The Human Right to Water in South Africa

One of the Social Justice partners that UUA President Sinkford met with during his November 2008 Pilgrimage to Africa was the Coalition Against Water Privatization (CAWP). CAWP has led the grassroots struggle in South Africa to assure access to safe drinking water, especially in low-income neighborhoods. Leaders provided Sinkford and his companions with a crash-course in the reality of the struggle against Water Privatization in South Africa, and specifically in the community of Phiri in Soweto. CAWP leaders described the scheme developed by the City of Johannesburg to privatize the city's water supply, and specifically the installation of a pre-paid water meters in neighborhoods in Soweto. CAWP won a crucial judicial victory that labeled these efforts as unconstitutional, though during President Sinkford's visit that ruling was still under appeal.

On March 25, 2009 the South African Appellate Court issued a new ruling which the UU Service Committee describes as

upholding in part the [original] trial court's decision ordering the City of Johannesburg and its local water authority to change how they provide water to residents in Phiri, a low-income community in Soweto. However, the appellate court declined to affirm the trial court's constitutional finding as to the illegality of the water authority's practice of forcibly installing prepaid meters in those neighborhoods. Community groups plan to appeal this and other elements of the appellate decision. (Full Story)

Following the ruling, CAWP organizers described his continuing commitment to fight for the human right to water in his community and around the world. The UUSC has a variety of resources to help UU congregations become involved as well.

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Photostream from Transylvanian Bishop's Installation

On March 6, 2009 the 31st Bishop of the Transylvanian Unitarian Church - Reverend Balint Benczedi Ferenc - was installed during a ceremony at the Unitarian Church in Kolozsvár.

Photos by Rev. Molnar Lehel

Witnessing on the Sixth Anniversary of the War with Iraq—Fulfill the Promise: End the Occupation

By Susan Leslie, Director, UUA Office for Congregational Advocacy & Witness

On Saturday, a coalition of Unitarian Universalist congregations from the Mass Bay District and the UUA, Military Families Speak Out, and United for Justice with Peace (a MA coalition of peace and justice organizations) gathered on the Boston Common and read the names of all the US military personnel killed in Iraq since the war began six years ago.

There were eight UU parish ministers and representatives and groups from 15 UU congregations (Marblehead, Dedham, Cambridge, Concord, Arlington Street Church, Community Church, First Parish Arlington, Sharon, Jamaica Plain, Sherborn, Middleboro, Beverly, Bedford, No Andover, and Stow). A group of UU young adults who had heard about the event on Facebook came together from Western MA to the Metro Boston area. College students from Bridgewater State also picked up on the Facebook listing, checked out www.uua.org/socialjustice and came carrying peace signs.

The names were read for six minutes at a time, followed by the ringing of a gong. Every hour there was a minute of silence for the Iraqi victims. Members of military families spoke gave testimonials including Bonnie Gorman and Gold Star Mother Malida Arredondo. [The Arredondo family circled the Common with their flatbed truck exhibit for Gold Star Families to End the War and sent passersby over to our Witness event.] They spoke of the pain and suffering of losing loved ones in an “ill-begotten war” and they called for healthcare and jobs for returning soldiers. Patrick Daugherty, of Iraq Veterans Against the War, called for a justification for President Obama’s plan to leave 50,000 troops in Iraq.

Rev. Wendy von Zirpolo, minister, UU Church of Marblehead, MA, presided over the event and began by saying:

We gather today in worshipful remembrance of those lost in the United States war with Iraq. Although it seems unreal that we mark a sixth year of US Occupation, the consequences are all too real for many here. We mark with great sadness over 4300 US deaths. We mark with a different sadness all the Iraqi deaths. Some reports are of up to 1 million victims. Neither lesser or greater, but each arriving with a host of other emotions. We gather for more than remembrance of these lost lives, however. We come here with a call to Fulfill the Promise, to End the Occupation, to recognize the cost of the occupation upon Iraq and stand accountable. to tell the truth about those who have returned and how we as a nation will own their stories and tend to their needs. We gather because it matters. We gather because it was on our watch that we arrived in Iraq and we must be quite sure that we bring them home. Thank you for joining us here today.

She ended our time together with these words:

We gather with heavy hearts.
Among us, those grieving the unimaginable. Those who have lost loved ones.
Among us are those who served alongside comrades who would not return, and those who would return, forever altered..
Among us are those who know war too well. Those who served faithfully and know death in ways that inhabit nightmares and on some days, waking hours.

We gather with hopeful hearts as well.
Among us, those looking to a new way of being in the world. A way that will lead to a more rapid return of our soldiers.
Among us, those looking with new eyes at raising awareness of the needs of those already home, but facing economic and health issues that should shame our nation.
Among us, those who know that change will not arrive without our voice – our call to fulfill the promise, end the occupation, tell the truth and take good care.

A picture and caption of the event was featured in The Boston Sunday Globe on March 22nd. We also got some good Indy coverage including a You Tube posting with lots of footage of Rev. Wendy and others.

Mass Peace Action posted a photo album of the witness.

It felt good to be standing with UUs and partners as we work to help President Obama end this immoral war that he too opposed. We remain faithful in our witness to end this war.

A Serious Accountability Problem

This entry was written by Diana Sands, LGBT Program Associate at the Unitarian Universalist UN Office.

From civil rights to human rights, what is at stake is humanity and dignity for all: the oppressed, their oppressors, and the spectators. Here I want to compare traditionally marginalized human rights issues in the United States with those in South Africa. Both countries have had significant controversy and advocacy around Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender (LGBT) and Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity (SOGI) human rights, and both countries have a serious accountability problem obstructing progress on these issues.

Across the United States, members of LGBT communities are struggling to have their families and relationships recognized and respected by laws and institutions. At the same time, LGBT rights defenders and average gender non-conforming people on the street in the U.S. (gay or not) have reason to fear that they could be targeted with sexual and physical violence. A recent report noted the spike in LGBT-targeted hate crimes in the wake of Proposition 8 in a county just south of San Francisco, California (from 15% in 2007 to 56% of all hate crimes in 2008). So we see a relationship between increasingly visible advocacy and violent backlash here in the U.S. (and in many other countries as well).

Much like Jim Crow and its legacy of de facto racial segregation, this relationship between advocacy and violence persists whether local legal criminalization statutes or protections exist or not. Our criminalization statutes in the U.S. were outlawed in 2003, but LGBTs continue to face de facto criminalization through adoption bans and immigration and asylum denials, trans and gender non-conforming people are arrested in bathrooms, and astounding numbers of homeless kids identify as LGB and/or T. When the Statement on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Human Rights was read at the General Assembly of the United Nations in December of last year (among other things denouncing criminal sanctions for SOGI worldwide), 66 countries from around the world signed it including every member of the Western Group, except for the United States. (News update: this week the Obama administration announced that it will support the statement).

Everywhere in the United States, we see LGBT police, corrections, and military personnel facing discrimination and violence in their workplace without recourse – and we also see police, corrections, and military personnel perpetrating horrific violence against LGBT people in detention with impunity. We have an accountability problem here in the United States when it comes to violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity. We have a problem with the alignment of our local and national civil rights laws with even the most basic tenets of human rights (see the Yogyakarta Principles for an example of what that looks like). And yet I observe generally that the feeling among LGBTs and their allies in the U.S. is that as violent (sexually, physically, and institutionally) as it can be here at times, this must be the safest place on earth to live – rights or no rights.

So for contrast, let’s look at another country where LGBT rights are a controversial issue and where the government also refused to sign the UN General Assembly Statement on SOGI and Human Rights: South Africa. South Africa stands out among African nations as the only country with discrimination based on sexual orientation explicitly outlawed in its constitution and it is also the only country where same-sex marriage is legally recognized by the state. As you probably know, both of these rights are denied in the United States. South African Anglican Archbishop and revered human rights advocate Desmond Tutu as well as South African UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanetham Pillay speak powerfully in support of sexual orientation and gender identity human rights, but it would be very hard to find a member of any LGBT communities in South Africa who believes that it is the safest place on earth for them to live.

With all of this visibility and legal protection for sexual orientation rights (‘gender identity’ is still a marginalized rights category in countries with progressive laws protecting sexual orientation), the level of violence against LGBTs in South Africa is shocking, even in comparison to the U.S. For example, UUA President William Sinkford and his delegation visited with the Triangle Project in Cape Town on his trip to South Africa in November of 2008. Speaking with the Triangle Project's Director of Community Services, Marlow Valetine, Rev. Sinkford learned of the prevalence of sexual violence targeted against women presumed or known to be lesbians. Specifically, Valentine recounted numerous cases of “corrective rape,” which is the popular notion that lesbians and gender non-conforming women can be “cured” of their behavior if they are raped by a man. (By contrast, this concept has not been reported to be applied to gay and gender non-conforming men although they are often raped by men as a ‘punitive’ measure). It is not that this horrific attack is inconceivable (because surely it could and does happen in the United States), but across South Africa sexual and physical violence against real and presumed lesbians is so pervasive that numerous organizations and campaigns have been launched to fight it. The Triangle Project reports that they deal with up to 10 cases of “corrective rape” a week!

This year, for the first time in a decade, a man has been convicted (by plea bargain) of raping and killing a prominent lesbian. One of athlete and advocate Eudy Simelane’s attackers was convicted last month, due mostly to the courageous activism and organizing by the Triangle Project, Joint Working Group, Coalition for African Lesbians, the 07-07-07 Campaign, and Simelane’s mother. However, even this progress is bittersweet because in the sentencing portion of the trial last month, the judge ruled that the sexual orientation of the victim was of no significance in the crime. This case represents a monstrous accountability problem in which ten years of cold cases of sexual assault and/or murder of lesbians and other women remain unresolved; further, when one man was finally held accountable, the state denied the whole reason for the death of the victim. In this example, rather than a decriminalization of sexual orientation and gender identity, it instead seems more like a de facto decriminalization of violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Non-state actors are policing sex and gender expression and their violence is condoned by state actors who do not hold them accountable to the laws of the state.

Here we see two countries with such different legal frameworks regarding sexual orientation which are still struggling for accountability to some legal standard of human-ness and whose citizens are still struggling for equality and dignity. What I would like for readers to take away from this blog entry today is that there is no “safest” or “most dangerous” place on earth for sexual and gender minorities. There are only places where the human rights of all people are more likely to be protected by laws, societies, and institutions. We have a lot to learn from freedom struggles in other places so it is important to keep informed about what is going on and maintain solidarity with them.

Aside from the two countries examined here, over 80 countries around the world still criminalize sexual activity between people of the same sex and many more condone state and individual violence against transgender and gender non-conforming people. Criminalization is tacit permission from the state for civil society and even religious institutions to police sex and gender expression. Rather than doing anything to prevent people from being gay and gender non-conforming (which we can assume is the intended purpose), criminalization only increases violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity with the assurance that attackers will not face accountability for their actions because the victims are not recognized as whole citizens by the state. However, as I tried to illustrate above, states without criminal statutes regarding sexual orientation and gender identity have a responsibility to actively protect the human rights of all people, especially ensuring accountability when SOGI human rights are violated. If not, the reality for people in those countries is no different than that of people living with criminalization. That dialog needs to take place at the United Nations and thanks to a wonderful grant from the Arcus Foundation, the Unitarian Universalist-UN Office is now working to facilitate it.

Prayer for Wholeness

by Rev. Meg Riley. Inspired by the participants at the Sexuality Education Advocacy Training (SEAT), 2009. For more information about SEAT, see the SEAT FAQ.

Sweet source of hope and healing, longing and life,

We know our first responsibility is to create a world which supports the growth of our world’s children

A world safe for them to explore, and to learn and grow, without being judged or punished.

A world safe for them to make mistakes, knowing there is nothing they can do to lose our love.
May we provide them with tools to protect themselves and those they love from decisions which hurt—information about the physical, spiritual, emotional aspects of sexuality.

May they know it is safe for them to come to us always, and we won’t make it worse.

We wish that life were simple.
We wish that unwanted pregnancies never occurred,

That no one engaged in any kind of sexual activity without protection and real choice, real response-ability,

That all people were equally valued.

We wish that every person knew his or her own beauty and worth, and thus that of the others with whom she or he interacted.

A child I love dearly, aged ten, was struggling with gender identity.

“Do you ever feel,” I prodded gently, trying to understand, “as if you were born into the wrong body?”

The young one paused for a moment of silence, and responded, “Nope, this is my body all right. I feel like I was born into the wrong world!”

We pray that we can make this wrong world a little bit more right for our children.

May they know and cherish their own bodies as sacred, beautiful, true.
May we create a world which reflects this back to them.

May we demand schools, governments, communities, which honor them

And in so doing, be worthy of this gift of life, this beautiful broken world.

Amen.

What do Michelle Obama and I Have In Common?

Last summer, the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association voted in our annual meeting to devote four years of study and action to the theme of Ethical Eating.

Congregations, communities and individual UUs all over the United States are asking questions about food. Where does it come from? Who grows it? Who gets access and how? How do we eat? How do we cook? How do we share the bounty? What happens when people don't have access to food? Vegan or compassionate omnivore? Is it better to eat locally or organically?

Which brings me back to the question posed in the title of this post: What do Michelle Obama and I have in common? Not a whole lot. But we do have yards at our homes. And in those yards, we will grow vegetables.

On Tuesday, Mrs. Obama announced that the groundskeepers of the White House compound will tear up a small portion of the lawn to grow an organic vegetable garden. Students from nearby Bancroft Elementary School will help break ground today.

This is quite the success for home gardeners everywhere who have been lobbying the President and First Lady for a kitchen garden at the White House. Famed Chef Alice Waters, whose restaurant Chez Panisse specializes in locally grown and sustainable food, was thrilled. Chef Waters was quoted by the AP saying,

It just tells you that this country cares about people's good health and about the care of the land. To have this sort of 'victory' garden, this message goes out that everyone can grow a garden and have free food.

This is not the first time the White House has grown its own. During WWII, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt grew a victory garden on the South Lawn. And before that, when the country was more agrarian, the White House grew much of its own food, including raising sheep that grazed on the White House Lawn.

Whether you call it urban farming, kitchen gardening, or victory gardening, growing your own fruits and vegetables is an incredibly rewarding experience. According to the New York Times, the White House Vegetable Garden will only cost $200 for compost and seeds. But the results will be worth a lot more than that. Fresh produce to be used in the White House kitchen, or my own, is a time and money saver. And when the bounty of summer comes, I like to give away my surplus vegetables to my neighbors.

In my neighborhood, the nearest food sources are bodegas, conveniences marts and corner stores. Here, you can occasionally find a hard, mealy, tomato or a soft, eye-ridden potato. Most everything else is frozen, bagged or in cans--high in salt, preservatives and sugar. The nearest grocery stores are a twenty minute walk. And the nearest farmer's market is two neighborhoods over, a forty-five walk. This is difficult for folks who may be single parents, elderly, or on low incomes.

But by growing and sharing vegetables right out of my yard, I bring much needed fruits and vegetables to my street.

I applaud the Obamas for starting their own vegetable garden at the White House. I also think it is great Mrs. Obama insists the First Daughters will be the ones weeding. This will help the girls understand where their meals come from and the work involved in growing the food. But most of all, I thank the family for the wonderful example they are setting.

California UU on immigration and white privilege

"While I always thought I shared common ground with other immigrants, I finally realize that a person of color might not see it that way." --Allyson McDonald

A month ago, an opinion piece titled Why We Need Color Consciousness by California Unitarian Universalist Allyson McDonald was published in the Milpitas Post.

Somehow I missed seeing the email in my inbox about it until now. But I'm very glad I went back and took the time to read her article. McDonald, a white immigrant from Canada, lays out how being white has made her immigrant experience a fundamentally privileged one, as opposed to the experiences of many immigrants of color. I recommend taking a moment to check it out.

See: Why We Need Color Consciousness, Milpitas Post, Feb. 18, 2009.

My Vision on the Anniversary of the War in Iraq

On this sixth anniversary of the Iraq war, guest blogger David Pyle, military veteran and candidate to be a UU military chaplain, shares his perspective.

I remember watching television six years ago today as the U.S. Military crossed the border into Iraq, in an operation known later as “Iraqi Freedom”. I remember feeling a conflict between my identity as a military veteran and my identity as a Unitarian Universalist. My growing Unitarian Universalist faith had brought me to a commitment never to personally carry a weapon again, and yet seeing those young men and women going into harm’s way, I felt that somehow I was supposed to be there with them.

In the months that followed, I wrestled with whether my faith called me to a personal pacifism, or whether I should re-enlist in the Army to be with the soldiers I had once trained as they went to war. The political questions about the conflict, the justifications made, the words said by politicians… all of this was distant compared to this deep spiritual question: Which is greater, the responsibility I feel to my self and my faith, or the responsibility I feel to those young men and women with whom I had once served?

As “Shock and Awe” was talked about and images of combat and falling statues dominated our media, I sat at my television in this spiritual conflict. I talked to recruiters about how I might put the uniform back on, and I kept silent at church for fear they would not understand. Over a period of months, I came to the realization that my personal faith would not allow me to carry a weapon ever again. That seemed to be the end of the question, until I realized over a year later that it was possible to do both, as a Unitarian Universalist Minister serving as a Military Chaplain.

One of the most common questions that Unitarian Universalists without military experience ask about military ministry is whether our liberal faith is attractive to or can be understood by those serving in the military. Unitarian Universalist military veterans never ask this question, because they know from their own lives how much our faith can speak to the military experience, how it can even seem like salvation. Even with my own experience as a soldier, I do not think I realized the profound depth of what Unitarian Universalism offers to those who serve until I began presenting weekly Unitarian Universalist Worship at the Great Lakes Naval Station, Recruit Training Command.

For over two years, students at the Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago and members of the Unitarian Church of Evanston, Illinois have facilitated a Sunday Morning Unitarian Universalist worship service for the naval recruits going through basic training. Begun by myself and a fellow UU seminarian and military servicemember, Seanan Holland, the service reaches almost 1000 young women and men per year with a message of inherent worth, interdependence, love, and hope. Though some of our recruits have been life-long UU’s or attended UU churches before, the vast majority are encountering our liberal faith for the first time. Depending on the time of year, each service draws between 20 and 90 recruits every Sunday morning.

If there is one thing I have personally learned from being with these young women and men these past two years, it is that Unitarian Universalism speaks deeply to who they are, and what they are facing in basic training and in the years to come. A faith that recognizes the inherent worth of all is profound, because they are often questioning their own worth. A faith that teaches interdependence is profound, because they are learning to be interdependent upon one another. A faith that challenges them to spiritual growth is profound, because basic training is a time of deep personal transformation. It is empowering to show that they can have a profound impact on who they want to be in this world.

In the last six months, we have encountered a new trend among the recruits who attend UU Worship. Many are seeking ways that they can continue to practice and identify as Unitarian Universalists in the years to come. They ask for help in finding the nearest UU congregation to their next assignment. They ask for a way to connect with the Church of the Larger Fellowship while they are serving overseas (www.clfuu.org/military). They ask for a symbol of a chalice that they can wear on their Identification Tags. While we can help with the first two, we do not have the funding to provide the ID Tag Chalices… yet.

Because for me, this ministry is about planting a seed of Unitarian Universalism, a seed of liberal faith. That seed may grow now, in the case of those who are asking for ways to identify with and connect to our religious movement beyond basic training. That seed may also grow later, when the experiences of their lives show them that they need a faith and a church with the healing message of universal love and grace. Such a seed sprouted in me, almost ten years after a military chaplain first said “Unitarian Universalism” to me, and was a part of my healing after I served as a Peacekeeper in Bosnia y Herzegovina.

I believe that there is no more profound act of social justice than bringing our values and principles into communities where they are needed, before they are needed. If we begin these young men and women on a path of thinking of the inherent worth and the interdependence of all at the beginning of their military service, perhaps we bring the military as a whole closer to our values and principles. And maybe, just maybe, bringing our principles and values into our military communities can bring our world closer to healing and peace.

This is my vision on this anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq War.

Yours in Faith,

David Pyle
MOD Minister, Great Lakes Military Ministry
Candidate for the UU Ministry
U.S. Army Chaplain Candidate

Anti-Racism and Organizing: An Unstoppable Force for Change!

Susan Leslie is the Director of the UUA Office for Congregational Advocacy & Witness.

I’m just back from the UU Allies for Racial Equity Conference at All Souls UU Church in Kansas City MO, held on March 13-15th. I feel profoundly grateful for the opportunity to gather with other white allies and ground myself in an understanding of what Rev. Rebecca Parker refers to in Soul Work as my social location. To continue to cultivate an awareness of how my white middle-class position affects my worldview, my assumptions, and the ways I interact in multi-racial coalitions and organizations.

I had the privilege to be invited to speak on a panel at the All Souls Forum on March 15th on the topic of Post Racial America?

Several people asked that I post my remarks from the Forum and so I have below.

Does the election of President Obama mean that we’ve entered a post-racial era?

NO. Not yet. My understanding is that we can’t say or claim that until we have eliminated all systemic inequities based on race. And that will be not only through eliminating policies that create inequity but by redressing existing inequities through pro-active measures to create equality such as reparations. That’s going to come from a persistent effort of addressing this through government policies, the private sector, civic society – which includes us in the religious community — and changing individual attitudes and behaviors.

To claim that we are already a post-racial society is to miss the real significance and opportunity of this moment. However, whether we are or not is not really the most important question right now. What’s crucial is to grasp that there has been a sea-change – that’s been a long time coming – and the moment is here to make huge strides in dismantling racism and oppression.

A new multicultural, multiracial coalition came into being that elected President Obama – a coalition of African American, Latino, whites and others – that became possible through the growth and political activation of communities of color and because enough whites have shifted in attitudes and political understandings.

This past December, I had the privilege to attend a gathering of 3,000 people from congregation-based community organizations, labor unions, and advocacy groups who came from all over the country to meet with President Obama’s Team and key congressional leaders. It was called Realizing the Promise. It was absolutely the most diverse gathering I have ever attended in terms of race, ethnicity, region, faith, class, and age. It was amazing!

The theme of the gathering was similar to the message that environmental justice leader Van Jones delivered to the UU General Assembly last year -- that it’s time to learn to govern. The agenda called for universal health care, immigration reform, economic recovery, and new green jobs and asked for commitments from the White House staff and Congressional leaders – which we got. (See my report Faith-Based Community Organizations Prepare to Govern about this historic meeting and what the administration representatives said.)

We now have the opportunity to bring our visions and to make our voices heard in the White House and Congress and in the national conversation.

Dismantling racism needs to be done system by system at national policy levels and the local and grassroots level.

The new coalition that has emerged understands that we are all interconnected and that sound policy must reflect that.

To eliminate racism and oppression – to create equality – we need health care for all, more resources for schools that serve communities of color and low-income families; tax policies that DO redistribute income; immigration reform that keeps families together; trade policies that don’t drive people out of their native countries in order to escape extreme poverty; labor laws that protect workers and ensure a living wage; restorative justice not criminal justice; energy policies that create sustainability and jobs and that don’t dump toxins into the most vulnerable communities.

We now have a president that understands that the solutions to dismantling institutional oppression are interlocked and that institutional policies need to be changed in every sector – brick by brick. We have a president that models caring, compassion, and accountability, and wants to do that.

Our role is to keep lifting up and advocating for that vision, to offer solutions, and to deliver the grassroots (and grasstops), and to do that in a way that is accountable to and in solidarity with historically marginalized communities. That’s our piece of the partnership.

What does this partnership look like? It looks like the thousands who went to Phoenix a few weeks ago calling for an investigation into Sheriff Arpaio’s abusive treatment of immigrants. (The UUA and UUs from Arizona were very involved in the organizing and turnout.) And this week the Dept of Justice announced a full investigation and an overhaul of the 287g policies that authorize local enforcement of federal immigration law. We have some power here. That would not have happened 3 months ago!

This partnership looks like the passage of SCHIP (State Children’s Health Insurance Program) that just covered 10 million children (including 4 million immigrants – they were not left out) that the PICO National Network organized around the country and that President Obama signed into law -- and like the movement now building for universal health care led by Health Care for America Now and others.

It looks like the network of educators that our partner Spirit in Action is bringing together to address the inequalities in education and to develop a report and proposal for delivery to the new Secretary of Education.

It looks like Van Jones being appointed this week as the administration’s Green Jobs Czar. Hilda Solis, daughter of immigrant union organizers, as Secretary of Labor. Melody Barnes, as Director of the Domestic Policy Council; Valerie Jarrett, White House Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Relations and Public Liaison. Cecelia Muñoz, Senior Vice President of LaRaza’s Advocacy Office appointed as the administration’s Director of Intergovernmental Affairs!

We have an organizer in the White House! We have a huge organizing job in front of us now and we have partners in power!

To be successful we need to know the rules, we need to understand how systemic racism plays out and operates, and what we have to do to undo it. We need specific solutions and policies that are based on what the people most affected identify as needed, backed by the political power to institutionalize them.

Yes there will be struggle –- the socialism charge continues to rear its head –- ugly racial epithets –- and worse, burnings of black churches have occurred. It’s coming from those who feel they’re losing their power. We have to take it on -– we can’t ignore it or give it too much power –- we need to go after it swiftly -- be savvy and contain it.

But to be alive and awake right now is to really grasp that we have an opportunity to transform society in a way that hasn’t existed for the past 40 years.

So-- post-racial society? Not yet –- but I’m betting that a post-racial United States may be where my potential future grandchildren live.

Sixth Year in Iraq This Week

This week, we mark the sixth year our forces have acted as an occupying force in Iraq. Since the initial invasion we have seen thousands of US, Coalition and Iraqi lives lost. We have seen billions of dollars wasted and lots of lost opportunities.

While we mourn the loss of lives and resources, we also celebrate our successes. President Obama may have inherited this war, but he is acting quickly to end it in a safe and responsible manner. He has promised a redeployment home of 12,000 military personnel this summer followed by a near complete withdrawal of troops by the end of 2010. However, we are disappointed that a total of 50,000 troops will remain without a clear and concrete mission or time line.

We encourage your congregation to participate in the Iraq Memorial To Life and work to finish the job in Iraq in a timely manner.

Please visit our Iraq War pages at uua.org/socialjustice to find out how you can recognize this milestone as well as support our veterans and reconciliation with the citizens of Iraq.

Repeal "Don't Ask Don't Tell" Now!

On Friday March 13^th, Unitarian Universalists joined with hundreds of other Americans at a “Freedom to Serve” rally on Capitol Hill. People from all across the country - military, retired military, federal workers, and civilians - gathered to raise their voices for equality and call upon Congress and President Obama to take action to repeal "Don't Ask Don't Tell," (DADT) the policy which requires the military to fire people if they are discovered to have same sex partners. The message was clear: The time to stop unjust discrimination against gay, lesbian, and bisexual members of the military is now. Guest speakers included Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and Rear Admiral Jamie Barnett, US Navy (Ret) from the Mount Vernon Unitarian Church.

UUs can have a significant impact on this issue. If each and every UU would reach out to his or her Senator and Representative by e-mail, phone, fax and/or letter and encourage them to support the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (HR 1283) repealing DADT and replacing it with a policy of non-discrimination, DADT could be repealed during this Congress. Our UU voices can give Congress and our President the courage they need to move this legislation forward. Click here to learn more and take action today.

Happy (Belated) Birthday Joseph Priestley!

Last Friday was the 176th birthday of Rev. Joseph Priestley. Rev. Priestley has been credited (sometimes fairly, sometimes unfairly) as the man who discovered the implications of oxygen, invented soda water, founded modern day Unitarianism, tore apart the friendship of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, was a seditious alien, and as Benjamin Franklin said, "an honest heretic."

I just read an excellent new book about Rev. Priestly called, The Invention of Air, by Steven Johnson.

Below is a very good interview of Johnson on the Colbert Report last week.

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We have a lot to thank Joseph Priestly for. Not only did he set the basis for the faith we share, his isolation of oxygen from plants sparked the first major environmentalist movement of the modern western world.

His invention of soda water, allows for one my favorite vices--namely carbonated beverages.

His involvement in the American and French Revolutions through his political writings helped shape early American culture.

But in my book, what I really appreciate about Priestley is his willingness to share ideas. Johnson writes that Priestly was an unapologetic over-sharer. He had no problems with sharing his ideas, bouncing new thoughts off of friends, and publishing his extremely detailed notes of handmade instruments. In the enlightenment era he lived in, property rights were just starting to incorporate creative and intellectual products. Many of Priestley's intellectual enemies profited directly from his own lack of intellectual discretion.

But in many ways, Priestley's proclivity to sharing ideas and his vast and prolific publications led to the open source, creative commons, and DIY movements of today.

Just as Priestley would spend hours in London's coffeeshops distributing and collecting ideas from his peers, we have seen people do the same today. Believing that intellectual freedom breeds innovation and advancement; makers, crafters, programmers, etc. have blown open the old paradigm of intellectual property rights through the Internet.

People like Lawrence Lesig have innovated the way we think about political lobbying through his Open Congress Initiative. Linus Torvalds started a movement to make computer operating systems built by users for uses through Linux. Movements like Maker Faire and unconferences allow many people to come around a theme but work unrestricted by schedules to be creative and open to new possibilities.

So happy birthday Rev. Priestley! We celebrate your life and mind! I lift my fizzy water to you while tinkering over my crafts and gadgets I share with my friends and peers.

Violence Returns to Northern Ireland

When I speak with ministers or seminarians, they all agree: their clinical pastoral education turned their theology lessons from theory to reality. There is nothing like comforting the dying, praying with a prisoner, or helping a student discern her calling to experience the beauty and grace of the divine.

For me, as someone who studied peace theory in college, my theory did not become reality until I went to Northern Ireland. Peace, there, was always a tenuous ideal despite the fact that it had been a little less than a decade since Catholic and Protestant leaders signed the 1998 Peace Accord, creating a power sharing agreement between Catholic Nationalists and Protestant Unionists.

Violence in Northern Ireland definitely had been reduced, but had not disappeared. While violence based on religious backgrounds had grown out of societal favor, we had seen increased hate crimes against recent immigrants and surrounding perceived gender and sexuality. The drug trade and organized crime also lead to an increase of street violence.

For the people of Northern Ireland, politics, religion and culture is a big stew of memory and hurt. While the dividing systems of The Troubles are under deconstruction, it is nearly impossible to fully bring together such a divided and segregated society. Even if every sectarian mural was painted over, every "security fence" taken down, and every bench scrubbed clean of graffiti, it would be a herculean task to reconcile a city such as London/Derry, which has literally polarized its different factions of population on opposite sides of a river.

During my time in Northern Ireland, people were happy for the peace accord. Democracy was blooming as power sharing negotiations had begun again and the local government returned to order after a five year hiatus. People were hopeful again.

But tension lingered. Sectarian violence always seemed to be a possibility. Anger and frustration churned just below the surface, like a pot of water just before it starts to boil. The question was: would sectarianism ever come to the surface and erupt again?

Last Sunday, two British soldiers were gunned down by the Republican paramilitary, RIRA (Real Irish Republican Army), stationed in Northern Ireland's County Antrim before they left for Afghanistan. And again, the next day, a different Republican paramilitary, CIRA (Continuity Irish Republican Army) took credit for the first murder of a police officer in over ten years.

Immediately the leadership of Sinn Fein, the majority Catholic Republican party in Northern Ireland, denounced the violence. Martin McGuinness, former leader of the Provisional IRA and Deputy Leader of the party called the dissident Republicans "traitors" to the peace process. He added that the CIRA and RIRA "don't deserve to be supported by anyone."

Strong words from a man convicted in 1987 of setting bombs that killed eleven.

As the Northern Ireland Assembly met at Stormont (the Capitol building of Northern Ireland) on Monday, the Sinn Fein Leadership stood and offered a moment of silence for the fallen soldiers and police officer. Republican Leadership offering a moment of silence for fallen British soldiers was a sight unthinkable as little as five years ago.

I was deeply moved by seeing the Nationalist and Republican responses to this violence. It is a strong testament to the peace process and the power of reconciliation. Yesterday, a friend in Northern Ireland posted pictures from the rally in Belfast. All over the province, over 200,000 people (about 1/6th of the population of Northern Ireland) came out for a silent protest against the violence.

As Minister McGuinness put it, in many ways this violence has "strengthened the peace process."

Many people wondered what the radical Loyalist factions would say about the killings. Thus far, they have been positive.

Jackie McDonald, head of the largest Loyalist paramilitary--Ulster Defense Association (UDA)--has echoed Minister McGuinness' statements saying, "The IRA blew the two communities apart during the Troubles but the Real IRA and Continuity IRA have actually united the people like never before."

While the major political leaders and much of the population have decried the violence, it is not over yet. A threat of a "major" and "considerable" bomb being smuggled onto the island by CIRA and/or RIRA has caused a cross-border task force of the Northern Ireland Police Service and the Republic of Ireland's Garda Siochana (Guardians of the Peace). So far, two people have been arrested in connection to that threat but no device has been found.

Message from Amnesty International: End sexual violence against Native American women

This afternoon I got the following alert from Amnesty International. Please take a moment to look over the facts below and call your Senator. If you can't do it today, then make a call tomorrow or Friday. Senators need to hear from as many people as possible on this important issue.

FROM AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL:

Native American and Alaska Native women face a 1 in 3 chance of being raped in their lifetime.
Call your Senators today to support the Tribal Law and Order Act.The numbers are shocking.

In our report, Maze of Injustice, we uncovered the staggering statistic that Native American and Native women are more than two and a half times more likely to be raped or sexually assaulted than women in the USA in general.

Thankfully, our insiders on Capitol Hill say the Senate is considering re-introducing the Tribal Law and Order Act, a bill that would help fix this broken system of justice.

That's why we've made this week the national call-in week for women's rights. Call your Senators today and ask them to support the Tribal Law and Order Act.

Our call-in page will give you phone numbers, detailed talking points and a sample script. If passed, the Tribal Law and Order Act would do two critical things:

• Clarify jurisdiction between federal, state, tribal and local governments, and
• Increase coordination between their law enforcement agencies for responding to violent crime against American Indians.

Non-Native men who rape Native American and Alaska Native women can often do so with impunity, because of a lack of tribal authority to prosecute non-Native people who commit crimes of sexual violence on tribal lands. Most perpetrators are never punished because of a complex maze of tribal, state and federal jurisdictions that is so confusing that officials are often not clear on who is responsible for responding. This maze of injustice is exactly what the Tribal Law and Order Act would help fix.

Pick up the phone now and call your Senators to support and cosponsor legislation for Native American and Alaska Native women after it is introduced in the Senate.

We promise it will take you less than two minutes. Our call-in page has everything you need, including phone numbers, talking points and even a sample script.Without your phone call the Tribal Law and Order Act may never see the light of day. Thank you for joining the hundreds of others who will call this week to support women's rights.

Sincerely,

Meredith Larson
Director, Stop Violence Against Women Campaign
Amnesty International, USA

Ending ICE Raids

The call for a moratorium on ICE raids is gaining momentum! This past Sunday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi joined hundreds of families Saturday evening at a church in San Francisco's Mission District demanding an end to the immigration raids and deportations that separate parents from children across the United States. (See Pelosi Calls for an End to Inhumane Raids.)

I’m proud to say that the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations was the first religious denomination to call for an end to the raids and deportations that are tearing families apart causing fear and repression in immigrant communities and sorrow and disruption in all communities where school friends are losing parents, businesses are losing workers, and anti-immigrant sentiment is bolstered.

The UUA joined the New Sanctuary Movement in 2007 and passed an Action of Immediate Witness that year to end the raids. Since then the Catholic Conference of Bishops has called for a moratorium on the raids as well. Two coalitions that the UUA works with, Interfaith Worker Justice and Welcoming Massaschusetts, have also called for an end to the raids and unjust deportations.

Congregations wishing to take this stand can sign the New Sanctuary Movement Pledge.

(Please let me know that you did by writing to sleslie@uua.org -- so far 12 congregations have done so). MA congregations can also do so at the Welcoming MA site. Soon, there will be a Welcoming America site that will include CO, GA, ID, MA, NB, NC, NY and TN and other states. The launching conference is in April.

For the first time in a long time, it’s looking like a humane and just policy toward immigrants has a likelihood of passing. See our website for more information about the UUA’s advocacy efforts for just immigration reform.

Note: In May, the Action of the Month will be on Immigration and this year's Public Witness at General Assembly in Salt Lake City will be immigrant rights.

SUCCESS! Department of Justice launches investigation of Sheriff Joe Arpaio

If you signed the America's Voice petition . . . if you marched in Phoenix . . . if you took a moment to learn about the issue, ask what you could do, or say a prayer . . . then you are responsible in part for the victory related in the press release below from the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. Thank you for your heart, and your voice, and your hard work.

¡Sí se puede!

PRESS RELEASE: DOJ Launches Investigation of Sheriff Joe Arpaio: Advocates Call for Immediate Termination of 287g Contract with DHS

Press Conference on Capitol Hill, 1 pm, March 11.
Contact: Chris Newman, 323-717-5310, newman@ndlon.org
Date: March 10, 2009

On March 10, Acting Assistant Attorney General Loretta King sent a letter to Sheriff Joe Arpaio announcing a Department of Justice investigation of alleged "discriminatory police practices and unconstitutional searches and seizures conducted by the MCSO," among other alleged violations of federal law. A copy of the letter is available here. The formal investigation follows a request by Congressman Conyers that the DOJ take action to respond to myriad complaints of racial profiling in Maricopa Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon first requested a DOJ investigation nearly a year ago. And on February 28, over 5,000 people marched four miles through Phoenix to ask the the federal government to immediately terminate its 287g(g) contract with Joe Arpaio.

On March 11, at 1 pm, advocates from across the country and civil rights leaders will join elected officials, including Congressman Conyers and Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox, to discuss the investigation in a press conference on Capitol Hill.

"We are very hopeful a Department of Justice investigation will vindicate the rights of people who have been terrorized by Sheriff Arpaio," said Salvador Reza of the PUENTE movement in Phoenix, AZ. "We also hope the Obama administration will immediately terminate the US government's 287(g) contract with Maricopa County while the judicial process takes its course."

"The federal government has the obligation to reform immigration laws and to uphold the Constitution," said Pablo Alvarado, director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. "Its failure to act has resulted in an emerging civil and human rights crisis."

To learn more about Sheriff Joe Arpaio's abuses of the 287(g) program, see NDLON's Video Timeline of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Abuses.

Witness: Human Rights and the Arts

I often find myself wading through history’s blood-stained swamp of violence in search of fleeting sources of hope. This experience speaks more, I believe, to the way in which history is recorded than to the human condition itself. For the very act of canonizing authoritative perspectives in turn produces those marginal narratives of overcoming hardship that slip beneath the cracks. Over time, I have discovered that some of the most powerful, yet heretofore invisible, accounts of human faith carry with them creative outpourings of unparalleled ‘beauty’ – Negro Spirituals, underground anti-Nazi films, resistance literature of the colonized, etc. It is with this appreciation for the arts that I eagerly attended Witness: Arts, Humanities, and Human Rights.

To witness is to testify personal knowledge, to communicate wit out of the depths of subjective experience. In celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Humanities Center and the Offices of President and Provost at Harvard University transformed the act of witness into an experiential event of artistic and humanistic creativity. Holding up the 27th Article protecting cultural life in community, the organizers sought to unveil the many ways in which emotional and imaginative testimony serves an aspirational role in transforming human relations. Subversive agency and empathetic intercession empower the arts to open up new worlds of interpretation and possibility. Organized by post-colonial theorist Homi Bhabha, the March 3rd event included interactive dance with ballet legend Damian Woetzel, original compositions by revered cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and a reading by Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, as well as many other international participants. In the face of global economic recession, uncompromising arms races and relentless ethnic, religious and gender-based brutality, the evening intentionally held up the political impulse of artistic expression to give voice to those wisps of hope so often hidden from history.

Van Jones is Our Nation's "Green Jobs Czar"

When the President's Recovery and Reinvestment Act was passed last month, $500 million was allocated to funding the 2007 Green Jobs Act (an increase of 400% over the original allocation). Since the creation of green jobs was one of the UUA's Legislative Objectives for the 111th Congress, we were thrilled. But we also knew that getting the money was only a small part of what needs to be done. Just as important is how the money would be spent. Who would be in charge.

With that in mind, we could not possibly be happier to hear that Van Jones has been confirmed to be the Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. (Green Jobs Czar has a ring to it, but that's not his actual job title nor is it accurate.)

In our opinion, no one could be more qualified than Van Jones. Van is the founder of Green For All, an organization devoted to environmental justice with whom the UUA works in partnership. Van is author the the best-selling book, "The Green Collar Economy: How one solution can solve our two biggest problems," which the UUA has helped to promote. And UUs are still talking about Van's Ware Lecture at General Assembly last year. Entitled Prepare to Govern, Van talked about a "Green New Deal" and challenged UUs to shift from protesters to leaders. To say that his presentation was well-received would be an understatement. The audience erupted into a standing ovation and Van ran into the crowd exchanging high-fives until he was finally engulfed in a group hug from young adult UUs.

Largely in response to Van's lecture, Advocacy & Witness (of which the Washington Office is a part) made funding for the creation of green jobs a legislative priority for the 111th Congress. At the time when we set these priorities, we didn't necessarily think it would be easy to accomplish, but we knew it had to be done, for the sake of the planet and for economic justice. Then Barack Obama was elected president, and the economy showed that it desperately needed restructuring... and all of the sudden, almost everyone is talking about a green economy, including the White House. When the Obama administration talked about lifting families out of poverty through green jobs, we all knew who had the new president's ear and were grateful for it.

Now that it's official, all we have to say is: Congratulations, Mr. Van Jones! Thanks for everything you've done so far. And we look forward to working with you as our nation continues transitioning towards an economy that is more just, more equitable, and more green.

La Journee Internationale de La Femme (International Women's Day)

Until a couple of years ago, I was virtually unaware of the fact that March 8th marked the celebration of International Women's Day in many countries around the world. The holiday reminded me of learning about women in history classes during "Women's History Month" every March in school. I didn't really see how women being featured but not integrated into the fabric of the stories in my textbook was going to change the world. I still don't think that celebrations such as Women's Day are sufficient to bring about social change on their own, but after participating in a festival during my Peace Corps service in West Africa, I see how they might help advance the work of those who are already struggling to improve women's lives

International Women's Day has roots in the struggles for fair pay and humane working hours for women who worked in factories and the movements for women's suffrage in the U.S. and Europe. Marches, momentum and labor organizing worldwide between the 1850s and 1908 led to the first International Women's Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1910. The widespread celebration of International Women's Day emerged from this conference, and the date of March 8th was set in 1914 as women around the world rallied for peace on the eve of the First World War. Today, International Women's Day is recognized as an official state holiday in 30 countries, including Burkina Faso.

From 2006 to 2008, I lived and worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in the village of Diapangou in the Eastern Region of Burkina Faso. I had the privilege of working with many talented and charismatic community leaders. In 2007, my community was among those selected to receive government funding for its Women's Day celebrations, and I offered my help in organizing a short play about girls' education. The celebrations that day included a bicycle race for women at dawn, parades, speeches, and our theater piece about a girl who has trouble succeeding in school because she has too many chores at home and whose parents would rather marry her off than keep spending money on her schooling. We presented our skit to over 300 villagers that had come from the 30 or so surrounding villages. My Peace Corps colleagues held similar events in their own communities, taught high school girls about the community and political leadership of West African women, and one dressed in a women's wrap skirt and pumped water for women in his village all day. A teacher at my village high school made a point of cooking for his wife all day - no small feat when cooking involves tending an outdoor fire for hours, preparing ingredients from the market, and cleaning a freshly killed chicken. People ranging from dignitaries to village elders had outfits or shirts made from the special print of fabric that commemorates the 8th of March each year.

Many people question the effectiveness of International Women's Day Celebrations. Devoting one day a year to awareness of women's work, health, and struggles for equality in cultures where gender-based violence and oppression is widespread (including the U.S.A) is clearly not enough to change structures of power and privilege. However, I found that after the theater production, people in my village understood better why I was there. Villagers continued to talk about the event for months afterwards, always thanking me for my involvement in helping to start converstaions about girls' education. These conversations were an important part of how the community came to trust me and my counterparts. The celebration opened doors for discussions about women's roles in our community, education, health and nutrition, and as a result, I was able to educate girls and women about reproductive health and family planning and help form a grassroots organization to support widows and orphans in my village. International Women's Day won't change the world, but it offers many of us a place from which to start.

Pelosi calls for end to inhumane raids

Representative Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) is conducting a national tour with the theme "Family Unity" to document the harm caused to our communities by the absence of comprehensive immigration reform. Gutierrez is attending community meetings, prayer vigils and town halls across the country for thousands of U.S. citizens whose families have been or risk being torn apart by a broken immigration system.

On Saturday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi attended one of the Family Unity events at a church in San Francisco. She joined hundreds of families to demand an end to inhumane immigration raids and deportations that separate parents from children. "Taking parents from their children . . . . that's un-American," she said.

Read coverage of the event and Pelosi's comments at SFGate.com - Pelosi: End raids splitting immigrant families

Learn more about the Family Unity tour, follow them on Twitter, and check for events near you.

On a related note, though not part of the tour, Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) spoke out against raids in his article Toward Humane Immigration Enforcement last Friday.

California Supreme Court Case on Marriage Equality

Yesterday, the California Supreme Court began hearing arguments in the case challenging Proposition 8, which was passed by a majority of California voters in the November elections. The case was brought by two groups of same-sex couples and by a group of local governments including San Francisco. It centers on the idea that although the measure was drafted as a constitutional amendment, it actually goes beyond the rights of voters by denying a fundamental right granted by the court to a traditionally marginalized group.

The plaintiffs contend that Prop 8 not only changes the California State Constitution, but violates its core principle of equality and thus constitutes a revision to the constitution rather than an amendment. In order to revise the constitution, California requires a two-thirds vote of the State Legislature or the approval of delegates to a constitutional convention. The outcome of the case will also determine the fate of 18,000 same sex marriages that occurred legally between May and November of 2008.

So far, according to an article from the San Francisco Chronicle, the court seems likely to uphold Proposition 8 but also to specify that couples who were legally married before the passage of Prop 8 will remain so. As quoted by the Chronicle, Therese Stewart, the chief deputy city attorney in San Francisco states, "A guarantee of equality that is subject to exceptions by the majority is no guarantee at all".

The Unitarian Universalist Association filed an amicus curiae brief (PDF, 56 pages) with the California Supreme Court on January 14, 2009, asking the court to invalidate Proposition 8 as it poses a severe threat to the guarantee of equal protection for all and was not enacted through the constitutionally required process for such a dramatic change to the California Constitution. Click here to read more about Unitarian Universalist advocacy for marriage equality

The Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of Califorina continues to have a huge impact in the state's struggle for marriage equality. The court's ruling is due within 90 days, which coincides with many Gay Pride celebrations across the U.S. and worldwide. We hope that same sex couples and advocates of marriage equality will indeed have something to celebrate.

International Criminal Court Calls for Arrest of Sudan’s Al-Bashir

On Wednesday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for the arrest of Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir, along with many high level cabinet officials, for crimes against humanity. The warrant calls for any government to apprehend and extradite Al-Bashir to The Hague for trial. This is the first time a sitting President has been called before the Court.

As a result, Al-Bashir’s government has expelled over 10 foreign aid groups from the area including Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders and CARE International. The Sudanese President believes these organizations were responsible for giving the ICC enough evidence to indict him. Without these organizations the nearly 3 million displaced refugees in the area will have reduced access to food, clean water or medical facilities. Doctors Without Borders believes an untended to outbreak of cholera, meningitis or malaria would cause deaths in the thousands.We, at the UUA, are greatly saddened and disturbed to hear about the expulsion of the aid workers. Their presence in the camps is necessary for the health and safety of the residents.

During his presidential campaign, President Obama made very strong statements concerning the future of Darfur in Sudan. He said the United States must have “unstinting resolve” to solve the crisis there. So far, we have seen no movement on his part to act even after the call from the ICC. The UUA, a member of the Save Darfur Coalition, is asking you to send a postcard to President Obama to help end the violence in Darfur. You can send your postcard electronically and request hard copies for your congregation by visiting the Darfur Action Center.

Rev. William G. Sinkford, President of the UUA, encourages every UU to sign their postcard to President Obama. He believes this is an issue for all Americans, especially UUs to learn more about. President Sinkford says, “We felt called to speak out, to shine the light of truth into a region overshadowed by the worst form of government oppression… Neither innocence nor ignorance can excuse us from acting, but despite the outcries from the United Nations and much of the world community, the killing continues. We must do more.” See his complete remarks at http://uua.org/socialjustice/issues/internationalpeace/darfursudan/37400.shtml.

News from The Frontlines of Equality

Yesterday, the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (HR 1283) was introduced by Representative Ellen Tauscher from California. This bill enhances the readiness of the Armed Forces by replacing the current policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces, referred to as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," with a policy of nondiscrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Click here and search for "HR 1283" to see a summary of the bill and to find out if your representative is among the 121 cosponsors.

For more information on how you can support this bill by asking your representatives to cosponsor and/or vote for it, please see the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) website. SLDN is organizing a rally and lobby day on March 13th in Washington DC in order to gather support for this important piece of legislation. Please come if you are able and stay tuned to our social justice web pages for updated opportunities for action!

Thousands march against Arpaio in Phoenix, Arizona

On Saturday the 28th of February, community members of Phoenix, Arizona, and allies came together in a peaceful march to hold Sheriff Arpaio accountable for his maltreatment of immigrants. Estimates place the crowd between 3,000 and 5,000.

Forty members of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Phoenix, including Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, and about eight members of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson participated in the rally.

See coverage of the rally at Thousands March Against Arpaio in Arizona. Pictures from the rally taken by UU Craig McComb are below.

From top:
UU Church of Tucson (UUCT) banner, held by Craig McComb and Leila Pine.
UU Church of Phoenix banner held by members
Members of UU Church of Pheonix marching against Sheriff Arpaio

For more information about Sheriff Arpaio, see:

UUA.org-Honor thy Neighbor

UUA Action Page: 287(g) and Sheriff Arpaio

and Inspired Faith, Effective Action- Sign the Petition to Investigate Sheriff Arpaio

International Convocation of UU Women

Nearly 600 Unitarians, Unitarian Universalists, and progressive people of faith from approximately 20 countries gathered in Houston, Texas for the First International Convocation of UU Women from Thursday, February 26^th through Sunday, March 1^st. The theme of the Convocation was “Weaving Global Partnerships to Enrich Women's Lives”.

The Convocation was organized by a Steering Committee with representation from a diverse coalition of UU organizations and individual leaders who are focused on supporting the empowerment of Women domestically and internationally.

Throughout the Convocation participants enjoyed Worship and Music, Panel Presentations and Workshops, Keynote Speeches, Plenary Sessions, and joined together in small "Global Sisters" groups for reflection and planning. Presentations at the Convocation were offered by an exciting array of religious, academic, artistic, and social justice leaders. All of the events were organized around four Areas: Faith, Education about Women's Rights Worldwide, Action, and Transformation.

The Convocation began with an Opening Ceremony facilitated by Rev. Dorothy Emerson, and Margot Adler. It was expertly framed by the theme of “Earth, Air, Fire and Water”. Adler led the gathered community in chanting, and inspirational music was performed by both Carolyn McDade and emma's revolution. Participants were welcomed by the Honorary Chairperson of the Convocation, Maria Sinkford, by its Advisory Committee Chairperson, Barbara Beach, and UUA Moderator, Gini Courter. Each issued challenges to participants to create community, learn new ideas, find inspiration, and prepare to make commitments to action plans emerging from the convocation.

The theme speakers during the opening ceremony were Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards – authors of Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism and the Future. Baumgardner and Richards engaged with Margot Adler in a spirited and fascinating dialogue about “second wave” and “third wave” feminism.

Other "theme speakers" included Rebecca Adamson, founder of First Nations Development Institute and First Peoples Worldwide; Francis Moore Lappe, author of Diet for a Small Planet and co-founder of Food First; Reverend Rebecca Parker, President of Starr King School for the Ministry; Dr. Kalpana Kannabiran, founding member of Asmita Resource Centre for Women; Caren Grown, co-author of The Feminist Economics of Trade; Dr. Sharon Welch, Provost, Meadville/Lombard Theological School; and Rev. Meg Riley, Director of Advocacy and Witness, UUA. They were joined by nearly 60 panel discussion and workshop presenters on issues including "Making Education Available Worldwide", "Raising our UU Daughters as Global Leaders", "Singing in a Sacred Circle", and "UUs Ministering to Women: The UU Holdeen India Program".

During the final day of the Convocation, discussion of planning that took place throughout the event was led by UUA Moderator Gini Courter. Focus group leaders described the Convocation goals in three general categories:

Education
Health Care, and
Ending Violence against Women

In each category both domestic and international initiatives were described, along with a process for pursuing each goal. The goals will be pursued by individuals and congregations, with active support from the coalition of organizations that initiated the Convocation. The ICUUW itself will continue to provide administrative assistance in that process, and support the continuation of the Online Community it formed.

More information about the Convocation and the road ahead is available at http://www.icuuw.com.

Obama Iraq Strategy Video Response

Adam Gerhardstein, Acting Director of the UUA Washington Office, responds to President Obama's Friday announcement of his Iraq strategy. This is the first video post from the Washington Office and we are still working out the kinks, but hopefully you'll get the message.




We invite you to send us links to your videos, so we can promote the important work UUs across the country are doing for justice. Cheers!