Commentary on Worker Justice

Hospitality: A Path to Justice for All 

By: Rev. David Hansen Ph.D., Director of IWJ

All faiths emphasize a tradition of hospitality. It is part of the deep spirituality common to all faiths. It is also part of the deep tradition of American democracy. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. boldly embodied this tradition, which affirms the dignity of every person. On the day of his assassination, Martin Luther King, Jr., was in Memphis, Tennessee standing in solidarity with sanitation workers.

Before going to Memphis, Dr. King spoke at Riverside Church in New York City where his sermon title was “Time to Break the Silence: Beyond Vietnam.” In this speech, Dr. King audaciously drew a line connecting the extravagant immorality of war with the plight of the poor in America and the conditions of low-wage and underpaid workers.

The hostility in our political culture embodied in efforts to suppress voter participation in elections and the coldness evidenced in our economic climate by events such as the recent announcement by Boeing that it will close its Wichita plant violate the ethics of compassion and the most precious teachings in our religious traditions.

This is why a renewal of hospitality is vital today. Democracy, like faith, is not just a system of governance; it is a way of being.  The ethic of hospitality takes us beyond the work of charity, important as that is. True hospitality is a commitment to help every person meet her or his basic needs with dignity.

In this spirit, Interfaith Worker Justice Kansas is committed to advocating for the rights of all workers and affirming the work of employers who are advocates for excellence, which begins with a commitment to fairness for all. We are a diverse community, but everyone deserves to be treated with dignity.

Interfaith Worker Justice of Kansas is working to build an interfaith, multiracial and multicultural community committed to renewing an ethic of hospitality as a path to justice for all.

I invite you to join us.