LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

Inside the UN Tent

In the July 16th issue of THE NEW AMERICAN, Tom Eddlem wrote a piece entitled "Conservatives Deceived by NGOs" in which my position as an NGO delegate was not fully represented. Mr. Eddlem suggested that I hold the opinion that the only value for non-governmental organizations at the UN is to convert delegates to the pro-life cause, and that we do not have any influence over changing policy. Although there is great value in educating delegates alone, the pro-life and pro-family NGOs have had considerable success influencing international policy. For instance, at the Beijing+5 women's conference, pro-life NGOs were instrumental in blocking an attempt to make abortion an international human right. In addition, NGOs worked closely with delegates to craft an effective opposition to language that could have forced health care workers to perform and assist in abortions. Just recently, at the Special Session on HIV/AIDS, pro-family lobbyists successfully influenced several delegations to ultimately block language th at would have legitimized homosexual relationships.

I do not deny that the bureaucracy of the United Nations has a very dangerous agenda. But to suggest that pro-family NGO involvement is futile is incorrect. THE NEW AMERICAN holds that any involvement in this corrupt international organization only justifies it. Along this line of thinking, one could argue that the U.S. government and its leaders have become progressively more anti-constitutional and more corrupt. Would this require that conservative people no longer run for office or that pro-Constitution lobbyists remove themselves from participating in the law-making process?

MARK DEYOUNG

American Life League

The U.S. government was created by, and its powers were defined by, the Constitution of the United States. The U.S. government has legitimacy, and it is the proper venue for exercising those powers of governance that were delegated to it. For this reason, Mr. DeYoung is correct in observing that good Americans should run for federal office and participate in the law-making process.

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