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Is there anyone in this thread that participates in regular worship/programs/events in another spiritual community other than your UU congregation? I go back and forth between UU and the local Episcopal Church regularly. I love the stimulating and intellectual sermons and programs that the UU church offers, not to mention a like minded liberal community. On the other hand enjoy the liturgy and especially the music that the Episcopal Church offers. I especially love their services at Christmas and Easter. Also the local UU church mastered virtual worships, programs and social events much better during the pandemic than the Episcopalians did.
As UU congregations are increasingly being targeted by right wing hate, we anticipate an uptick in attention and disruptive tactics heading into Pride month. In this informal space for religious professionals, we will share some observations about patterns we're seeing on the national scale, point toward some existing resources for support, identify gaps, and make connections to fight back against overwhelm, fear, and isolation.
This was an informal gathering of religious professionals of many stripes from across the US, and we spent time sharing observations about the national context and emerging patterns among our congregations, offering some resources for congregations as you make plans for security and crisis response, and engaging one anotherβs experiences, wisdom, and questions to both foster connection and shape future resource and training creation at the UUA. We were grateful for all those who gathered in real time and are happy to share the video and collected links and resources offered yesterday.Β
UNDERSTANDING THE CURRENT LANDSCAPE:
Fact Sheet: Anti-LGBT+ Mobilization on the Rise in the United States
Far right protests targeting the LGBTQ community show a troubling correlation with violent attacks
SECURITY AND PLANNING RESOURCES
NOTE: Many of these resources recommend or mention involving police or other law enforcement as a part of security responses. Rooted in our UU values and an ethic of aspiring abolitionism that yearns for a world in which policing and systems of punishment are not central to our society, we highly recommend ongoing conversations and praxis to help our UU communities understand safety differently and to move away from depending on law enforcement as our only form of crisis response. And, we recognize that in certain cases β sometimes at the urging of our partners β we do not currently have access to alternative infrastructure and viable safety structures, and therefore must work with police and other law enforcement. We urge UU communities and congregations to think critically and in advance about whether and when to engage with law enforcement, and to take into consideration the ways in which police often make people from targeted communities β especially trans and queer people β inherently more unsafe by their very presence.Β
DEESCALATION & SECURITY TRAININGS:
Recording: Preparing for Pride - a webinar for religious professionals
Imagine it's 2050 and we've achieved all of our wildest hopes for climate justice...what does it look like? The abolitionist movement imagines a future without police and prisons, drawing on deep convictions, faith, imagination, and hope to do so. The climate justice movement is diverse, vibrant, and equally hopeful: but do we UUs have a vision of what a just climate future is? Without a clear vision of a world where all can thrive, we run the risk of prioritizing short-term gains, false solutions, legislative goals disconnected from cultural shifts, and distractions that divide our focus.
Watch the recording of this radical gathering of thinkers for abolitionist visions of climate justice. Facilitated by Side With Love Climate Justice Organizer Rachel Myslivy, the panel will include Rev. Dr. SofΓa Betancourt, Ecowomanist theologian and sole candidate for UUA President*; Dr. Rashid Shaikh, director of science emeritus at the Health Effects Institute in Boston and co-convenor of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Caucus on Climate Justice; and Antoinette Scully, Faith-Based National Organizer for the UU Women's Federation.Β
* NOTE: This event was sponsored by Side With Love and was not a campaign event
Recording for Abolitionist Visions on Climate Justice
Jeff Milchen
The Unitarian Universalist Association and UU World are following several U.S. Supreme Court cases that address core UU principles and affect the rights of oppressed groups.
Susan Frederick-Gray
It has been my profound honor to serve as your UUA president.
WWUUD stream 