| | | | | | | | Calling Us to Ground Justice Work in Our UU Faith A couple of years ago, I was at a rally in front of the Maryland statehouse in Annapolis calling for stronger police accountability in cases of police brutality and misconduct. A local reporter, seeing my clergy collar, asked why I was there. I’m a former journalist so I began by giving a detailed synopsis of the related bills pending before the Maryland General Assembly. Seeing the reporter’s eyes glaze over, I realized she probably knew the basics of the legislation. What I needed to talk about was why I was there as a person of faith who is a Unitarian Universalist minister. So I mentioned our UU Principles that recognize “the worth and dignity of every person,” call for “justice, equity and compassion in human relations,” and strive for “peace, justice, and liberty for all.” Our Unitarian Universalist faith inspires and grounds our justice work. It reminds us that all people are important and that we are connected to each other, all existence and this planet we call home. We do this work together as a faith community as well as with interfaith and community partners. But we don’t always share that part. | | | | | | | | | | | | UUSJ Visits Senators on Reclaiming Its War Powers Authority | | UUSJ’s Capitol Hill Advocacy Corps volunteers visited Senate offices last month to voice concerns over the escalating tension with Iran that might lead to war. Volunteers conducted nine meetings on January 14 with Senate staff from Foreign Relations and Armed Services committees, including those of the chairman and ranking member. Volunteers delivered UUSJ’s message to another 20 Senate offices, urging support of the bipartisan Senate Joint Resolution 68 that would reassert congressional authority over military action called for in the War Powers Act. UUSJ’s letter was accompanied by the “Faith Statement on Escalating Violence with Iran,” endorsed by UUSJ and 34 other faith groups, including the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and the UU Service Committee (UUSC). The Senate continues to debate the issue with growing bipartisan support. | | | | Migrant Justice TPS Film Screening and Letter-Writing Event The UU Service Committee (UUSC) and its partners at the Massachusetts Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Committee and UUSJ encourage congregations to highlight the crisis facing immigrants in danger of deportation due to the pending termination of TPS. Information on hosting a screening of the documentary film, "The Last Dream" and other ways to take action can be found here. Following the documentary, participants can write letters urging their senators to pass legislation creating a pathway to citizenship for immigrants with TPS and a similar status to those covered by Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Deferred Enforced Departure (DACA). UUSJ’s Write Here! Write Now! Letter-writing handout is available here. | | | | February 11 Advocacy Day to Address Food Insecurity - No one -- especially those who serve our country -- deserves to go hungry. UUSJ’s Advocacy Corps will be urging members of the House of Representatives to support improved food and nutrition programs for U.S. military families, in partnership with MAZON, A Jewish Response to Hunger. Military families say financial issues are one of their top stressors, and many are turning in desperation to nearby food pantries. UUSJ is calling for improving federal programs -- such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) -- that provide vital nutrition assistance to veterans, currently-serving military families, children, and seniors. For information: Advocacy@UUSJ.org March 10 Advocacy Day - Migrant justice letters will be delivered by UUSJ Capitol Hill Advocacy Corps (see story above on ways congregations can get involved ). | | | | | | | | |  UUSJ Mobilizing for the 2020 Elections Progressive people of faith can be powerful and prophetic without being partisan. We can engage our neighbors, educate our communities, mobilize voters, rally around ballot initiatives, and assist in shaping a public discourse that is rooted in our theology and principles. UUSJ’s "UUs Mobilizing for the 2020 Elections," offers resources for getting involved. It covers building your congregation's team, knowing the rules for tax-exempt organizations, connecting with community partners, talking with candidates, and recruiting volunteers. USJ plans to offer a webinar on mobilizing voters for UU congregations in the region in late February. Keep an eye out for further details. Meanwhile, congregations can develop their own plans, explore applying for a grant, and learn what other congregations are doing. Details here. | | | | Advocacy Corps Celebrates 3rd Anniversary! UUSJ’s Capitol Hill Advocacy Corps will celebrate its third anniversary on Feb. 14. Since its start, Advocacy Corps volunteers have made regular monthly visits to Congress on a wide range of UU-value issues and delivered more than 7,000 “Write Here! Write Now!” letters from UUs across the nation to their elected officials. Many thanks to all who have participated, including those making visits to House and Senate offices (about 18-20 volunteers each month) as well as those working behind the scenes. Thanks also to the UU Funding Program for its support and the faith groups that work with UUSJ. Known for its regular presence on Capitol Hill, the Advocacy Corps is often asked to return on key issues. Additional details available here. | | | | We Thank All Our 2019 Individual Donors! Thanks to our generous individual donors, UUSJ has been able to do even more this past year. Your contributions matter! UUSJ does not receive funding from the Unitarian Universalist Association. We depend completely on the funds we raise and the occasional grants we receive. Your contribution helps ensure UU values and voices are heard on federal policy social justice issues. Please know, your generosity and belief in this important work has produced the most successful end-of-the-year campaign in UUSJ history. As we strive to achieve long-term sustainability for our programs, your contributions are an important part of reaching that goal. You keep good works for social justice in the nation’s capital possible. | | | | | | | Unitarian Universalist News and Events | | "Whatever justice issues speak to your heart most deeply, the stakes are higher than they've ever been in these elections. Whoever you are, you have a role to play in fighting for our deepest values and the freedom and flourishing of all our siblings and neighbors. When we work in deep collaboration, both within and beyond the walls of our congregation, we are more powerful than we could ever be alone. Together, we will #UUTheVote to #VoteLove and #DefeatHate." - Rev. Ashley Horan, Organizing Strategy Director, UUA. The 2020 elections will be one of the most important in our lifetime. Because of this, the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) has launched UU the Vote to support congregations and members in building solidarity with local, regional, and national partners. The goal is to mobilize thousands of UUs to engage in spiritually-grounded and values-based activities in communities throughout the nation. The UUA launched UU the Vote in January with a one-hour webinar featuring, volunteers, and UU's from across the country (view recording of webinar). Many congregations held watch parties that energized members to Get Out the Vote. Full details here, on where you can sign up for regular updates, access the UU the Vote toolkit, learn about grants to support this work, and find links to other groups. | | | | |  | Revolutionary Love Conference -- Towards a More Perfect Union Fri, Apr 24, 2020, 1:00pm - Sun, Apr 26, 2020, 6:00pm ET
All Souls Church, Unitarian, Washington, D.C.
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 Unitarian in Washington, DC is hosting the conference. The UU the Vote team is helping to shape the program. Conference planners have generously extended a registration discount for UUs until February 14.
Use the code: UUVOTE20 to register here. “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. This year’s theme, “Rooted, Inspired, Ready” conveys that “We have been engaged in a transformation of our faith to be more inclusive and anti-oppressive, and GA will be an opportunity to experience the progress we are making and enter a new phase of this mission-based work.” Full theme details here and video here. Anyone may attend. Registration fee for adults is $400 through March 15. Financial aid and volunteer opportunities are available. Housing registration opens March 2. Full details here. | |  | | | | | | | |  | Write The Senate in Support of TPS The Immigration Task Group is encouraging UU congregations to participate in letter writing to the Senate during February advocating for bills the could provide long term solutions to those immigrants who hold Temporary Protected Status. (See information above). Asylum Eligibility Criteria At Issue In January, UUSJ opposed proposed changes to reasons for denying asylum. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) are proposing additional reasons to deny eligibility for asylum. UUSJ’s action came during the public comment period that ended in mid-January. UUSJ submitted a 19-page letter outlining how these changes could further contribute to profiling of people of color and create many unnecessary obstacles to desperate people seeking asylum. UUSJ will continue to monitor federal and state actions in Virginia and Maryland on this issue. Changing Systems, Changing Ourselves (Social change e-course) Thursday, February 25
8:00 PM ET
Register Here This 5-week online course, which started January 28, is for people of faith and conscience working on immigrant justice across the country. The next class is February 25 and focuses on “criminalization and immigration detention's place in the prison industrial complex.” Topics include anti-racist practice, U.S. history of racial exclusion, criminalization, and the prison industrial complex, and the practice of accompaniment. It is a joint project of the American Friends Service Committee, Church World Service, Freedom for Immigrants, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, and the Unitarian Universalist Association. Several members of UUSJ’s Immigration Task Group are participating in the five-month course aimed at better understanding white privilege in our work accompanying immigrants. Want to Join UUSJ’s Immigration Task Group? The task group meets by Zoom on most alternate Thursdays at 4 p.m. ET. Contact Charlotte Jones-Carroll cjonescarroll@aol.com . | | | | | | | Environmental and Climate Justice | | Our Kids and the Klimate! How are you teaching the next generations about climate and ecological interdependence? The Mount Vernon (VA) Unitarian Church CAT (Climate Action Team) provides one approach. During January, the MVUC CAT Education group organized a Kids and Klimate! Day for young people from PreK to 12th grade. This focus on climate awareness took the place of regular Religious Education classes for the day. Thirty-three kids participated in three age groupings. The youngest kids explored Trees, the Life Givers with a special emphasis on rainforest trees. This included a reading of The Great Kapok Tree, dancing to ‘Everything Made of Wood,’ and tree interviews. The middle group expanded their Recycle Know-how by learning where recycling fits into the 5 Rs, participating in a Recycle relay, joining an online Recycling game, and creating art from a variety of recycled materials. The teens occupied the kitchen to delve into Why A Plant-based Diet? They prepared three delicious dishes and ate them during a discussion about different aspects of our climate challenge. Kids and adult leaders alike had fun with these explorations! Contact Rev. Kären Rasmussen (karenmrasmussen@aol.com) for questions about the program. | | | | | Independent Films and the Climate Crisis In this "post-truth" era, environmentalists and scientists are using independent films to get their messages out about the climate crisis and its impact. 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 here. Ramp up to 50th Anniversary of Earth Day with UUMFE and UUSJ 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) to 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. Details to follow next month. UUMFE is encouraging UU congregations to bring a film screening of the award-winning documentary, “The Condor and the Eagle,” co-produced by UU Ministry for Earth, to your congregation or community for World Water Day (March 22). A screening toolkit with full instructions, promotional resources, and a film discussion guide are available here. | | | | | | | | | | | | June March in DC Rev. Dr. William Barber II and Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis called on an area interfaith crowd to join the Poor People’s Campaign’s (PCC) Mobilizing, Organizing, Registering and Educating (MORE) assembly and march on Washington this summer. The June 20 event is part of the PPC’s “We Must Do M.O.R.E. Tour.” Rev. Barber and Rev. Theoharis talked about how race and other social constructions are used to divide Americans politically against their own best economic, social and moral interests. Rev. Katie Roman Griffin was a speaker at the Washington, DC tour stop rally, which was also attended by Rev. Dr. Linda Olson Peebles and Rev. Rebekah Savage and many area Unitarian Universalists. Both Unitarian Universalist Association and UUSJ endorse the Poor People’s Campaign and are committed to fighting the distorted moral narrative, systemic racism, poverty, the war economy and ecological devastation as part of intersectional and interfaith social justice work. For UUSJ, this means confronting what Rev. Barber calls policy violence against and structural oppression of the poor, disenfranchised, and marginalized to the detriment of our larger social good and moral health as a nation. Check the PPC’s main page under events to find details, or connect to state committees. | | | | Poor People's Mass Assembly and March on Washington
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 | | | | | | | | |  | Multiple Election Engagement Tools and Guides Available to UUs | | | | | | | | | Other Social Justice Issues | |  | UUSJ Joins Women’s March A number of UUs participated in the Women’s March on Jan. 18. Here, Lavona Grow (left) and Charlotte Jones-Carroll share their messages. A Discussion of Implicit Bias Sunday, February 23
12:30 - 2:30 PM ET
River Road Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 6301 River Road, Bethesda, MD People can be committed to egalitarianism but still, be biased. Join us to consider the impact of implicit bias. For more information, contact Rita at ritarpva@yahoo.com Toward a More Equitable & Inclusive Society Workshop with Dr. Michael Baran Saturday, February 29
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM ET
UU Congregation of Frederick, 4880 Elmer Derr Rd., Frederick MD If almost everyone wants to be a good person, why do exclusion and inequality persist? Learn tools to reduce our biases, interrupt problematic behavior, and grow as individuals. Tickets: $15 at frederickuu.org/baran (or $20 at the door)
Cost includes a pre-release copy of Dr. Baran’s new book Subtle Acts of Exclusion: How to Understand, Identify, & Stop Microaggressions. All proceeds benefit Justice Jobs of Maryland (justicejobsmd.org). Event Flyer here | | | | | | | | Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice (UUSJ)
7750 16th St NW, | Washington, District of Columbia 20012
202-600-9132 | info@uusj.org | | | | | | | | | |
