Joint Meeting of Members

of Englewood Clergy

Click Here for Mayor's Statement

During the last few months, political debate concerning the school referendum and the school board has exposed deep underlying tensions within our Englewood community. Significant rifts of misunderstanding separate segments of our population, even though we often share the same dreams. As a first step towards bridging the gaps between us, we as a united Englewood clergy, publicly underscore the following principles:

1. The strength of our community lies in diversity.
2. Racial or religious prejudice is unacceptable in any form and the public labeling of any segment of our community cannot be tolerated. We will make every effort to immediately address any known visible intolerance that will contribute to the deterioration of a healthy community.
3. All children have a fundamental right to the best education possible. If a community falls short in providing such education to any child, such failure should be the concern of all Englewood residents.
4. Reasonable people can disagree about the allocation of funds within our city. Such disagreement does not automatically reflect selfishness or a lack of concern for others.
5. Public discourse and debate on any issue within our city should be responsible. At no time should attacks be leveled in personal fashion during debate or rebuttal, against any segment or individuals within our community.
6. Opportunities for discourse between segments of our community should be created so that we can learn to understand each other better and find ways to work together.
We, the undersigned, commit ourselves to the above principles. We call on members of our congregations to do the same. We pledge to work creatively and actively to open avenues of positive dialogue within our city.

Mayor Michael Wildes
Rabbi Shmuel Goldin
Rev. Dr. Lester Taylor
Rev. Dr. William Marcus Small
Rev. Dr. Vernon Walton

Paid for by Friends of Michael J. Wildes, Claudia Colbert, Treasurer