Social justice behind policy forum

By KATE BLAIN- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

A typical weekend might find David Rowell writing letters about hunger issues as part of his volunteer work with the organization Bread for the World.

Then again, the parishioner of St. Vincent's Church in Albany might be doling out communion as a Eucharistic minister, or serving on the parish AIDS care team.

Except on March 28. That day is reserved for attending the annual Public Policy Forum, when Catholics meet with state legislators to talk about a host of issues important to them.

Lobbying

This year, the expected 1,000 forum attendees will lobby lawmakers to:

* prohibit partial-birth abortion;

* promote palliative care for the terminally ill and support the current ban on assisted suicide;

* modify the Rockefeller drug sentencing laws and boost access to addiction treatment programs;

* continue the state's ban on casino gambling;

* expand support for low-income working families (including child care, housing, transportation, health coverage and the Earned Income Tax Credit);

* invest welfare funds into job development, support services and monitoring welfare reform;

* increase funding for children at risk of abuse or neglect;

* meet the needs of rural New Yorkers;

* expand health coverage and services for vulnerable populations, from low-income families and pregnant women to schoolchildren; and

* protect the conscience and mission of Catholic healthcare providers.

Social justice

Mr. Rowell, who lives in Scotia with his wife, Janice, and their two children, has attended the forum a half-dozen times. "Social justice is a really important part of my Christian faith," he told The Evangelist.

Since his graduate work was in the area of political science, Mr. Rowell said, "politics and government have always been a strong interest." He used to lobby legislators in his home state of Massachusetts.

When he heard about the Public Policy Forum through various media outlets years ago, he decided to get involved here, too. "Personal contact [with legislators] is very important," he noted. "I can make a difference. I've seen that in the work I've been involved with through Bread for the World."

Main issues

Mr. Rowell's strongest lobbying interests lie in issues of welfare, economics and job training. He calls these "issues of people on the margins. Many times, we forget about that in an economy that is so vibrant. We said to them, `Get off the welfare rolls.' Now, we have to provide them with the support. We have to let legislators know people on the margins can't be blocked out."

Being involved in the forum, he said, is a way of "assuring that people have what they need."

Mr. Rowell noted that the forum, while an important event, shouldn't be a one-day effort for Catholics of the Albany Diocese. "It has to be an ongoing effort," he said. "The phone calls [to legislators] have to come beforehand, and the letters afterward."

(The Public Policy Forum will be held March 28 at the State Museum in Albany. The day includes workshops on the targeted issues, screenings of the "Capitol Compass" television show that discusses such topics and meetings with state legislators. A liturgy, luncheon and awards presentation will also be held. Meetings to help participants prepare will be held Feb. 28 at St. Gabriel's, Rotterdam; March 1 at Corpus Christi, Ushers; and March 7 at Holy Spirit, East Greenbush. For information, call 453-6677.)

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