ALBANY, N.Y., June 3 (UPI) -- The United States and other nations must recognize humanity's underlying oneness for the sake of world peace, the New York State Assembly said in a resolution.
The non-binding resolution, brought to the floor of the state's lower house by Assemblyman Kevin Cahill, a Democrat from Kingston, passed unanimously May 24, Assembly records indicate.
The measure is probably the first resolution of its kind passed by U.S. state lawmakers, public policy lecturer David King of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government told United Press International.
"All people share the world together with all of life," the resolution said.
"Science has established and sages have declared for millennia that life is a unified whole with multiple dimensions and expressions," it said, observing that science has also established that these multiple dimensions and expressions "complement each other and are an inherent part of life's underlying unity."
"It is of the utmost and urgent importance to the common interests of the entire state of New York, the United States of America and the international community to strengthen the ideals of unity, diversity, harmony and compassion within and among all nations and peoples," the resolution declared.
The resolution was approved four days after U.N. envoy Anwarul K. Chowdhury, the leading emissary of the U.N. Culture of Peace initiative, said peace efforts would fail unless people embraced humanity's oneness.
"I believe that unless we have that sense of solidarity among the peoples of the world, all our efforts of peace and security will go nowhere," Chowdhury, a former undersecretary-general and high representative of the United Nations, said on receiving a petition signed by more than 50,000 people from 168 countries appealing to the world body to declare an annual global Oneness Day recognizing humanity's inner unity.
