Welcome. Im bob abernethy. Its good to have you with us. This week president obama was in myanmar for the east asia summit, a meeting of regional leaders. It was his second visit in two years to the country, which emerged from military rule four years ago. Obama pressed lawmakers in the largely buddhist country to speed up reforms, such as protecting the rights of the Rohingya Muslim minority. Many rohingya are considered stateless, and the u. N. Has called them one of most persecuted minorities in the world. Here in the u. S. , an emotional welcome home for two americans who had been jailed in north korea, kenneth bae and matthew todd miller. They were released after a top u. S. Intelligence official visited north korea, although its unclear what exactly led to their freedom. Bae is a devout christian who was arrested in 2012 and sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for allegedly plotting against the north korean government. He is now recovering from ailments he suffered in prison. Dr.
Welcome. Im Deborah Potter, sitting in for bob abernethy. Thank you for joining us. Faith communities across the country reacted this week to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of trayvon martin, an unarmed black teenager. Demonstrations against the verdict were mostly peaceful. Some ministers organized vigils to press for federal civil rights charges against zimmerman. The president of the National Council of churches said people of faith should join in a renewed call for racial justice. Joining us to talk about all this are kim lawton, managing editor of this program and the reverand romal tune, founder of the Nonprofit Group faith for change. Romal, let me start with you, there were some very angry reactions to the verdict in the zimmerman case and the president of the National Black Church Initiative said that it gave any white male who felt threatened the license to kill young black boys. What did you make of that reaction . Well, i think at the core of the an
Coming up, David Tereshchuk on the lilongctivm of rosa parks, who would have been 100 years old next week. Also, judy valente reports on the city long known for its religious conservatism that spent all last year fostering interfaith understanding. And sufi whirling dervishes at washingtons Smithsonian Institution. Welcome. Welcome. Im bob abernethy. Its good to have you with us. A dramatic developme this week the Catholic Churchs sex abuse crisis. Prominent retired Cardinal Roger mahony was stripped of his public and Administrative Church duties in los angeles amid widespread criticism of how he covered up allegations of child sex abuse by priests. L. A. s current archbishop jose gomez took the unprecedented step as the archdiocese began releasing internal documents which revealed the extent to which mahony worked to protect the church from the abuse scandal. Gomez said the behavr described in the files was sad and evil. Mahony has issued several apologies for his actions. Advocates f
It is something to remember that Paul Hill, a Guildford Four member who spent 15 years in jail for an IRA bombing that he did not commit, said, "Irish people.
Return to Derry
Father Daly administers the last rites to Jackie Duddy after he was shot in the carpark area of the Rossville flats, Derry.
Father Daly administers the last rites to Jackie Duddy after he was shot in the carpark area of the Rossville flats, Derry. By David Tereshchuk, Contributor
I had almost a worm’s-eye view of Bloody Sunday. I was working as a junior TV journalist covering a protest march through Derry on January 30, 1972, and like every other observer I was dumbfounded when the British Parachute Regiment opened fire on the protestors. I had just maneuvered my way over a low barricade of rubble when the shots rang out, and I flung myself on the ground, tasting asphalt for the first time. The firing lasted several minutes – killing unarmed civilians, though I didn’t know that at the time. I saw and heard soldiers firing but couldn’t see anyone being hit. When a break seemed to come I got up and ran out of the danger area. The death toll turned out to be