Rep. Cynthia McKinney to Saudi Prince Waleed : LA IMC

From: RWalker949@aol.com

Sent: Saturday, October 13, 2001 11:56 PM

October 12, 2001

His Royal Highness

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal

Embassy of Saudi Arabia

601 New Hampshire Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20037

Dear Prince Alwaleed bin Talal:

I would like to take just a moment to thank you for your

recent demonstration of empathy with those suffering from

the devastating and heinous September 11 attacks on the

United States Pentagon and the World Trade Center.

I would especially like to thank you for your most generous

offer of million to assist those Americans in need as a

result of those attacks. I was disappointed that Mayor

Giuliani chose to decline your generous offer and instead

criticize you for your observations of events in the Middle

East. Whether he agreed with you or not I think he should

have recognized your right to speak and make observations

about a part of the world which you know so well.

I think Mayor Giuliani would do well to listen to the words

of one of our greatest Americans, former Senator Robert

Kennedy. In 1968 he said that America "is a great nation

and a strong people. Any who seek to comfort rather than to

speak plainly, reassure rather than instruct, promise

satisfaction rather than reveal frustration--they deny that

greatness and drain that strength. For today as it was in

the beginning, it is the truth that makes us free."

I believe Senator Robert Kennedy's remarks remain as

inspirational and true today as when he first spoke them

over 30 years ago. Let me say that there are a growing

number of people in the United States who recognize, like

you, that US policy in the Middle East needs serious

examination.

Indeed, on the same day that you made your remarks about US

policy in the Middle East, the Chairman of the House

International Relations Committee, The Honorable Henry Hyde,

spoke on National Public Radio and said, "There's no

question in my mind that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is

the most important issue in dispute, and has generated a lot

of the animosity towards us because of our unwavering

support for Israel, which will remain in place."

At the same time, CNN played an interview with former

National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski who stated

that America must "deal with some of the issues that animate

the hostility" against us, like "the treatment of the

population of Iraq" and that "the Israelis are stronger, so

they're naturally inflicting much more casualties than the

Palestinians on the Israelis and that produces frustration

and rage."

Your Royal Highness, many of us here in the United States

have long been concerned about reports by Amnesty

International and Human Rights Watch that reveal a pattern

of excessive, and often indiscriminate, use of lethal force

by Israeli security forces in situations where Palestinian

demonstrators were unarmed and posed no threat of death or

serious injury to the security forces or to others.

Israeli peace organizations like B'Tselem accuse the Israeli

Defense Forces of violating the most fundamental rules of

international law in committing atrocities against

Palestinians. The Israeli Gush Shalom boldly states that

"Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip is the

root cause of the violence and hatred.

As long as the occupation continues, bloodshed will continue

and increase." Indeed, Your Royal Highness, all people of

good conscience understand that this kind of mistreatment

breeds a hotbed of anger and despair that destabilizes peace

in the Middle East and elsewhere. Until we confront the

realities of events in the Middle East our nation and the

nations of the Middle East will be at risk.

Your Royal Highness, there are many people in America who

desperately need your generosity. People who have been

locked out, marginalized from America's mainstream. All of

those people are poor and too many of them are people of

color. A black baby boy born in Harlem today has less

chance of reaching age 65 than a baby born in Bangladesh.

Your Royal Highness, the state of black America is not good.

It is painfully visible in Washington D.C., where, just a

few hundred yards from the White House, one can find black

man after black man huddled in bus shelters, doorways, over

subway ventilation shafts, sleeping on the street, thrown

away like trash. Ironically, many of them are Vietnam

veterans who, having served this nation with distinction in

Vietnam, now find themselves without adequate care and

accommodation.

Unfortunately, this same scene is repeated in each and every

one of our major cities here in the United States. I am

ashamed to say that my home city of Atlanta is no exception.

Just last night my son was out with members of Atlanta's

Muslim community who, for years, have been feeding Atlanta's

homeless.

Sadly, no one in mainstream Atlanta knows about the tireless

and generous work of the local Muslim community. But the

poor know, and I guess at one level that's all that matters.

But on a broader view mainstream America should know.

The Justice Department admits that blacks are more likely

than whites to be pulled over by police, imprisoned, and put

to death. And, though blacks and whites have about the same

rate of drug use, blacks are more likely to be arrested than

whites and are more likely to receive longer prison

sentences than whites.

Incredibly, 80% of people in prison in the United States are

people of color. Twenty-six black men were executed last

year, some probably innocent; America began 2001 by

executing a retarded black woman.

Government studies on health disparities confirm that blacks

are less likely to receive surgery, transplants, and

prescription drugs than whites. Physicians are less likely

to prescribe appropriate treatment for blacks than for

whites and black scientists, physicians, and institutions

are shut out of the funding stream to prevent all this.

I serve in Congress where the Black Caucus is shrinking.

Yet, sections of the Voting Rights Act will soon expire, and

quite frankly, after crippling Court decisions, there is not

much left of affirmative action to mend.

In the FBI's own words, its counterintelligence program

(COINTELPRO) had as a goal, "to expose, disrupt, misdirect,

discredit, or otherwise neutralize "the activities of black

organizations and to prevent black "leaders from gaining

respectability." And instead of real leaders, COINTELPRO

offers us hand-picked "court priests" who are more loyal to

the plan than to the people. Court priests who preach

peace, peace when there is no peace. As you can see, the

statistics are very grim for Black America.

Although your offer was not accepted by Mayor Giuliani, I

would like to ask you to consider assisting Americans who

are in dire need right now. I believe we can guide your

generosity to help improve the state of Black America and

build better lives.

My office can provide you with a list of charities who labor

under the most difficult circumstances to try and improve

the lives of the people they serve. I hope you will

consider reaching out to our charities and to our people who

are in need. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any

questions you may have.

Sincerely,

Cynthia McKinney

Member of Congress

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Rep. Cynthia McKinney to Saudi Prince Waleed

Sion = Giulliani

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