The reconciliation movement lost one of its greatest champions with the passing of Rick Farley, director of the Edmund Rice Centre, Phil Glendenning said today.

The Edmund Rice Centre today publicly released a document Debunking the Myths About Muslims in Australia to deal with the stereotyping and discrimination Muslim Australians have had to face in the wake of the war on terror and the riots on Sydney beaches.

The Director of the Edmund Rice Centre today condemned the violence on southern Sydney beaches describing it as “years of policy neglect in the area of community relations coming home to roost”. 

Edmund Rice Centre Director Phil Glendenning wrote this letter to The Australian in response to claims made by Minister for Immigration Amanda Vanstone about the Centre's work:

Phil Glendenning, Director of the Edmund Rice Centre and National President of Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR), today welcomed home participants in the Freedom Ride 2005. The Freedom Ride 2005 was organized by the ReconciliACTION Network, and supported by ANTaR and the Edmund Rice Centre.