| | | | | | | | “No child should have to go to bed without their parents to tuck them in,” says Alex Kohn of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Columbia, who used displaying children’s pajamas on the National Mall to highlight the plight of the many children separated from their parents at the US-Mexican border in the battle over illegal immigration. Partnering with his congregation and other organizations, Alex organized, promoted and helped lead the June 2019 witness action. The high school student also gathered more than 750 signatures seeking to close Homestead, the largest for-profit child detention center. Alex was last year’s recipient of UUSJ’s Emerging Leader Award. Alex was featured in this video. | | | | | | | | | March 10 Advocacy Day to Urge Legal Permanent Status for TPS Holders UUSJ’s Advocacy Corps will be urging senators to act on the Safe Environment from Countries Under Repression and Emergency (SECURE) Act of 2019 (S.879), which would create a path to lawful permanent residency for immigrant Temporary Protective Status (TPS) holders. For decades, TPS has provided temporary legal status for more than 400,000 immigrants from specific countries facing war, natural disasters, and other deadly conditions. The administration now wants to return these individuals to countries they left decades ago, resulting for many in separation from their children, many of whom are U.S. citizens. (See background here.) Letters will be delivered by UUSJ Capitol Hill Advocacy Corps, in collaboration with the UU Service Committee. For details, contact Advocacy@UUUSJ.org | | | | | Advocacy Corps Promotes Military Hunger Prevention Act No one should go hungry in our wealthy nation! UUSJ’s Capitol Hill Advocacy Corps worked with MAZON - a Jewish Response to Hunger -- to address the sad reality that thousands of military families struggle to put food on the table. Families of low-ranking enlisted service members with multiple dependents are particularly at risk. Last month, Advocacy Corps volunteers visited 53 House offices, met with staff of 15 members -- including the House Armed Services Committee chair -- and delivered more than 80 Unitarian Universalist constituent letters. Many staff learned about the issue for the first time. (See issue background here.) At last count, four House members signed on to the bill after Advocacy Corps visits. Paul Sherman, MAZON outreach director, commended UUSJ and looks forward to working together again. Our visits do make a difference! | | Upcoming Advocacy Corps Schedule for April and May Climate and environmental issues will be the focus of Advocacy Day and Write Here! Write Now! letters delivered in April and May as part of the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day. The April 14 Advocacy Corps Day will focus on members of the House of Representatives. For May, UUSJ, in collaboration with UU Ministry for Earth, is conducting a nationwide letter-writing campaign to senators, with letters to be delivered on May 12. Full details on the campaign and Write Here! Write Now! will be sent to Advocacy Corps members and partners in March. Questions? Contact Advocacy@UUSJ.org | | | | | | | Thanks Advocacy Corps and Write Here! Write Now! Participants UUSJ is celebrating its third year of advocacy work thanks to our generous volunteers. In the past three years, our 37-member volunteer team has made over 1,500 visits to Capitol Hill offices, conducted 250 scheduled and drop-in meetings, and delivered more than 7,000 Write Here! Write Now! UU constituent letters on a range of issues grounded in UU Principles and values. Our work has focused on climate change, immigration, voting rights and economic justice issues including health care and food stamps. | |  | | | | | UUSJ Board Meeting March 28 UUSJ’s next Board meeting will be March 28, 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM ET at the UU Congregation of Fairfax, 2709 Hunter Mill Road, Oakton, VA. Details will be sent to Board members in mid-March. Topics to be discussed include the FY 20-21 budget. All UUSJ members are welcome to attend and be heard. Please confirm your attendance with Board Secretary Charlotte Jones Carroll (cjonescarroll@aol.com). | | | | | | Unitarian Universalist News and Event | | | | | | | Revolutionary Love Conference -- Towards a More Perfect Union Friday, April 24, 2020, 1:00 PM - 9:00 PM ET
Saturday, April 25, 2020, 8:30 AM - 9:00 PM ET
Sunday, April 26, 2020, 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM ET This year’s Revolutionary Love Conference will be a powerful gathering of people of faith working toward justice, featuring an entire track on electoral engagement. All Souls Church, Unitarian is hosting this year’s conference. The UU the Vote team is helping to shape the program. All Souls Church, Unitarian, 1500 Harvard St. NW, Washington, D.C. Detailed information and schedule | | “Rooted, Inspired, Ready” General Assembly
June 24-28, Providence, R.I.  General Assembly (GA) is the annual meeting of our Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA). Attendees worship, witness, learn, connect, and make policy for the Association through the democratic process. Naomi Klein is this year’s WARE Lecturer. She is a climate activist, an award-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author of On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal. See full details on GAs here and a video here. Anyone may attend. Registration for adults is $400 through March 15. Financial aid and volunteer opportunities are available. Housing registration opens March 2. Full details here. | | | | | | | | | Sanctuary at Cedar Lane UU Church | | | | When Rosa Gutierrez Lopez received a deportation order in December 2018, she sought refuge at Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church. The mother of three has been living in the United States. for fifteen years — her children are all American citizens. Watch the video here. | | Cedar Lane Sanctuary Training Sunday, March 8, 2020
2:30 PM - 5:00 PM ET Thursday, March 12
6:30 PM - 9:00 PM ET Cedar Lane UU Church, 9601 Cedar Lane, Bethesda, MD Cedar Lane has been offering sanctuary for Rosa and her three children for over a year and needs your help. New volunteers are needed to sustain the congregation’s sanctuary efforts. You can register online to attend a training/orientation (register here). If you have questions, please contact sanctuarysupport@cedarlane.org Immigration Accompaniment Training Sunday, March 22, 2020
12:00 PM-2:00 PM ET
Davies Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 7400 Temple Hills Road, Camp Springs, MD Get Trained to accompany immigrants to Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) /Immigration/ Intensive Supervision of Appearance Program (ISAP) appointments in the greater Washington DC area. Register here Sanctuary Advocates to Do a Jericho Walk and Advocate on Capitol Hill Tuesday, March 24, 2020
9:30 AM - 10 AM ET - Gathering
10:00 AM ET - Leave for a Jericho walk
United Methodist Building - 100 Maryland Ave NE, Washington, DC 20002
Contact: Rev. Charlene Belsom Zellmer (cbzellmer7@msn.com) Several immigrants have taken sanctuary with multi-faith congregations across the United States as part of the National Sanctuary Collective (the Collective/Colectivo). Including Rosa at Cedar Lane UUC, who is supported by Congregation Action Network. Clergy and supporters in the District, Maryland, and Virginia are invited to join the Jericho Walk to support freeing Rosa and other immigrants from the need to take sanctuary. During the Jericho Walk around the Capitol Plaza, we’ll make seven stops for special prayer or spiritual song. Each stop will represent an obstacle to freedom that immigrants in sanctuary must overcome. We’ll then stop for lunch, divide up into teams for scheduled visits to members of Congress. The Collective hopes to get 100 clergy representing the 10 states where sanctuary guests now reside and are leading the fight to free the immigrants from the isolation of sanctuary. | | | | | | Environmental and Climate Justice | | Julian Noisecat - Speaking at the Green New Deal Conference In September, UUSJ collaborated with UU’s for a Just Economic Community, UU Ministry for Earth, and other UU service organizations in the “Advancing Economic and Climate Justice as a Moral Issue, Building a Movement for a “Green New Deal" conference. Julian Brave Noisecat was one of the speakers, watch the video. | | | | | Ramp up to 50th Anniversary of Earth Day with UUMFE and UUSJ You can bring the award-winning documentary, “The Condor and the Eagle,” produced by the UU Ministry for Earth, to your congregation or community. UU Ministry for Earth is planning another “Spring for Change” to call attention to World Water Day (March 22), Earth Day (April 22), and World Biodiversity Day (May 22) and engage and mobilize UUs and friends. They will again collaborate with UUSJ on a nationwide letter-writing campaign to advocate for meaningful action on the climate crisis. (See Advocacy Corps section above for details.) Learn more about Earth Day 2020. The DC Environmental Film Festival The 28th Annual Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital is March 12-to-22. The festival collaborates with more than 100 partners to show over 100 films at venues throughout the city. For information, check out the website https://dceff.org/ | | | | | | | | Will I See You On June 20? “I am thrilled to be active with the Poor People's Campaign moral revival, and will join the crowds in D.C. on June 20. Although I have been focusing on immigration justice work for the past 10 years, the PPC is an intersectional movement which brings together all issues of oppression while working toward a values shift I share. Will I see you on June 20?” | | | | | Poor People's Mass Assembly and March on Washington Saturday, June 20, 2020
10:00 AM - 3:00 PM ET Northeast corner of the National Mall in Washington DC on Pennsylvania Ave NW extending west from 3rd St NW Register/RSVP for Updates
Find Bus Rideshares to D.C.
UU Show of Interest Major City Mobilization (MCM) meetings for PPC. UUs are asked to get the word out to our networks. Major City Mobilization meetings are critical to Poor People’s Campaign mobilization efforts and are providing a model for how towns and cities across the country can get organized and moving for June 20, 2020. An updated list can be found here. | | | | | | | | | | | Exciting Opportunity for a Voting Campaign Organizer The All Souls Unitarian Reeb Project for Voting Rights and UUSJ are seeking a full-time Voting Campaign Organizer to help support our non-partisan voter mobilization efforts in 2020. The organizer will work closely with the Reeb Project and UUSJ leaders to conduct voter registration, engagement and turnout actions, particularly in communities negatively affected by voter suppression. This is an exciting opportunity to expand a voter mobilization project with a strong record of success. This contract position would run from mid-April (negotiable) - November 30, 2020. Applications are due Monday, March 16. See the posting here. Defending Our Democracy Task Group The Defending Our Democracy Task Group continues to work on supporting the UU the Vote campaign which is focused on mobilizing voters (voter registration, education, get-out-the-vote), challenging voter suppression, holding values-based conversations with neighbors, inviting our partners to utilize our available meeting spaces, and providing spiritual sustenance. We have developed online materials to supplement the UUA work which are available at: UUSJ UUs Mobilizing for the 2020 Elections (Also see UU the Vote section above.) | | | | | | | | | Bystander Intervention Training Sunday, March 22, 2020
12:30-3:00 PM EST
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Rockville
100 Welsh Park Drive #1900, Rockville, MD Ever wonder what you could do if you see someone being harassed in public because of their race, gender, ableness, religion, country of origin or any other group status that makes them a target for hostility? How can you respectfully support the targeted person and de-escalate the situation? Come learn new skills. This session is offered by the Immigration Action and Racial Justice Groups of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Rockville. Signup here | | | | | | | | Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice (UUSJ)
7750 16th St NW, | Washington, District of Columbia 20012
202-600-9132 | info@uusj.org | | | | | | | | | |
