Letters of Solidarity
It has been a practice of the Inclusive Justice Initiative Ministry at St. Thomas to write letters of solidarity in response to hate crimes and situations of unjust treatment of others. This past April, letters were sent to the University of Utah women’s basketball team coaches and to the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations in regards to the treatment that the University of Utah’s women’s basketball team received during tournament play in Idaho.
The letter from St. Thomas to the Kootenai task force stated, “We support work across the country to create welcoming communities free of the kind of attack directed at these athletes and any group targeted by prejudiced minds. The vision of America calls on all of us to value and uphold respect for all members of our human family. Thank you for the work you do.”
Fr. Peter received the following reply:
Dear Pastor Infanger:
We received your wonderful letter of encouragement and support recently and we are so pleased and blessed by your words.
On behalf of the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations Board of Directors, I want to assure you how much the letter has meant to each board member. Such support goes a long way in encouraging our efforts to promote justice and fairness.
We are now in our 44th year serving those in need and campaigning for a just world. For many of those years our Faith board seat has been held by a pastor from the local Catholic parish, St. Pius X Catholic Church.
You can learn more about our work from our website: idahohumanrights.org.
May I request that you share our letter of gratitude with the members of your parish.
May God bless the members of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church.
Tony Stewart
Co-Founder and Secretary of KCTFHR
