Shelvia Dancy
Shelvia Dancy is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Shelvia Dancy
NEWS STORY: Religious Groups Push for Full Participation in Census 2000
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Criticizing the 1990 census for leaving out an estimated 8 million people in the United States, religious and civil rights leaders Monday (March 6) joined the director of the U.S. Census Bureau to campaign for a more inclusive census for the year 2000. “We in the religious community […]
NEWS STORY: Religious Freedom Commission Critical of Sudan, China
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Declaring that freedom of religion “ought to be a centerpiece of American foreign policy,” a federal commission released its first report Monday (May 1) urging the U.S. government denounce religious oppression abroad by, among other things, tightening sanctions against Sudan and restricting access to U.S. capital markets for […]
NEWS STORY: Muslim Groups, Members of Congress Urge Ending Iraqi Sanctions
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Decrying the “evil that is happening as a result of sanctions against Iraq,” House Democratic Whip David E. Bonior, D-Mich., asked President Clinton to alleviate suffering in Iraq and call for an end to United Nations-imposed economic sanctions on the country. “This policy is a weapon that leaves […]
NEWS STORY: Marchers Pray, Then Demand `Sensible’ Gun Laws
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Marcy Bixby thought she could handle most of the questions her son Matthew asked about what to expect from middle school _ the 10-year-old frequently showered her with questions about how to make friends and what to expect from teachers when he entered the sixth grade this fall. […]
NEWS STORY: Religious Leaders Urge Candidates to Embrace `Living Wage’ to Fight Poverty
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Urging an end to”faith-based rhetoric,”about 100 religious leaders affiliated with the Industrial Areas Foundation _ East have called on political candidates to support affordable housing for all and the establishment of a $25,000 minimum national living wage standard as a means to fight poverty.”We’re calling on the major […]
NEWS STORY: Thousands Rally Against Legal Abortion
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Marking the 27th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling that legalized most abortions, thousands of anti-abortion protesters poured into the nation’s capital Monday (Jan. 24) to mark the landmark decision with a call for its reversal.”Roe v. Wade was an unforgivable decision made a long time ago,”said John […]
NEWS FEATURE: New Training for Aid Workers Includes Coping With Attacks, Captivity
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) _ In 14 years helping humanitarian aid workers in some of the world’s most battle-scarred countries, John Schenk had never faced this ordeal. The nonstop interrogation by his masked captors. The hood blocking sunlight and fresh air from his face and lungs. The handcuffs that gripped his wrists. “I […]
NEWS FEATURE: Community Helps Foster Ramadan Observances on College Campuses
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service WASHINGTON _ Thousands of miles away from her family in Pakistan, Sabeen Mushtaq couldn’t help but think of them as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan approached. The George Washington University freshman was living away from home for the first time, and missed her family’s holy season traditions _ especially […]
NEWS STORY: Churches Rally Against Sexual Trafficking
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service ARLINGTON, Va. _ Wearing scarves and dark sunglasses to protect their identities, two women from Mexico told of the nightmarish months they spent as two of the estimated 50,000 women brought to the United States by sex traffickers. “I was given tight clothes to wear and told what I must […]
NEWS FEATURE: The Enduring Legacy of Catholic Religious Orders for Women of Color
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service BALTIMORE _ Sister Reparata Clarke remembers clearly the day she decided to abandon a career in teaching to pursue her dream of entering a convent. “I had a teacher in the ninth grade who left teaching and went to Canada to become a nun,” said Clarke, recalling the day more […]
NEWS STORY: Report Finds Mixed Results in Study of Religion In Schools
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service ROSSLYN, Va. _ State mandates are increasingly requiring public schools to integrate religion into the curriculum for social studies classes, but those mandates are not without flaws themselves, a joint report from the First Amendment Center and the Council on Islamic Education has concluded. “Language framing the study of religion […]
NEWS STORY: Faith Groups Ask `Civility Pledge’ from Political Candidates
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service UNDATED _ With the Iowa presidential caucuses looming ahead, a nonpartisan religious alliance is stepping up pressure on candidates to conduct clean and civil campaigns. The Interfaith Alliance, a grassroots organization dedicated to promoting civility and respect in society, is urging candidates to abide by its”Framework for Civility,”a pledge drafted […]
NEWS FEATURE: Passover Letters to Prisoners Remind That Not All Are Free
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) As he has done every year for more than half a century, Herb Rosenbaum will celebrate the Jewish observance of Passover on April 19, breaking matzo and reciting prayers to commemorate the Israelites’ escape from slavery in Egypt more than 3,000 years ago. But between the end of the […]
NEWS FEATURE: Buddhism Seen As a Growing Influence Among African-Americans
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. At first, the tongue-contorting Sanskrit chant seemed worlds away from the Roman Catholic prayers that had glided with ease from Michele Chargoais’ lips since childhood. But the Buddhist principles of cause and effect and harmony the words evoked were exactly what Chargoais felt was missing from the catechism […]
NEWS FEATURE: Crusading Preacher for Racial Justice Subject of PBS Profile
By Shelvia Dancy — January 1, 2000
c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) By his own admission, the Rev. Will Campbell never had “much truck in talk about differences.” “I don’t recognize the concept of racial differences,” said Campbell, 76,the great-grandson of a Confederate soldier. “There is no difference in our blood or in our souls. Race is a sociological concept that […]
