Faith Community Sign-on Letter: Healthcare Is A Human Right

Dear Friends in Faith,

It is with the utmost urgency that we ask for your support on an issue of social justice and human rights. Several years ago the United Nations declared Healthcare for all men, women, and children of all ages to be a Human Right. As a leader or active participant in the Vermont Faith Community, we know that all human rights issues are of interest to you. Regardless of our denomination or sect, all persons of faith very clearly believe in helping and taking care of all of our neighbors, brothers and sisters, no matter how close or far away from us they may live. We are all stewards, or caretakers, of all of creation. We invite you to sign on to this Open Letter from the Vermont Faith Community supporting Healthcare Is A Human Right, by submitting this online form or contacting the VT Workers' Center directly at 802-861-4892.

TEXT OF OPEN LETTER:

"We are members of Faith Communities in the State of Vermont. We come from all sects and denominations and traditions. Our vocations are as varied as our religious beliefs, but we are united in one very important task. To spread the word that Healthcare is a Human Right to which all of our brothers and sisters are entitled, by virtue of their humanity.

In all our widely divergent religious views, we are united by the caring for all human brothers and sisters which is demanded by the tenets of our faith communities. In order to fulfill our obligations to our brothers and sisters, we feel it is imperative to voice support for those who cannot, for any number of reasons, do so for themselves. They may be poverty stricken, they may not speak the same language in their households, or they may be unaware of how to impact the outcome of our legislators’ actions. They may not be able to read, or they may be highly educated. Regardless of their age or situation, we must not allow them to suffer or even die because we did not speak up.

We are signing this letter because we believe that Human Rights issues transcend cultural, religious, educational or employment related borders. Human Rights are the only thing that we can all have in common, regardless of our origin or circumstances. And we believe that Healthcare is such a right. Those who have no insurance or are underinsured should not be made to suffer, nor should their families, for lack of medical treatment. They should not have to suffer the indignity of considering themselves a burden to others because they are afflicted with disease or conditions not of their own making.

For all of these reasons, and because we ARE members of a faith community, we must act on our faith, and maintain faith that all persons in the State of Vermont are valuable human beings, and have a right to healthcare."

Thank you.