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Breaking News from America's Progressive Community... 1999 Releases March
The press releases posted here have been provided to NewsCenter by the one of the many progressive organizations we have selected to participate. If you would like more information about this press release, you should contact the organization directly. |
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| MARCH
2, 1999 5:58 PM FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: American Friends Service Committee Carl Maugeri 215 241-7060 |
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| American Friends Service Committee Nominates Death Penalty Activist for Noble Peace Prize | ||||
| PHILADELPHIA
- March 2- The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) Board of Directors announced today
that it has nominated noted anti-death penalty activist and author Sr. Helen
Prejean for the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize.
In its nominating letter, the Board cited Sr. Prejean's faith-based advocacy in the United States and around the world towards abolition of the death penalty. Among her many efforts against capital punishment, Sr. Prejean testified in 1998 before the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva in favor of a resolution calling on Member States to establish a moratorium on executions, with a view to completely end the death penalty. The resolution passed the Commission, 26 in favor, 13 against and with 12 abstentions. Sr. Prejean is the author of Dead Man Walking, the personal story of her efforts on behalf of Louisiana death row inmate Patrick Sonnier. Dead Man Walking became a much acclaimed movie in 1996. "Sr. Prejean has for many years been a religious voice of great clarity - and challenge -- on the inhumanity of state sponsored executions. She has tirelessly worked on behalf of the families of both the victims and perpetrators of capital crimes to bring a message of reconciliation, forgiveness and the opportunity for redemption," Newell said. The AFSC shared the 1947 Nobel Peace Prize with the Friends Service Council of Great Britain for the humanitarian work of members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Europe following World Wars I and II. As a Nobel laureate, AFSC has the privilege of making nominations to the Nobel Prize committee of the government of Norway. "The AFSC views the death penalty as a gross violation of human rights, and recognizes that a just and peaceful world can only be built upon a foundation in which the human rights of all people are nurtured and upheld," Newell stated. Sr. Prejean is also a critic of the U.S criminal justice system and has worked to call attention to bias against the poor and minorities in corrections issues. Newell said that Sr. Prejean is at the forefront of efforts to educate people in the US about the injustice of the death penalty and to bring international pressure to bear upon those who would continue state sanctioned executions in our country. Sister Helen Prejean was raised in a devout and privileged Louisiana Catholic family and joined the Sisters of St. Joseph of Medaille in 1957. She began teaching in suburban parish schools and eventually worked directly with the poor in New Orleans where she came to know the impact of poverty, drugs, crime and violence. She began the prison ministry that was to change her life in 1981, when she began to counsel death row inmates. Her efforts against the death penalty have taken her to many locations across the United States and around the world. "Sr. Prejean continues to serve as a source of inspiration to the many who fervently oppose the death penalty," Newell said. ### The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization which includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice. |
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