Today eight area religious leaders met with Sen. Levin’s regional representative, Gale Govaere, to  call on the Senator to ask President-elect Obama to sign an executive order banning torture. The delegation also asked Sen. Levin to support the formation of a select committee to investigate the use of torture since 9/11.

You can make the same request of the president- elect. You can do this in three easy steps:

1. Visit his transition website at http://change.gov/page/s/ofthepeople.
2. Fill out your contact information.  Write “torture” in the “another issue” box.
3. In the “Your ideas” box, write something like “As a person of faith, I am deeply troubled by our nation’s use of torture.  Please act to end U.S.-sponsored torture by issuing an executive order based on the Declaration of Principles endorsed by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture.  Then click “submit form.”

At the meeting, Ms. Govaere affirmed Sen. Levin’s leadership in opposing torture and said that “Sen. Levin will undoubtedly bring [ending torture] up” in his discussions with President-elect Obama during this transition time, though she stopped short of specifying support for an executive order.

Rev. Reid Hamilton, chaplain at Canterbury House, referred to his experience as an attorney in the Judge Advocate’s office at Ft. Bragg. In that role he both assured the paratroopers he worked with that they had a right to expect humane treatment if captured and that they had an obligation to treat their detainees fairly. The current use of torture, then, has been an offense to his legal training and his service as a veteran.

Attending the meeting were:

1. Rabbi Rob Dobrusin, Beth Israel Congregation
2. Rev. Reid Hamilton, Canterbury House
3. Rev. Dr. Irvin Green, Memorial Christian Church
4. Rev. Chuck Booker-Hirsch, Northside Presbyterian Church
5. Rev. Chris Grapentine, Northside Community Church (American Baptist Churches)
6. Peter Beyer, Ann Arbor Zen Buddhist Temple
7. Chuck Warpehoski, Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice
8. Carolyn Lusch, Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice

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