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| PETER
MUSTE November 2005 Dear Friends,
I’ve been a long-time financial supporter of the Muste Institute because, like my grandfather, I believe that nonviolence is the best and most effective way to create social change. The Muste Institute consistently promotes and supports groups that put this philosophy into action. Last year I decided to “put my mouth where my money was” and accepted an invitation to join the board of directors. Since then I’ve gained even more respect for the Muste Institute’s work and for the scope of its involvement in the movement for peace and social justice. My grandfather’s vision of a world transformed by radical nonviolence is as relevant and important as it has ever been. Together we can carry this vision forward. I ask you to join me in making a commitment to support the Institute. These are hard times for those of us who are working for peace and social justice in the United States. As the Iraq war drags on with its great cost in human lives, we are also seeing the “social” cost of a weakened economy, restrictions on civil rights and liberties, and cutbacks in education, health care, environmental protection and affordable housing.. One of the toughest jobs we have as board members is that of deciding who receives grants. The grant reports you read about in Muste Notes only represent a small fraction of the organizations seeking our financial support. For every grassroots group we fund to organize against military recruiters in the schools, there are several others we must turn away. For each anti-war demonstration we support with a grant, there are more we are unable to fund. And the decisions are just as difficult for the other types of organizations which we support. We wish we could fund them all, but as board members, we must make difficult choices about where your money will have the greatest effect. One of the most important things I’ve learned from being on the board is just how efficiently contributions are used. The board and staff take great care to do as much as possible with what is available. Yet as successful as we’ve been in expanding the Institute’s programs during the last few years, the demands are still growing faster than our resources. With your help, we can do much more. Please join me in donating to the A.J. Muste Memorial Institute. Make the most generous contribution you can and send it back to us in the enclosed envelope. Another world is possible—let’s make it happen. On behalf of the board and staff, and the Muste family, thank you in advance for your continued support for the A.J. Muste Memorial Institute. Sincerely, Peter Muste | |||||
