CHICAGO (FinalCall.com)�An "extreme position in the separation of church and state" contributes to America�s moral and spiritual decline and breeds family unfriendly policies, said the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, during a Sept 11 press conference here to promote the Million Family March.

The lack of respect for God and taking prayer out of schools has put America in the place of ancient Rome, which fell due to corruption from within, he warned.

The leader of the Nation of Islam called the breakdown of family, high divorce rates and public disinterest in the electoral process serious signs of a society in decline.

Family is the cornerstone of a nation, and strong marriages provide a foundation for that cornerstone, he explained. As the family structure weakens, the nation, or society, is also weakened, he said.

The Million Family March, slated for Oct. 16 on the National Mall, is a celebration of family and a call for all families to come back to God, stressed the leader of the Nation of Islam. But it�s more than a march, he said; it�s an effort to mobilize people to deal with the serious problems facing the country.

"This Million Family March is not just for the Black family, though the Black family will be the cornerstone of this march. We are appealing to the Hispanic family, to the Native American family, to the Arab, Asian and white family. For each member of the family of the American citizenry is feeling the effect of family unfriendly public policy and family unfriendly foreign policy," said Min. Farrakhan.

That "family unfriendly policy" is shown in budgets that ignore the needs of Blacks, Latinos and the poor; allows corporations to abandon inner cities, leaving fertile ground for drugs and crime; child welfare agencies that discourage families and schools from disciplining children; and families broken up when youth are sent to fight wars to protect corporate interests, he noted.

The need for campaign finance reform and lagging voter participation�with less than 50 percent of eligible voters bothering to show up at the polls in recent presidential elections�are signs that America�s democracy is failing, the Muslim leader observed.

Corporate lobbyists and lawmakers are crafting legislation that favors business, but not necessarily the public, Min. Farrakhan said, adding that a counterweight is needed that must come from the American people.

A National Agenda developed by the Million Family March offers solutions to these concerns and has been shared with presidential hopefuls, he said.

No candidate has been invited to speak at the march, and Min. Farrakhan declined to answer questions about which candidate the march might favor until candidates respond to the agenda.

The Minister repeated that his interest in politics is not to promote business as usual, but to make meaningful change that will benefit the masses of the people. In that sense, the march could also be a beginning for cross-racial unity to reform the society, he said.

Part of that reform must be respect for God and politicians who have spiritual values, Min. Farrakhan continued.

"A man of faith, regardless of that faith, is good for the country. I believe that any man of faith will save another human being who is drowning," said Min. Farrakhan, responding to a question about whether Democratic Party vice presidential candidate Sen. Joseph Lieberman�s Jewish values might pose a problem. Men of faith were sent to Muslims, Jews and to save the world, he noted.

He said the concerns of Blacks were not about Sen. Lieberman�s faith, but about his politics�his opposition to affirmative action and support for vouchers that Black lawmakers felt would hurt public schools.

In response to a reporter�s question, he also said Jewish families are welcome at the Oct. 16 gathering.

"We want the Jewish family to come. I think it would be a wonderful step toward dialog that can end the controversy that may exist between the Nation of Islam and the Jewish community. There are Jewish rabbis that have been invited and there are some that have said they would come," he said.

Immediately after the press conference, Min. Farrakhan was joined by 200 community and religious leaders where he electrified the audience with details about his plans for the march.

"This meeting was very much needed and the man who could pull us together over denominations, race, sex and other �isms is Min. Farrakhan," said Rev. Clay Evans, pastor of Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church for some 50 years. "We understand his revelation, his vision on the Million Family March. He�s the man to do it. He will get good cooperation and the results certainly will be good. I am for it one hundred percent."

"I�m excited about this," said State Rep. Mary Flowers (D-Ill.) after the meeting. "We want to bring the whole family together and put respect back into the family. Because of the vision of (Min. Farrakhan), the family will be put on notice all across this nation that it�s ok to be a family, for a woman to be a woman, and for a man to love and respect his wife. This is long overdue."

Two days earlier, on Sept. 9, several thousand people gathered at the Nation of Islam�s Mosque Maryam for a Million Family March rally. During the rally, Min. Farrakhan gave a riveting address on the importance of family, the preciousness of women, the man�s role in the family, the upcoming presidential election and political movement in America.

The evening address at the mosque was his fourth lecture that day. The Chicago homecoming marked the 20th city of the MFM National Tour, where Min. Farrakhan averaged three addresses per day. The overflow crowd from Mosque Maryam spilled into the gymnasium and a huge tent set up on the mosque parking lot.

Black women were proud of their men during the 1995 Million Man March "because they never thought they would see Black men standing by each other like they were. The effects of Million Man March are still going on and its fruit is still developing and bursting forth," Min. Farrakhan noted.

With the fifth anniversary of the march, it is time for those men to return with their wives, girlfriends and families to renew their commitments to one another with God at the center of the relationships, the Minister said.

Min. Farrakhan explained how the wombs of women are sacred and illustrated how God works through the wombs of women to produce children that will do great things and solve problems that plague humanity.

"There is no protection for you, sisters, with a sleep-in lover. You should never give yourself to any man who has not made a commitment. You are too valuable and too important to the future of your people to let any man misuse and abuse you simply because of a biological urge," Min. Farrakhan said.

"I would love for you to come to Washington. I believe God will guide me to help you to reconstruct family life," Min. Farrakhan said. "I respectfully say, if we don�t, as a people, mobilize, organize and force those in power, they will not give us a thing.

"Corporate America spends billions of dollars to buy legislation. You may not have the money, but you have the power of your unity. The real power is not in Washington, the real power is the people," he said.