Recognizing October 2, 2019 as the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi and calling upon all Philadelphians to honor the legacy of Gandhi in the month of October and unite in mutual love to achieve peace and justice.

WHEREAS, October 2, 2019 marks the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi brought life and movement to an India that was suffocated under colonial rule and choked by ancient and decaying structures and ideas; and

WHEREAS, Gandhi was a political genius, that saw the masses of people as the makers of history and the agents of change. He went to the vast Indian peasantry, lived among them, lived as they lived and learned from them. They thus grew to trust him in ways that few leaders in history have been trusted; and

WHEREAS, Gandhi based his struggles on the concept of

ahimsa

: non-violence and

satyagraha: insistence on the truth

or

truth-force.

These were ancient concepts, drawn from Jain and Hindu traditions, and can be found in one form or another in all religious traditions. They uphold the concept that all human life has virtue and that truth, and hence freedom, can be reached. Gandhi converted these concepts into a concrete social force; he put into practice a strategy for collective liberation through resistance to evil; and

WHEREAS, The freedom of India and the defeat of the British empire spiraled into a world-wide anti-colonial and anti-racist struggle. It inspired the struggle against apartheid in South Africa. It inspired the black freedom struggle in America, as part of the world-wide struggle against racial oppression; and

WHEREAS, In celebrating Gandhi, we also celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr., the greatest interpreter of Gandhi. Martin Luther King, Jr. showed that non-violent resistance is an act of extreme courage; he showed that love can be a powerful social force capable of changing society; and

WHEREAS, Gandhi’s legacy teaches us how to stand for peace, justice, love and truth, and how to believe in the oneness of humanity and fight for unity in the midst of evil systems and ideologies that work to divide us. Long live Gandhi and the struggle for peace and freedom; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby

recognizes October 2, 2019 as the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi and calling upon all Philadelphians to honor the legacy of Gandhi in the month of October and unite in mutual love to achieve peace and justice.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be made as a sincere expression of the Council of the City of Philadelphia’s gratitude, admiration and recognition.

End