STRINGER READS WASHINGTON'S LETTER
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Manhattan Borough President Joined George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom Founder John L. Loeb in Celebrating Washington’s Birthday at New York’s Facing History School
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Manhattan Borough President Joined George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom Founder John L. Loeb in Celebrating Washington’s Birthday at New York’s Facing History School
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John L. LoebJust in time for the upcoming President’s Day holiday, Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer read and discussed George Washington’s Letter to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, RI of 1790 with students at New York City’s Facing History School. Held on Tuesday, February 15, the event honored Washington’s Birthday holiday. As one of the nation’s clearest expressions of religious freedom and separation of church and state, the historic letter promised that the government of the United States will give “to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.” Stringer, who also encouraged all schools in Manhattan and other boroughs of New York City to read and discuss the letter, visited the New York school (located at 525 West 50th Street) at 10:00AM as part of a multiyear project, “Give Bigotry No Sanction,” created jointly by the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom (GWIRF) and Facing History and Ourselves, an international organization that delivers classroom strategies, resources and lessons that inspire young people to take responsibility for their world.
The George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, founded by John L. Loeb Jr., supports efforts to educate students about religious liberty and separation of church and state through an exploration of Washington’s Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, RI of 1790. In the document, Washington promised that in the United States, “All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship.” The Institute supports educational programs for scholars, public figures, students and teachers who want to learn about and discuss religious freedom in America.
John L. Loeb Jr. is a former U.S. ambassador to Denmark and has long advocated interreligious understanding. “Even New York, the world’s most diverse and tolerant city, has recently been divided over the issue of freedom of worship,” Loeb commented in regards to Borough President Stringer’s visit to the Facing History School. “The nation’s first president made it clear that religious liberty was not subject to majority opinion, but is an ‘inherent natural right.’ Every student, every American, should read Washington’s Letter to the Hebrew Congregation.”
For further information about the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, please visit www.gwirf.org.
For further information about the Facing History and Ourselves, please visit www.facinghistory.org.
The George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, founded by John L. Loeb Jr., supports efforts to educate students about religious liberty and separation of church and state through an exploration of Washington’s Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, RI of 1790. In the document, Washington promised that in the United States, “All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship.” The Institute supports educational programs for scholars, public figures, students and teachers who want to learn about and discuss religious freedom in America.
John L. Loeb Jr. is a former U.S. ambassador to Denmark and has long advocated interreligious understanding. “Even New York, the world’s most diverse and tolerant city, has recently been divided over the issue of freedom of worship,” Loeb commented in regards to Borough President Stringer’s visit to the Facing History School. “The nation’s first president made it clear that religious liberty was not subject to majority opinion, but is an ‘inherent natural right.’ Every student, every American, should read Washington’s Letter to the Hebrew Congregation.”
For further information about the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, please visit www.gwirf.org.
For further information about the Facing History and Ourselves, please visit www.facinghistory.org.
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