[JTWNews] 3 things you can do NOW to help stop racism

Wed Jul 19 14:38:48 EDT 2006

Dear JTW-News Readers:

This issue of JTW-News brings you:

1) A letter from the UUA Board of Trustees about an anti-racism
resolution passed at General Assembly requesting all congregations to
engage in education about racism and oppression.  The letter includes
links to lots of resources

2) Resources on Gulf Coast Advocacy that address institutional racism
and classism.  Watch for more news and updates about commemorating and
stepping up our advocacy on the one year anniversary of Hurricane
Katrina. Get your congregation ready now!

3) Call to Act on free 800 # today and tomorrow (Wed. & Thurs.) to tell
the Senate to renew the Voting Rights Act!  This number is provided by
our partners, the Leadership Council on Civil Rights.

4) Report on Defeat of Federal Marriage Amendment to ban same sex
marriage!  Next steps:  Defeating state ballot initiatives.

With thanks and appreciation for your continued efforts to educate and
advocate to end racism and all oppression. --Susan

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1) Letter from Paul Rickter, UUA Secretary, Board of Trustees

UU Congregational Leaders:

In my role as a member of the Board of Trustees and Secretary of the
UUA, I am writing to notify congregational ministers and leadership of a
resolution passed on June 25, 2006, by the delegates at the General
Assembly in St. Louis. The text of this resolution is the following:

"Resolved, that the Delegates to General Assembly are charged to work
with their congregations to hold at least one program over the next year
to address racism or classism, and to report on that program at next
year's General Assembly."

The bylaws of the UUA
(http://www.uua.org/administration/bylaws.html#section4.16.) provide for
responsive resolutions in response to a substantive portion of a report
delivered at the GA either by an officer of the Association or a
committee. The resolution above was moved and passed in response to
reports presented by officers at the 2006 GA and the report of the
Special Review Commission appointed by the UUA President and Moderator
to review the events surrounding the 2005 General Assembly in Fort
Worth, Texas (http://www.uua.org/TRUS/apr06/D2a-src.pdf). Both the
relevant 2006 officers' reports and the Special Review Commission report
concerned events at the General Assemblies that affected Unitarian
Universalist communities of color, especially youth of color.

Some of our member congregations have done significant work on issues of
racism, classism, and multiculturalism using resources provided by both
the UUA and other sources of expertise. If your congregation has done
such work, this resolution provides an opportunity to share your efforts
and accomplishments with other congregations in your cluster or district
so they can benefit from your experience. Resources and suggestions for
programs provided by the UUA can be found at
http://www.uua.org/actions/responsive/06racism/.

This resolution was not on the GA agenda. It was written by a GA
delegate, offered as a responsive resolution, and overwhelmingly
supported by the delegates from over 600 UU congregations. I urge you to
use this resolution as an opportunity to reflect on how your
congregation is engaging with the issues of anti-racism,
anti-oppression, and multiculturalism. When delegates representing our
congregations gather at 2007 General Assembly in Portland, Oregon, we
will have an opportunity to share our experiences in
congregationally-based programs on issues of racism and classism.

As we approach the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, we are
reminded that racism and classism remain problems in our society that
we, as people of faith, are called to address. Our experiences together
in community show that we have much work to do to live our UU principles
more fully.

In Faith,

Paul Rickter
UUA Secretary, Board of Trustees

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Note to JTW-News Readers:  For information on interfaith and national
Gulf Coast Advocacy efforts that the UUA is supporting to address
institutional racism and classism, see
http://www.uua.org/news/gulfcoastrelief/advocacy.html

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ACTION: Wednesday (7/19) and Thursday (7/20) are National Call-In Days
to Urge Senate Action on Voting Rights Act Renewal  

***********************************************************

ACTION: Wednesday (7/19) and Thursday (7/20) are National Call-In Days
to Urge Senate Action on Voting Rights Act Renewal
***********************************************************

NATIONAL CALL-IN DAYS WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY: 1-866-808-0065

Last week, the House voted by an overwhelming margin (390-33) to pass,
without amendment, The Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott
King Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006. While
this brings us one step closer to renewing and restoring the Voting
Rights Act (VRA), we are not there yet! If the VRA bill is to reach the
president's desk for his signature by August, then the Senate must act
quickly to pass S. 2703 without amendment. 

The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to hold its "mark up" (or
consideration) of S. 2703 this Wednesday and Thursday. This is a
critical point in the Senate process, as Senators begin to debate
whether the bill should be amended. But S. 2703 is a carefully crafted,
bipartisan bill - and it must be passed without any amendments that
would weaken the protections of the Voting Rights Act.

This Wednesday and Thursday, join others around the country in making 3
toll-free calls to protect voting rights:

Call the Capital switchboard toll-free at 1-866-808-0065 and ask for
your Senator's office. Tell your senators that S. 2703 must be moved
quickly and without amendment through the Judiciary Committee and
through the full Senate before the August recess.

Then, use the same toll-free number to call Senate Majority Leader Bill
Frist (R-TN). Urge him to use his position of leadership to ensure that
S. 2703 passes the Senate - without amendment - before the August
recess.

Visit www.RenewtheVRA.org  to learn more about S. 2703 and the Voting
Rights Act.  You can also find the senators for your state on this site.

Victory! Marriage Amendment defeated in the House
**********************************************************************
The House decisively rejected the Federal Marriage Amendment on a vote
of 237-187-1, with 9 members not voting--47 votes short of the
two-thirds required for passage!!!

With this second decisive victory--following the Senate's 49-48 vote in
June--the UUA closes its "Standing on the Side of Love 2006: No
Discrimination in the CConstitution" Campaign. Our work now will turn to
supporting UU advocacy efforts against state proposed amendments, as
well as shift in our federal attention back to positive steps, such as
the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).  See
http://www.uua.org/news/freedomtomarry/index.html for state information.

Thanks to all UUs who participating in the effort to defeat the federal
amendment. Job well done!

Susan Leslie
Director for Congregational Advocacy and Witness
Unitarian Universalist Association
25 Beacon Street, Boston MA  02108
(617) 948-4607; sleslie at uua.org
www.uua.org/justice
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