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Church World Service CEO joins interfaith leaders at D.C. hunger fighting event

Rev. John McCullough and Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed, national director of the Office for Interfaith and Community Alliances of the Islamic Society of North America beam following the inspirational service. Photo: L. Crosson/Church World Service

June 12, 2007

EDITORS NOTE: Digital photos and captions downloadable for media use at: www.churchworldservice.org/media/hungereventphotos.html

WASHINGTON -- Church World Service Executive Director and CEO Rev. John L. McCullough today joined hunger advocates and faith leaders from around the nation at an interfaith convocation focused on ending hunger in the United States and worldwide.

The event, which Rev. McCullough called "a wonderful and important gathering of people from the broad spectrum of faith traditions in the United States," was held at Washington National Cathedral as part of hunger fighting organization Bread for the World's June 9-12 "Gathering 2007, Sowing Seeds: Growing A Movement."

"I see representatives of many of our member denominations here to proclaim that we can and must solve the problem of hunger," McCullough said after the Monday evening service, which featured music, prayer and instruction from sacred texts.

"The presence of all these Protestants, Catholics, Muslims, Jews and people from other faith traditions assures me of something I have said in the past: 'Hunger will not have the last word,'" he added.

Through its Sow Justice education and advocacy campaign, Church World Service is supporting an end to hunger in this country by calling for a U.S. Farm Bill that will ensure farmers a fair price for their produce, close anti-trust law loopholes that harm small farmers, and support the purchases of local nutritious food for schools and other public institutions at a fair price for both the farmer and the buyer.

Church World Service Education and Advocacy Director Rajashri Waghray said the farm bill review is "a unique opportunity to help farms and families in the U.S. and at the same time be able to address the critical links to farms and families globally. To miss this opportunity would be unfortunate," she said. "It models an opportunity to think locally indeed and act globally."

This spring, as part of the campaign, Church World Service joined with historic partners Bread for the World and National Catholic Rural Life Conference and other denominational and community activist organizations to present a series of informational sessions in communities across the Midwest.

Ironically, in Midwestern "breadbasket" states like Minnesota, Iowa, and Kansas--where most of the nation's food is grown--many small farmers are barely able to eke out a living and many families live with hunger and poverty.

Church World Service also has joined forces with the Religious Working Group on the Farm Bill, a D.C.-based network that includes more than a dozen other faith-based organizations.

Says Church World Service Policy Analyst and Advocate Kathleen McNeely, "It's important that we support these family farms and also address the root causes of hunger by mobilizing as many people as possible to advocate for major reform of U.S. food and farm policy."

The current farm legislation expires September 30. In an attempt to assure that the new bill includes the changes sought by hunger fighting groups, CWS advocates today will join hundreds of the more than 1,000 people participating in the Bread for the World gathering in a day of lobbying on Capitol Hill to press for new and improved legislation.

"That hunger persists in our world of plenty," said McCullough in a statement prepared for the convocation, "is a profound moral failure of the human community."

Among the advocates who will attempt to bring that simple message to lawmakers in the form of recommendations for farm bill reforms are Sheryl Rippke, representing the CWS Iowa regional office, Kansas Regional Office Director Joe Hendrixson, and Bob Gronski, policy coordinator in Des Moines, Iowa, for the National Catholic Rural Life Conference.

Media Contact:
Lesley Crosson, CWS/New York, 212-870-2676;
Jan Dragin, 781-925-1526;

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