapolis, are w orried
about the tim ing, M oham ud
said.
“M ost o f the Som alis in
O hio and here in C olum bus
have family members, people
they care about, in Som alia,”
he said. “T hey'retiredofw ar.”
Som e also fear a backlash
here, M oham ud said.
“T h e re ’s a segm ent o f so
c ie ty th at tak es m o v ie s fo r
re a lity ,” he said. U .S . S o
m ali g ro u p s h av e w o rk ed
h ard to show th ey su p p o rt
th e w ar a g a in st terro rism ,
Jam al said.
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