A Letter to Congress: Appeal of Constituents and Voters to Our Elected Representatives in the Congress of the USA

A Letter to Congress

APPEAL OF CONSTITUENTS AND VOTERS

TO OUR ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES

IN THE CONGRESS OF THE U.S.A.

Dear Members of Congress:

On March 25, 1974, the Congress of the United States received an unprecedented communication from the Supreme People's Assembly of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). The communication set forth restrained and reasonable proposals for a treaty of peace on the Korean peninsula. (See Congressional Record, April 9, 1974, pp. 2245)

To date, the Korean Assembly has received not even an acknowledgement of this historic letter. We find this silence not only shockingly discourteous; it seems an incomprehensible refusal to explore a welcome opportunity to create a meaningful state of peace in a most critical area of Asia.

The letter from Pyongyang proposed the following:

1. A non-aggression agreement with a provision that there be no United States interference in the internal affairs of the Korean people.

2. A discontinuance of armament escalation and introduction of new weapons, combat equipment and war supplies in Korea on both sides.

3. Withdrawal of all foreign troops from South Korea at the earliest possible date. (There are no foreign troops in North Korea.)

4. A guarantee that Korea will not become a military or operational base for any country.

To our mind, those proposals form the basis for negotiations between the United States and the DPRK, which could lead to the end of a persistently dangerous situation on the Korean peninsula.

The only answer to date to these proposals is the sinister response, however indirect, by Secretary of the Air Force, John McLucas. He indicated that the United States would shift a squadron of F-4 Phantom jet fighters from Thailand to South Korea to replace less effective models. This, of course, is directly contrary to one of the North Korean proposals.

Many of us have followed United States-Korean relations with care and concern for many years. We have noted the reluctance of the government at Seoul to negotiate with the North on Pyongyang's proposals - now two years old - for the peaceful reunification of both Koreas.

We ask you to investigate the strange silence concerning the letter from the Supreme People's Assembly, and, further, to address yourself generally to the pressing but neglected question of a permanent peace on the Korean peninsula.

At a time when the foreign policy of the U.S. seems to be turning more and more to détente with the Soviet Union, China, the Middle East, and even Cuba, our government's policy is particularly distressing in light of the reports of objective journalistic observers and scholars of the increasingly repressive measures being taken against any opposition to the government in South Korea.

Believing that all the people of Korea should be given a respectful hearing as a basis for understanding and friendship between our peoples, and that we can respond in a very significant way through our elected representatives in the House and Senate, we remain,

Most sincerely yours,

(Organizations, professions and functions listed for identification only.)

REV. ALBERT ALLINGER

Clergyman

MARTHA ACEVEDA

Educator

JAMES K. ASH

Educator

PROF. DOUGLAS ALLEN

Journalist; Newspaper Guild, AFL-CIO

BETTINA APTHEKER

Writer; peace activist

JAMES ARONSON

Author, editor, journalist

DR. HERBERT APTHEKER

Author-Historian, Director AIMS

DR. ROBERT ANTE

Educator

ROBERT J. ALLEN

Author; educator

JAMES S. ALLEN

Author

JOHN BAKER

Peace activist

REV. LEE H. BALL

Clergyman

HON. ELMER A. BENSON

Former Governor Minn.

JOSEPH BRANDT

Editor Korea Focus; VALB

DAVID B. BUEHRENS

Scholar, Linguistics & Literature

PHYLLIS BENNIS

Legal worker, NLG

FREDERIC R. BARNWELL

Student; U of C

EDWARD K. BARSKY, M.D.

Physician; VALB

SYLVIA BJORNSON

Exec. Sec’y, St. Peter’s Church

THOMAS BRANDON

Lecturer

DELLA F. BROWN

Peace activist

CHARLES W. CHUNG

Doctoral student, Harvard U.

ROBERT CAMBRIA

Peace activist

MANUEL J. V. CLEMENTE

Student

MARION T. CALLIGARIS

Chairman, Local 547, BRAC, AFL-CIO

DAVID B. CANTRELL

Memb. Grievance Comm., Local 937 USA, AFL-CIO

DOROTHY C. CARY

Peace activist

WILLIAM H. CARY, JR.

Peace activist

PROF. NOAM CHOMSKY

Educator, MIT

IRVING J. CRAIN, M.D.

Physician

BRIAN D.P. CRAWFORD

Businessman

PROF. EPHRAIM CROSS

Educator

ISABEL M. CERNEY

Peace activist

REV. MARK A. CHAMBERLIN

Clergyman

PROF. FRED J. CARRIER

Educator

RUTH GAGE-COLBY

UN Rep. WILPF

REV. J. RAYMOND COPE

Clergyman

GERALD COOK

Journalist; VALB

OSSIE DAVIS

Actor-Director, Screen TV, Theatre

ANGELO D’ANGELO

Educator, Local 2 AFT, AFL-CIO

ERNEST DEMAIO

Pres. District 11, UERMWU

PROF. STANTON LING DAVIS

Educator

PEGGY DENNIS

Journalist

EMILY DELACY

Legal worker NLG

HORACE B. DAVIS

Educator; writer

HUGH DELACY

Former Congressman

BENJAMIN DELEON

Educator

ANTHONY DEMAIO

Self-employed, VALB

PAUL G. DENIT

Peace activist

ALICE DENZIN

Educator

SELMA DUBRIN

Peace activist

PROF. CLIFFORD DURAND

Educator

MICHAEL EISENSHER

Trade Union organizer

DAVID ECKLEIN

Computer consultant

STANLEY FAULKINER, ESQ.

NLG

MOE FISHMAN

N.Y. Typo. U. Local 6, AFL-CIO; VALB

MARY D. FARLOW

Realtor, United World Federalist

PROF. PHILLIP S. FONER

Educator

SIDNEY J. GLUCK

Business consultant

PAUL GULIELMETTI, ESQ.

NLG

E. H. GIPSON

Electric worker, BEWU, AFL-CIO

ERNEST GOODMAN, ESQ.

NLG

ROGER GELLER, ESQ.

NLG

JEFFREY A. GOLDSTEIN, ESQ.

NLG

DR. RALPH H. GUNDLACH

Ph. D.

CATHERINE GYARMATY

Editor

LUCY HESSLER

Office worker; WILPF

MARTIN HALL

Writer; peace activist

HOLLIS RUTH HILL, ESQ.

NLG

HELEN HOROWITZ

Peace activist

ANNA M. HUNT

Librarian

MARII HASEGAWA

Nat’l Pres., WILPF

JOHN HITZ

Educator

PROF. DONALD C. HODGES

Educator

HANK IRVIN

Educator

ABRAHAM J. ISSERMAN, ESQ.

NLG

DR. OAKLEY C. JOHNSON

Author-Historian

JOHN JUNKEMAN

Educator

MARY LEA JOHNSON

Vet., WWI, US Vets. Admin. Councilor

RUSSELL JOHNSON

AFSC Program Consultant

IDA KAHN

Social service worker

THOMAS KARLSON

Educator; Local 147 UFT, AFL-CIO

WILLIAM KEENAN

Peace activist

IRVING KOHN

N.Y. Typo U. Loc. 6; Graphic Arts for Peace Comm.

REV. J. S. KENNARD, JR.

Clergyman; author

MARVIN LONGTON

Librarian

HOWARD D. LANGFORD

Educator

ROBERT JYMAN, ESQ.

NLG

JERRY S. LEGG

Machinist. USA Local 1033, AFL-CIO

SOL LONDE, M.D.

Physician

SOPHIA LEVINSON

Peace activist

HENRY MCKNIGHT, JR.

Legis. Rep., No. Cal. District Council ILWU

BILL MONTROSS

Legal Worker,  NLG

NORMAN MASUDA

Educator

JACK MALINOWSKI

EPF, Program Coordinator

PROF. J. M. MARSALKA

Educator

DANIEL I. MEYERS, SEQ.

NLG

VICTORIA MISSICK

Nat. Student Sec’y YWLL

PROF. D. Y. MIYAUCHI

Educator

RICHARD MORFORD

Exec. Dir. NCASF

WILLIAM M. MANDEL

Author

GRAMBS MILLER

Artist

PROF. MICHAEL MUNK

Educator

GEORGE B. MURPHY, JR.

Author; Journalist, Afro-American press

MICHAEL MYERSON

Author; Journalist

THOMAS J. MORGAN

Railroad Engineer

LOUIS M. MOROZE

Editorial Assoc., NWR

SCOTT NEARING

Author

KENNETH NEWCOMB

Organizer, CP, NY State

RUTH C. NORRICK

Journalist

PROF. KARL H. NIEBYL

Educator

FRANK NELSON

Peace activist

P. W. OYLER

Civil Service employee

DR. PHILIP OKE

Educator

JOHN D. OLSEN

Land title researcher

JOHN PAPPADEMOS

Educator; VP, AFL Local 1627, AFL-CIO

PROF. HOWARD J. PARSONS

Educator

WILLIAM I. PATTERSON

Chair., Black Liberation Comm. CPUSA

VICTOR PERLO

Author; economist

LORETTA PAUKER

Concert artist

BENJ. B. PAGE

Educator

DR. IRVING J. PANKEN

Dentist

JOHN RANDOLPH

Screen, TV, Radio & Theater personality

HOLLAND ROBERTS

Chairman, American-Russian Institute

OLIVER A. ROSENGART, ESQ.

NLG

THOMAS E. RAY

Investor

PROF. RAYMOND H. RECTOR

Educator

NORMA ROGERS

Projects director, Freedomways

DENNIS ROCH

Hospital worker

MAX ROFFMAN

Educat. Dir. Local 646 AFSCME AFL-CIO

JAY SCHAFFNER

Illinois chairman YWLL

E. MARTIN SCHOTZ, M.D.

Psychiatrist

MARA SIEGEL

Law student, NLG

DR. H. C. STEINMETZ

Educator

PROF. DIRK J. STRUIK

Educator

DOROTHY R. STEFFENS

Exec. Dir. WILPF

KATHERINE SENICK

Practical nurse

JEFFERY SEGAL

Legal worker, CFCR

HAROLD L. SHARPIRO

Int’l Rep., AMCU, AFL-CIO

ANDREW SIEGAL

Clerk; peace activist

JESSICA SMITH

Editor; author

PROF. JOHN SOMERVILLE

Educator

JACK D. SPIEGEL

USW, AFL-CIO

WILLIAM J. SPURLIN

Engineer

LISA STRATTON

Graduate student

WILLIAM STRATTON

Graduate student

MARY ALICE THEILER, ESQ.

NLG

EDITH TIGER

Dir., NECLC

EDNA TONEY

Actress; writer

ANTHONY TONEY

Artist; VALB

JARVIS TYNER

Nat. Chairman YWLL

DANIEL J. ULZAK

Peace activist

SIMON VIRON

Riding apparel worker

JOE WALKER

NY Edit. Muhammad Speaks

BEN WEINSTEIN

Peace Activist

KARL G. YONEDA

Co-Chairman Japanese-Amer. Citizens League; ILWU