By Merav Bushlin
Reading Eagle
The war in Iraq has divided the United States from many allies, but the international community must renew its support for America, a grandson of Mahatma Gandhi said Thursday at Albright College. “America is now trying to be the world leader, and it needs help from us,” Rajmohan Gandhi said.
Gandhi said other nations must recognize one fact to understand American feelings about fighting terrorism.
“What other nations have to realize is 9/11 happened on American soil, and so there are reasons for America to feel very deeply,” he said.
Gandhi addressed several hundred people many members of the Berks Peace Community activist group in Albright's Memorial Chapel.
When the war ends, America and its allies will have to cooperate to deal with the tremendous challenge of rebuilding Iraq, Gandhi said.
“I don't think this is a moment where we see who is to blame,” he said.
Yet Gandhi also had some mild criticism for the Bush administration when he said it rushed into war without United Nations support and claimed there were no other options.
“Because there was a Hitler once, and it was plain that the only language he would understand was force, that enables all of us to see everyone who uses force as Hitler,” Gandhi said.
Some situations demand tough action, he said, but leaders must beware of turning too quickly to force.
Before his speech, Gandhi said his grandfather would hate to see the destruction caused by the Iraq war but that he still would have faith in human beings.
“He would be deeply saddened by the loss of life, by the destruction, by the hates and bitternesses that may be left for the future,” Gandhi said.
Mahatma Gandhi always sought creative alternatives when people told him violence was the only choice, his grandson said.
“At what point do you say, ‘The cup of love didn't work, and they didn't come to the table'?” an Albright student asked.
“Find some interesting, unexpected, disarming ways of getting the other side to the table,” Gandhi answered.
Despite his opposition to the war, it has not diminished his respect for America, Gandhi said.
“In other countries of the world, it would be difficult even to hold a meeting about this,” he said. “You live in a great democracy.”
Dorothy Reilly of Reading, a member of the Berks Peace Community, asked Gandhi whether activists are powerless to affect U.S. policy.
Although an anti-war message may not be welcome everywhere, he said, Americans still have the power of free speech.
At the University of Illinois, where he is a visiting professor, Gandhi said he has found many people willing to speak frankly about their views on the war.
Gandhi's message was interesting but not what many students came to hear, said Jill Sheetz, an Albright senior.
Sheetz said she had hoped he would offer more specific guidance on how individuals can have an impact.
But William Smith, a 2002 Albright graduate, said he appreciated Gandhi's emphasis on open dialogue and his positive view of America.
Contact reporter Merav Bushlin at 610-371-5014 or mbushlin@readingeagle.com.
