Gandhi remembered in US House of Representatives

WASHINGTON: Gandhi's life was a testament to invincibility of truth over injustice, a key US lawmaker said on the occasion of the birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation. "On this day, I join the Indian-American community and friends around the globe to remember and celebrate the life of this fearless man who led a nation to gain independence for his people from the British Empire," New York Congressman, Joseph Crowley, said in his speech on the floor of the House yesterday.
"Gandhi's life was a testament to invincibility of truth over injustice. When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it, always." he said. Offering his best wishes to the millions of Indian-Americans and to Indians around the globe on this occasion, Crowley said Gandhi shaped modern India and has continued to shape the world by inspiring some the greatest leaders of the time.
"A champion for the rights of all people, he fought apartheid in South Africa, colonial rule in India, and oppression and injustice in all its guises. In doing so, he has inspired our world's greatest leaders from Nelson Mandela to Cesar Chavez, Aung San Suu Kyi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr," he said.
"It was Dr. King who once said he owed his inspiration to fight injustice to God and his method--nonviolent resistance--to Gandhi. The American civil rights movement, from lunch counter sit-ins to the Montgomery County bus boycott, was influenced by Gandhi's foundational principle of Satyagraha, or nonviolent civil disobedience," he said. "Today, modern India is a leader as the world's largest democracy, among the world's largest economies, and as our close friend and ally. The US -India friendship remains a growing and essential part of US foreign policy, and working together our two countries are a powerful force for positive change in the region and in the world," Crowley said.