Letter to Bush

13 September 2001

President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Bush,

We in the United States Section of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom join the people of our nation, and around the world, in mourning the terrible loss of life and the suffering that was caused by the hijackings and the attacks on the World Trade Towers and the Pentagon. We also recognize the political and economic implications of this act of terrorist violence against United States financial and military institutions.

For eighty-six years, since our founding during World War I, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom has opposed war as a means of conflict resolution. History reminds us that the over zealous retaliation imbedded in the Treaty of Versailles contributed to attitudes and events that led to World War II. Violence and hatred will only breed more violence and hatred.

The United States should demonstrate our true strength and moral leadership by showing restraint when seeking justice for these tragic deaths. We have been gratified to hear national leaders interviewed by the media who refuse to rush into judgement against Arabs or Muslims en masse. Athough many in our nation wish to seek the strongest possible revenge, we feel it is important to recall that visiting the same kind of violence upon others that they brought upon us, only serves to place us in the same category as those who commit mass murder.

We call upon you to courageously stand firm against the pressure for immediate retaliation that would only show the world that we are also willing to engage indiscriminate reprisal against civilian targets.

The people of the world are watching and waiting to see how the government of the United States will respond to these acts of violence. Let us demonstrate that our strength is in our resolve to maintain a democratic and free society and to break with the cycles of violence and retribution.

In Peace, Phyllis S. Yingling, President and Mary Day Kent, Executive Director United States Section, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

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