[JTWNews] The one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina & fall anti-oppressive social justice opportunities

[Audra Friend]

Dear JTW-News Readers:

The UUA has joined the interfaith National Alliance to Restore
Opportunity to the Gulf Coast and to Displaced Persons in A Season of
Prayer and Call to Action. See http://www.linkedfate.org/. The suffering
of those who lived in this region prior to Katrina continues. Many
residents have become part of a new American Diaspora, unable to return
to their homes in New Orleans and on the Gulf Coast.

Congregations are being asked to mark the anniversary on the weekend of
August 25-27. One of our partners the Gamaliel National Clergy Caucus
has created resources for worship. We hope that UUs might work with
these materials to reflect our own worship style. See
http://www.gamaliel.org/Katrina/resources.htm for bulletin inserts,
prayers, candlelight vigils and more.

The Alliance has initiated the Petition for Fairness & Opportunity
demanding the federal government to do much more to restore hope and
opportunity to our brothers and sisters inside and outside the region.
Please bring it to your congregation - to download see
http://www.linkedfate.org/documents/Petition%20for%20fairness%20opportun
ity-081706.pdf (petition form in pdf format).

The UUA continues to raise funds for our community partners in the Gulf
and to work for a just recovery in the Gulf. For news see
http://www.uua.org/ and
http://www.uua.org/news/gulfcoastrelief/advocacy.html. 

As fall approaches, please mark your calendar for two important
anti-oppressive social justice opportunities:

1) The UUA Socially Responsible Investing Teleconferences this fall.
Mark your calendars and invite a group from your congregation to join
the call. See details at http://www.uua.org/finance/sri/.

2) A searing documentary about Iraq and the experience of US troops is
being released on September 15th and will be shown in major cities.
Several UU congregations in selected areas will be showing the film in
as well. Additionally, all congregations will have the opportunity to
host a Ground Truth Gathering on OCT 11th and show the DVD. Go to
http://www.thegroundtruth.net/ for more information, to order a DVD, and
to sign up for a gathering.

 
 
"...all will be well, and will be well, and every kind of thing will be
well."  -- Julian of Norwich
 
Audra Friend
Assistant, Office for Congregational Advocacy & Witness
Unitarian Universalist Association
25 Beacon St
Boston, MA 02108
(p) 617.948.4656 or 617.742.2100 ext 656
(f)  617.742.0321
www.uua.org/justice