Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis Social Justice Committee

Immigration

2010-05-03T03:43:00.000-07:00

On the immigration situation in Arizona:

The actual bill

"Don't Call Me Racist, and Other Arizona Lies" by Daisy Hernández

"Desert Derangement Syndrome" by Timothy Egan

Standing on the Side of Love

Mother's Day!

2010-05-03T03:36:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day is coming on May 9th! With the list below, you can honor your mother with something fabulous and make the world a better place all at the same time!

Global Gifts
Global Gifts is a non-profit right here in Indianapolis that sells fair-trade items.

Kiva Loans
Kiva's mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.Kiva empowers individuals to lend to an entrepreneur across the globe. By combining microfinance with the internet, Kiva is creating a global community of people connected through lending. Gift certificates are available!

10,000 Villages
Ten Thousand Villages is an exceptional source for unique handmade gifts, jewelry, home decor, art and sculpture. textiles, serveware and personal accessories representing the diverse cultures of artisans in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. One of the world's largest fair trade organizations and a founding member of the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO), the company strives to improve the livelihood of tens of thousands of disadvantaged artisans in 38 countries.

TDOR (Transgender Day of Remembrance)

2009-11-02T07:04:00.000-08:00

Presented by INTRAA (Indiana Transgender Rights Advocacy Alliance), this event is held to raise awareness of the consequences of intolerance and fear directed toward people who may live outside "traditional" gender stereotypes.

This year's program will include a live performance of "TransActions" as seen at the Indy Fringe Festival in 2007 (performance followed by a moderated discussion with audience); a memorial vigil; and other program items followed by light refreshments and an opportunity for fellowship.

UUI Fellowship Hall, Saturday, November 14, 6:00 pm

Sponsored by the UUI Social Justice Committee. Contact tdor@intraa.org to volunteer or find out more.

Thank you, Fred Phelps!

2009-09-24T20:22:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Mr. Phelps & Co. for generating donations during the Phelps-A-Thon at Indianapolis' North Central High School in the amount of $7,700!

Funds raised will be divided between NCHS Gay/Straight Alliance and Indiana Youth Group. The lovely people at Phelps-a-Thon will be sending the Phelps family a card letting them know how much money they raised to promote LGBT equality.

Be sure and check out Indiana Youth Group and consider volunteering.

More on the Fred Phelps protestors

2009-09-22T03:53:00.000-07:00

The principal of North Central is urging everyone to ignore the protestors, but two great avenues of standing against the hate are available--go see the play and pledge to the Phelps-a-Thon (details below).

The play is at North Central High School (1801 E. 86th Street, Indianapolis) at 7:00 p.m. this Thursday, Friday and Saturday (September 24, 25 and 26). The play is about Matthew Sheppard, a gay college student who was brutally beaten and left for dead in Laramie, Wyoming in 1998. Admission is $7.00.

Urgent Action Item!

2009-09-21T08:22:00.000-07:00

Fred Phelps is coming to North Central High School in Indianapolis! The "God Hates Fags" Westboro Baptist Church is planning to picket the school’s production of The Laramie Project, a play about Matthew Shepard, the young man who was killed in an anti-gay hate-crime.

However, when the Phelps group comes to North Central High School to protest, they will actually be raising money for GLBT equality.

The people at http://phelps-a-thon.com are hosting a Phelps-A-Thon to counter Fred Phelps’ hateful message. From an email about this event:

"For every minute the “God Hates Fags” clan is protesting, we will be collecting donations that will be split between the North Central High School Gay/Straight Alliance and Indiana Youth Group (IYG). IYG provides a safe place, a confidential environment, youth development programs and support services which foster personal strength and wellness among self-identified lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people. IYG advocates on their behalf in schools, on the streets, and in the community.

The Phelps clan will be protesting at the high school from 2:55 PM to 3:30 PM on September 24th. You can pledge any amount you choose, whether it be $0.25, $0.50, $1, or even $2 for every minute they protest. You can even pledge a flat rate for the entire time the group will be demonstrating. The point of this Phelps-A-Thon is two fold. First, we are using Phelps’ own hateful message to raise funds for a good cause, one that will help counter the lies that are being spread about LGBT people. Second, after the event, we will send Phelps a thank you card, telling him how much money he raised for LGBT equality. This will certainly upset the group and it is possible that they will stop protesting in order to stop our fundraising."

Pledge Online!

Draft Statement of Conscience on Peacemaking Meeting

2009-01-26T08:15:00.000-08:00

What: Meeting to Vote on the Draft Statement of Conscience (SOC) on Peacemaking
Sponsored by: The UUI Social Justice Committee
When: January 29, at 7:00 PM in the Sanctuary

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO UUI?
Not only is peacemaking an important issue, but our participation helps us meet our interim goal of strengthing ties with UUA and also because called minister candidates pay attention to whether a congregation is engaged in UUA activities.

Why is this important to us as Unitarians?
For an SOC to appear on the 2009 General Assembly Final Agenda, our UUA bylaws require a minimum of 25% of certified congregations to participate in the ballot vote on whether the Draft SOC should be placed on the Final Agenda.

If you have questions, please contact Susanne Hinson-Rieger at susannehinson@gmail.com or 418-1679.

Draft Statement of Conscience: Peacemaking

2009-01-21T07:30:00.000-08:00

Please join the Social Justice Committee on Thursday, January 29 at 7:00 p.m. in the Sanctuary to vote on the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) Draft Statement of Conscience (SOC) on Peacemaking. For an SOC to appear on the 2009 General Assembly Final Agenda, our UUA bylaws require a minimum of 25% of certified congregations to participate in the ballot vote on whether the Draft SOC should be placed on the Final Agenda.

From the UUA Website:

Peacemaking: A Draft Unitarian Universalist Statement of Conscience, November 2008

War is abhorrent. Violence is reprehensible. Human history has been marked by both. Religion has been a catalyst for war and for peace, sanctioning behaviors individual and international. What is our religious response as Unitarian Universalists to the historic habits of war and the timeless challenges of peace? Should we reject the use of any and all kinds of violence and war and affirm a commitment to seek just peace through non-violent means? Should we continue with the more conventional practice of seeking peace through application of "just war" criteria? Are these our only options as we seek to promote "a world community of peace, liberty, and justice for all?" This Statement of Conscience results from widespread deliberation and presents an approach arising out of our history, theology, and understanding of human nature for building a peaceful, just, and sustainable global future.

Theology and History
Our theology affirms the holy as that which demonstrates love, compassion, and inclusiveness. Peace is an extension of this affirmation; war is abhorrent to it; violence is in conflict with it. Our principles and purposes are consonant with this understanding and have emerged from a long history of prophetic discernment, but they have not led to agreement on issues of war and peace. It is community in covenant that sustains us across these differences.

Covenant lies at the core of our religious belief and aspiration and is grounded in a commitment to persuasion over coercion. This commitment to persuasion is evident in our promotion of "a world community of peace, liberty, and justice for all," which is closely aligned with the covenantal charter of the United Nations.

Persuasion doesn't always work, as 20th century Unitarian Universalist theologian James Luther Adams witnessed while residing in Germany during the early years of the Third Reich. The Nazis chose violence as the tool of state, with the aim of world domination. Adams advocated U.S. military action to meet this demonic threat, a position counter to the pacifist stances of 19th century Universalist Adin Ballou and 20th century Unitarian John Haynes Holmes. Holmes, affirmed by his congregation in New York City, maintained his pacifist stance over against the American Unitarian Association's threat to withdraw support from congregations not committed to the war effort of World War I. A half century later, the Unitarian Universalist Association witnessed widespread congregational discord over the Vietnam War, with so many Unitarian Universalists being against the war. Amid the harsh realities of war and peace, there are no easy answers.

Pacifism and Just War
Pacifism and just war are multi-dimensional strategies and stances in opposition to war. Pacifism can be absolute, conditional, or selective. Just war is a centuries-old framework for taking a moral stance on a particular war. Common just war criteria include: just cause, legitimate authority, right intention, last resort, proportionality, and probability of success. The last resort criterion, for example, is a judgment regarding the exhaustion of all non-violent means for preventing war. Proportionality is a consideration of the ratio of good presumably achieved over the suffering unleashed. "Just war" itself is a misnomer. No war is just. The operant term is "justifiable." Just war criteria are invoked to determine whether a particular war is justifiable in re-establishing peace and justice. Conscientious objectors span pacifist and just war positions.

Pacifism and just war are both stances of conscience and reason. Both acknowledge our human inclinations toward competition and cooperation.

Human Biology
Human violence reflects our evolutionary history. From distant times, the stronger and more violent have often prevailed. Anger and violence leap full flower in each of us from an early age. Physically and mentally we have an evolved capacity for violence that can result in physical, emotional, economic, or environmental injury. Violence occurs across all levels of human interaction. By adulthood most of us have learned to restrain our use of physical violence. Yet violence among nations occurs with regularity and commonly achieves desired ends unless circumscribed by law or mores.

Humans also have an evolved capacity for cooperative behavior, resulting in our development of morals, laws and institutions to minimize the use of violence. Cooperative behavior is the foundation of nonviolence and peace. It is the basis of trust. Intentional nonviolence paired with cooperative behavior encourages compassionate communication and peaceful resolution of conflict.

Just Peacemaking
Building a culture of peace at all levels of human interaction requires a transformation of consciousness, individual lifestyles, and public policies. At the heart of this transformation is the will to understand the truths voiced on all sides from a stance of empathy and love.

We are called to stand on the side of love. We are also called to stand on the side of justice and against the violence of oppression in all its manifestations. When a conflict or the threat of a conflict emerges in our world, we as Unitarian Universalists draw on our history as champions of both nonviolence and justice, informed by a diversity of views. As a faith holding covenant over creed, we eschew claims of absolute truth, so we need an approach to conflict—including
the horrific conflict that is war—which transcends the dichotomy of pacifism vs. just war. We need an approach that honors affirmations common to both pacifist and just war traditions, affirmations of "the inherent worth and dignity of every person" and of "justice, equity, and compassion in human relations."

Just Peacemaking is this approach. Just Peacemaking calls us to understand peace as normative and violence as aberrant, while evaluating the prospect of violent conflict by balancing the goal of peace preservation with the desire for war prevention. The former just war criteria become Just Peacemaking guidelines. With each guideline, we must ask not what justifies war, but what justifies the humanitarian preservation or restoration of peace. If force is ever to be used, it must be in the service of ending violence of much greater magnitude. We support our military personnel who have made the decision to engage in such service.

Our Unitarian Universalist values commit us to work toward a culture of peace that makes war and all other forms of violence avoidable and universally recognized as reprehensible and ineffective for honoring human rights and human dignity. Just Peacemaking melds love and justice in moving us toward a culture of peace at all levels of human interaction.

Calls to Action
Just Peacemaking calls for action at all levels of human interaction. To be effective, our actions must be incorporated into existing structures and institutions and new systems must be created.

International Peacemaking
We covenant as an Association, as congregations, and as individuals to advocate vigorously for policies that move the United States toward collaborative leadership in building a peaceful, just, and sustainable world. These include:

Supporting the Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office in advancing the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, the Earth Charter, the International Criminal Court, the United Nations Convention Against Torture, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

Supporting the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee in ending the use of torture and addressing structural violence in all its forms;

Supporting interfaith groups such as the Center on Conscience and War in advocating for the right of conscientious objection, including education and resources on the availability of this option; and

Supporting the establishment of a national network or working group among Unitarian Universalists to identify and disseminate information on peacemaking programs and resources.

Societal Peacemaking
We covenant to act in the wider community in reducing the causes of structural violence. We do this through:

Supporting the socially responsible investment of our Association and congregational assets;

Supporting Association and congregational initiatives aimed at eradicating racism, classism, and other forms of cultural and economic oppression; and

Supporting Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth in adopting life styles and polices that promote harmony with our natural environment.

Congregational Peacemaking
We covenant to take up peacemaking as part of our mission through worship, religious education, and social action by:

Developing Peace Teams to provide training in compassionate communication and conflict resolution and engage the congregation in multi-level action toward a culture of peace;

Working through congregational governing bodies to develop and honor behavioral covenants in all aspects of congregational life;

Working through our lifespan religious education structures to provide workshops on conflict resolution and compassionate communication, to encourage understanding and participation in social justice ventures, and to utilize Unitarian Universalist resources such as "Peacemaking in Congregations: A Guide to Learning Opportunities for All Ages;" and

Becoming a peacemaking resource within our communities in cooperation with other faith traditions.

Interpersonal Peacemaking
As individuals we covenant to:

Learn and practice the skills of compassionate communication;

Honor the behavioral covenants of our congregations; and

Adopt lifestyle changes that reflect reverence for the interdependent web of all existence.

Inner Peacemaking

We covenant to develop spiritual practices that impart internal peace.

In reverence for all life, we covenant to practice peace by minimizing violence at all levels of human interaction.

Ethical Eating CSAI

2008-11-15T22:06:00.000-08:00

From the UUA Website

Ethical Eating: Food and Environmental Justice CSAI

Delegates at the 2008 General Assembly in Fort Lauderdale, FL, selected “Ethical Eating” to be the 2008-2012 Congregational Study/Action Issue (CSAI) of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations

The Congregational Study/Action Issue (CSAI) is an invitation for congregations and districts to take a topic of concern and confront it, reflect on it, learn about it, respond to it, comment on it take action—each in their own way. A CSAI is NOT a statement—it is a question.

Complete Text of this CSAI

RE Halloween Party

2008-11-15T21:52:00.001-08:00

What does a Halloween Party have to do with Social Justice? Supporting our Religious Education program is a social justice activity because we're helping educate the next generation of Unitarian Universalists! Also, at this party, we sponsored a letter writing table with lots of topics to choose from.

Divine Action: Living Like You Mean It Photos

2008-10-01T20:47:00.000-07:00

September 7 Meeting

2008-09-07T17:21:00.001-07:00

We had a great meeting today! We had two youth representatives which was AWESOME and the children who attended are working on preparing a box of items to send to a group of U.S. soldiers in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

We have lots of exciting things in the works! Our focus for this church year is "In Our Backyard" and we're breaking the year down into quarters, targeting a different topic for each quarter. The topic for September, October and November is Poverty in Marion County. We'll be participating in the Indianapolis CROP Hunger Walk on October 19 and we're planning a film night in November with proceeds going to the UUI Youth Group's Habitat for Humanity fund.

Coming Up Next!

2008-08-26T19:24:00.000-07:00

We have so much to cover at our next meeting on September 7!

Agenda:

I. Mission Statement
II. Plan remaining 5th Sunday Offerings
III. Choose a treasurer and secretary
IV. Discuss the water documentary (Flow: For the Love of Water)
V. Discuss youth film festivals
VI. Calendar

and more!

There will be an activity for the children and maybe even cookies. Bring lunch/dinner, your energy, creativity and ideas.

Social Justice Stategic Planning

2008-08-02T21:03:00.000-07:00

As it works on a new strategic plan for UUI, the Strategic Planning Committee needs additional input from members of the UUI community. What is most important to accomplish with our efforts in the “social and environmental activism” area of our mission over the next three years? What it will take to make that happen?

A small group started this dialogue in April – please come and build on their work! In a two-hour brainstorming session we’ll discuss where UUI is now in the area of social and environmental activism, where we want to be, and what priority issues need to be addressed to get there.

When: Sunday, August 17, 12:00-2:00
Where: Cottage Music Room
Bring: Something to share for a potluck lunch (drinks provided)

Please RSVP to Susanne Hinson-Rieger at susannehinson@gmail.com

New Focus for the Committee

2008-07-09T12:09:00.001-07:00

The social activism theme chosen for UUI at our last meeting is "In Our Backyard". We're planning on focusing our efforts on Marion County and we're working on the calendar for the next year at our next meeting on August 12.

Indy Pride Parade

2008-04-22T09:52:00.000-07:00

UUI marched in the 2008 Pride Parade and had a booth at the Pride Festival on Saturday, June 14. We are a welcoming congregation so thanks to all UUI'ers who came out to support the Indianapolis GLBT community!

Put Your Passion Into Action

2008-03-16T20:15:00.000-07:00

The UUI Social Justice Committee, funded by the Beacon Fund, hosted "Divine Action: Living Like You Mean It," at UUI on July 16, 2008. Michael Atwood of PBS/WFYI moderated a conversation on social activism with activist Julia Butterfly Hill and yoga instructor Seane Corn.

Weekly Peace Vigil

2008-03-05T21:19:00.000-08:00

UUI'ers at a vigil, Summer, 2007.

There is a weekly vigil protesting the U.S. Occupation in Iraq in front of the Federal Building in Indianapolis (corner of North and Pennsylvania). The vigil starts at 4:30 p.m. and ends at 5:30 p.m. Bring a sign or signs are available to borrow. For more information contact Ron or Jane Haldeman at 926-4318 or ronjane@igc.org