Social Justice

Parren J. Mitchell, the first African-American elected to Congress from Maryland and a lifelong crusader for social justice for the nation's minorities, died yesterday of complications from pneumonia at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. He was 85 and had lived in a nursing home since a series of strokes several years ago. A founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus and later its chairman, Mr. Mitchell was the younger brother of Clarence M. Mitchell Jr., Washington lobbyist for the NAACP in the hard-won civil rights struggles in Congress of the 1960s and 1970s.

The nation's Roman Catholic bishops called on church members yesterday to dedicate themselves daily to social justice, "to protect human life and dignity and to stand with those who are poor and vulnerable."A social justice document approved by the bishops, "Everyday Christianity: to Hunger and Thirst for Justice," is part of a national campaign called Jubilee 2000, which asks every Catholic to sign a pledge to work for social justice in the new millennium.The pledge, which will be mailed to every Catholic parish in January, includes promises to pray for greater justice and peace, to serve the poor and vulnerable and to give more generously to those in need.

Masterful articles are latest tribute to civil rights leadersYour editors and Linell Smith, whose series chronicled so caringly the lifting of Gwynn Oak's racial barriers, are to be commended for a masterfully thorough job ("Justice at Gwynn Oak," Aug. 23-24).Lest some readers get the impression that the selfless work of this movement's activists went unrecognized before this, it should be known that a memorable tribute was paid to one of them 18 years ago. That day, the Rev. Chester Wickwire was honored by a large group of his friends and supporters for his lifelong contributions to social justice.

PHILADELPHIA - Blessed Mother Katharine Drexel is up for her last miracle.The effort to affirm an "alleged miracle" in the eyes of the Catholic Church and to win sainthood for a local heroine is moving ahead - in utter secrecy - at an unusual hearing in Philadelphia.The campaigners for Drexel's cause say this "miracle" looks good: a born-deaf infant whose newfound ability to hear has at least a dozen doctors stumped. They say the intangibles - read this as politics - look favorable as well.

IN HER book, "Peace Begins with You," author Katherine Scholes says, "Peace is something that lives, grows, spreads and needs to be looked after."Feb. 14-23 has been proclaimed "Focus on Peace Week" by Howard County Executive Charles I. Ecker and the Howard County Council.Howard County residents are invited to a week of programs that are to foster peace and will work to prevent violence, presented by the Howard County Clergy for Social Justice.Many of the week's events will be held in east Columbia, beginning with the Columbia Jewish Congregation sponsoring "A Meditation of Peace" Feb. 14 at the Oakland Mills Interfaith Center in Oakland Mills village.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- What has been perhaps the world's most unfair workplace is being reformed to make it a model of modern employment standards.Nelson Mandela's post-apartheid government proposes a new deal for this nation's 10 million workers with a shorter workweek, more generous overtime, a week's extra vacation and longer maternity, sick and family leave."It demands of everybody the need to change step from an exploitative atmosphere to one which promotes social justice," said Labor Minister Tito Mboweni.

PHILADELPHIA -- Politically speaking, environmentalism has been part of a laundry list of good causes since the 1960s.If you thought protecting nature was an important priority, it has long been assumed you also support higher minimum wages, gender parity, lifting up oppressed minorities and kindred causes.But as the reality of a new environmental economics takes hold, such a moral and ego-gratifying synergism faces increasing intellectual challenges.More evolvedYes, greening is certainly a more evolved form of economic behavior that uses energy and raw materials more efficiently, producing less waste (that is to say, less pollution)

The Howard County Clergy for Social Justice will meet at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Oakland Mills Meeting House.Topics will include the focus on Peace Week for 1996, casino gambling, housing and reduction of gun violence.The meeting is open to the public.Information: 730-7862.

Will Governor Glendening attack racism in the state or concentrate on crime, balanced budgets and welfare reform?Today marks the 66th anniversary of the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Dr. King is one of those leaders who come once in a millennium. He was the embodiment of the spirit of a great social movement that took the nation on a journey. Dr. King went from Montgomery to Memphis and in 13 years changed the course of our nation. He was a great moral leader and the celebration of his birthday is an annual renewal of our commitment to continue our fight for social justice.

Boston -- PRESIDENT Bill Clinton's ringing endorsement of affirmative action last week, followed by Gov. Pete Wilson's successful maneuver to ban race and sex preferences at the University of California, set the stage for a battle stretching through next year's election campaign.This will be a fight for the moral high ground.Mr. Clinton, as a Southern liberal who came of age during the civil-rights era, knows first hand that black Americans have only recently been liberated from the oppressive effects of a deeply entrenched racial caste system.

MERCEDES SOSA, 74 Argentine singer, champion of social justice Mercedes Sosa, an Argentine singer who emerged as an electrifying voice of conscience throughout Latin America for songs that championed social justice in the face of government repression, died Sunday at a medical clinic in Buenos Aires. She had liver, kidney and heart ailments. With a rich contralto voice, Ms. Sosa was foremost a compelling singer whose career spanned five decades. She performed with entertainers as varied as rock star Sting, the Cuban singer-songwriter Pablo Milanes and folk singer Joan Baez, who said she was so moved by Ms. Sosa's "tremendous charisma" and emotive firepower that she once dropped to her knees and kissed Ms. Sosa's feet.

Dr. Ira Gilbert Zepp, a social activist and influential professor of religious studies at what is now McDaniel College who had inspired generations of students to devote their lives to civil rights, peace and social justice, died of congestive heart failure Saturday at his Westminster home. He was 79. "Ira will be deeply missed and long remembered by everyone in our college family," McDaniel President Joan Develin Coley said Monday in a statement. "Ira was a gifted and devoted teacher, a true humanitarian who gave unselfishly of himself to make this world a better place for all," Dr. Coley said.

There's a nasty pink political flier floating around Maryland's 1st Congressional District, and don't blame prepster-candidate Robert Banks. The gist of the piece - purportedly paid for by Progressive Marylanders for Social Justice - is that incumbent Wayne Gilchrest has been a friend to gays. "That took courage, conviction and ... family Loyalty," the flier says. "Wayne's Brother David married his 16-year partner at a service on the beach in Massachusetts." For the record, Gilchrest does have a gay brother who married his partner in Massachusetts.

BAIRAGHAR, India --Plenty of women might feel they deserve an award for marrying their husbands, but Madhavi Arwar is actually getting one - from the Indian government, no less. Not that her husband, Chandrashekhar, is a bad sort. In fact, he's good-looking, holds a steady job at an insurance company and dotes on their apple-cheeked son. But he is also a Dalit, or an "untouchable," the lowest of the low under India's ancient caste system. Madhavi is not, and for marrying "down" the social ladder, she is entitled to $250 in cash, plus a certificate of appreciation.

When he was governor of Maryland in 2004, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. stirred a hornet's nest when he denounced multiculturalism as "bunk" on a talk-radio show. Because many Americans believe multiculturalism merely means teaching children in a wholesome way about diverse cultures, Mr. Ehrlich drew heat. Now, the National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME), the main advocacy organization for multiculturalism, is coming to Baltimore to hold its 17th annual national convention tomorrow through Sunday.

Parren J. Mitchell, the first African-American elected to Congress from Maryland and a lifelong crusader for social justice for the nation's minorities, died yesterday of complications from pneumonia at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. He was 85 and had lived in a nursing home since a series of strokes several years ago. A founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus and later its chairman, Mr. Mitchell was the younger brother of Clarence M. Mitchell Jr., Washington lobbyist for the NAACP in the hard-won civil rights struggles in Congress of the 1960s and 1970s.

Homelessness itself is the real trauma The Maryland Senate was right to extend the state's hate-crimes law to include targeted violence against people experiencing homelessness, and the House of Delegates should swiftly follow suit ("Bill would help the homeless," March 7). So-called bum-bashing and other deliberate attacks on our most vulnerable neighbors are heinous and must be stopped. But if our work ends with passing of hate-crimes legislation alone, we'll have inflicted as much harm as we've prevented.

It takes a formidable personality to remain in the spotlight nearly 40 years after the death of her internationally prominent husband. But Coretta Scott King, who died this week at 78, was considered the first lady of the civil rights movement not only because she was married to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., but because she was a fierce fighter for social justice causes on her own. She knew injustice firsthand as a child growing up in rural Alabama where...

Two teens who died in a car accident are being remembered this week for their positive outlooks and their ambitious dreams. Scott E. Caplan, 19, of Columbia, and Theresa Howard, 18, of Eldersburg, were killed Friday night when, according to police, a tractor-trailer ran through a malfunctioning traffic light at Interstate 95 and Route 175 in Elkridge and hit the car in which they were riding. The driver, Meghan E. St. Martin, 18, of Marriottsville, survived the crash, as did the driver of the tractor-trailer.

Catholic faith carries tenets of social justice The Sun's editorial "A faith-based president?" (Oct. 14) mentions the Catholic bishops' "call to political responsibility" document. But in addition to the well-known Catholic teachings about abortion, cloning and assisted suicide, it is important for Catholics to note that the document mentions many other issues. They include working for a more just economic life with decent jobs and just wages, providing adequate assistance to poor families, overcoming a culture of violence, combating discrimination and defending the right to quality health care, housing and food.