Walk by the spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. – Galatians 5:16
On this day in 1980, President Jimmy Carter announced the U.S. boycott of that year’s Olympic Games in Moscow as part of a protest against the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan the previous winter. The concept of the boycott had been circulating amongst human rights activists for some time, as the Soviet regime punished dissent and suppressed speech. Nuclear scientist and dissident Andrei Sakharov proposed the boycott that January and President Carter urged the action after the Soviets did not withdraw from Kabul by the set time. The boycott was supported by the American public as well as both houses of Congress. The United States Olympic Committee agreed to the boycott after there was no “spectacular change in the international situation.”Japan and West Germany were among the nations which joined the boycott of the Moscow games.
As the Lord leads, pray with us…
- For members of Congress as they consider resolutions and legislation pertaining to human rights and freedoms.
- For officials in the State and Treasury Departments as they address human rights violations through sanctions.
