Perspectives on Social Issues
(November 2005)
Excellent Colombian Transit System Favors the Poor
"Metrocable, or Line K [of the Metro system in Medellin, Columbia], is remarkable in many ways. It's thought to be the world's only cable-car system built not for tourism but for mass transit -- though tourists flock to it as if it were one of the wonders of !he world. 
(Few Americans have seen it, having bought the idea, promoted by the U.S. State Department, that Colombia is too dangerous to visit.) What's more, it appears to be among the world's best built, best maintained, and, after a year of operation in the city's ‘worst’ neighborhoods, the cleanest of mass transit systems. But the most surprising feature of the Metrocable is that contrary to what political and economic analysts would predict, the sleek, ultramodern system was built precisely to accommodate the city's poorest residents, people who have absolutely no political power.
But what separates Medellin's Metro system from others around the world is what's known here as the ‘Metro culture.’ The term is used by Medellin residents to describe their attitude toward, and behavior on, the Metro. It is said to account for the fact that Metro cars appear to be among the cleanest, and Metro riders among the most polite and well-behaved anywhere. The cliché that ‘you can eat off the floor’ is not too strong for the platforms at the train stations. There's no graffiti, no trash, no sign of the vandalism or neglect you'd expect to find in a mass transit system of a large city."
"Mass Transit Favors the Poor" by Tom Carney, National Catholic Reporter, Oct 7, 2005.
Peace Activists Acquitted of Conspiracy
"A federal jury here voted Sept. 26 [2005] to acquit four Catholic peace activists of conspiracy for their antiwar protest at a military recruiting center but convicted them of two misdemeanors -- trespass and damage of government property The jury's ruling, which came after seven hours of deliberation, marked the conclusion of a trial that many in the peace movement feared could have set a chilling precedent. Given the court's severe restrictions on the defense, the verdict of not guilty on the felony charge of conspiracy ‘was a major setback in the government's ability to criminalize dissent,’ said William Quigley, a law professor at Loyola University New Orleans who is a friend of the defendants and their legal adviser.
The weeklong trial focused on an antiwar protest that occurred two and half years ago.... The defendants, all of whom are parents, said their Catholic faith and their children prompted them to speak out against the impending invasion. Clare Grady said her own parents taught by ‘work and example that we are called to love those whom we call enemy.'"
"Acquittal a Setback for Government” Nation, National Catholic Reporter, Oct 14, 2005.
Trafficking of Persons Is a Global Issue
"'TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS’ is primarily understood as the movement of persons across international boundaries for a variety of forms of exploitation. The crime of trafficking, of course, is not essentially about the movement of the person but about the exploitation. Trafficking is the denial of freedom. Trafficking exists in many forms, each deserving very aggressive and specific initiatives to combat it. If people of faith are to understand the nature of trafficking that is done to prostitute others and other forms of sexual exploitation, they must address not only specific acts but also the broad range of issues that allow this form of exploitation to exist.
Trafficking is a global issue that takes root in almost every culture. In 2004, the U.S. State Department estimated that up to 18,500 men, women, and children are trafficked into the United States every year, some for forced labor and others for sexual exploitation. Estimates of the number of women and children who are trafficked across international borders each year range from 800,000 to 4 million. These numbers don't take into account those who are moved from rural areas to urban centers within their own countries. For example, these numbers don't include women and youth who are moved from the Hill Tribes of northern Thailand to Bangkok or who are recruited from rural Appalachia and moved to Baltimore."
“Exploiting Body and Soul” by Jennifer Goodson, Sojourners, Sept/Oct 2005.
Ethical Dilemma of Global Consumption
"Recovering the lost economic teachings -- not just of the Jewish and Christian traditions, but of many of the world's faiths -- could be enormously valuable to a global economy faced with unprecedented ethical challenges. Mass consumerism in wealthy countries has already broken the ecological bank, with a crippled climate, extinct species, scalped forests, and drained or polluted rivers standing as red ink. Now billions of citizens of China and India demand a piece of the global consumption pie. How can the legitimate aspirations of emerging nations be met without further damaging the planet -- while safeguarding opportunities for the world's poorest, especially in Africa, to stake their consumption claims?
Consumption is linked, of course, to both poverty and wealth: the poor underconsume, by definition, and the prosperous typically consume more than needed, often wastefully. Thus religious wisdom on poverty and wealth can be helpful in tackling the emerging ethical dilemma of global consumption. Restoring the forgotten wisdom buried in the sacred texts of the world's faith traditions could help to sketch out the principles for a new economics -- principles that address the challenges of consumption and poverty simultaneously."
“Hungry for More: Re-engaging Religious Teachings on Consumption” by Gary Gardner, WorldWatch, Sept/Oct 2005.
Prisoners: Who Gets a Second Chance?
"There's something wrong with a system that allows only those with wealth and status to get a second chance at life. What if our corrections system were changed to punish those who are violent and rehabilitate those whose crimes should not preclude them from voting, becoming part of a neighborhood, teaching others to not do what they did? Right now, the only winners are prisons, whose populations grew 2.1 percent two years ago and 1.6 percent last year [2004]. Nationally, of the 1.3 million inmates in American prisons who were sentenced to more than one year, 54 percent were incarcerated for nonviolent offenses, according to 2002 U.S. Justice Department figures.
Almost half of those nonviolent offenders were drug traffickers who share prisons with people who stole cars or repeatedly wrote bad checks. The differences between Martha Stewart and some of those typical inmates are as huge -- and simple -- as the labels in their clothes, the degree they earned in school and the size of their hope. But the biggest is the difference between being thrown away and getting a chance to start over."
“Martha’s Lesson? She Got a Second Chance” by Rochelle Riley, La Crosse Tribune, Oct 4, 2005.
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Gratitude to the Institute for Peace and Justice
for use of their Pope Paul VIth graphic. |
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