December 4, 2008
Ramesh Advani
Boston, Massachusetts
Dear Ramesh and Friends,
I am very sorry that I cannot be with you on Thursday evening to join that important candlelight vigil expressing our horror at the massacre of so many innocent people in Mumbai and our determination to forge unity among people of good will to combat the spreaders of hate and the violence they inflict.
I was moved by the statement drafted by the Asian American Commission and I have taken the liberty of inserting it into the Congressional Record because I think its message is one that should be as broadly circulated as is possible.
The people of India have given the world a much-needed lesson about the ability of a democracy to transcend ethnic, religious and linguistic differences, and to prosper economically without resort to the repression that some have argued is necessary as the platform for economic development. They deserve not only our thanks but our full support in their determination to persevere in the face of those few who would undermine the work of the world’s largest democracy and I pledge to do everything that I can to support them.