Subject: IWG Jamie Nabozny Letters Date: Wed, 3 Jan 1996 00:41:31 -0500 (EST) From: Chris Purdom The following went out on IWG letterhead listing 2 congregations, 4 religious organizations and 20 clergy from 9 denominations. If you are in the general Philadelphia area and represent a congregation or religious organization or are clergy, let us know if you want to be added - all faiths are welcome. We will also be happy to help start similar organizations in other areas. Visit the web page at http://www.qrd.org/qrd/www/religion/orgs/iwg/. An identical copy of the first letter went to the National Association of Social Workers. Susan Gorin Executive Director National Association of School Psychologists 4340 East-West Highway, Suite 402 Bethesda MD 20814 Dear Ms. Gorin: Thank you for joining the Lambda Legal Defense Fund to help Jamie Nabozny. We heeded the call to coordinate the Interfaith Working Group primarily because of stories like Jamie's: violence against queer youth and official indifference, frequently in the name of religion or "natural law." You too have heard the call, and have taken a stand. With groups like yours working to solve this problem, the problem will be solved, whether it is with this case, or the next case, or the ongoing effort to educate the public on what is natural, and what is right and just. Thank you again. Sincerely, Barbara Purdom Christopher Purdom Interfaith Working Group Coordinators December 31, 1995 Mr. John T. Benson Superintendent of Public Instruction State Dept of Public Instruction P.O. Box 7841 Madison, WI 53707-7841 Dear Mr. Benson: We heeded the call to coordinate the Interfaith Working Group primarily because of stories like Jamie Nabozny's: violence against queer youth and official indiffer-ence, frequently in the name of religion or "natural law." We hope that through this case or the next case, or the ongoing effort to educate the public on what is natural and right, the attitudes that lead to this senseless systemic violence will change. The schools are where the worst violence occurs, and where the most good can be done. We hope that you are implementing programs to protect queer youth, and to educate the school officials, teachers, and students of Wis-consin that homosexuality is just as natural and just as right as heterosexuality, and that violence is never acceptable. Please let us know what steps you have taken. Sincerely, Barbara Purdom Christopher Purdom Interfaith Working Group Coordinators -- Chris Purdom phone:610-993-1134 Development Team Leader email: purdom@tesi.com Tangram Enterprise Solutions homepage: http://www.tesi.com/~cpurdom/ Roy G. Biv.