|
 Actions of Immediate Witness
The Fifth Principle of Unitarian Universalism affirms and promotes the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process. In keeping with this, the way in which our denomination arrives at consensus on various social issues is by a democratically agreed upon process called the Social Witness Process, named as such because we bear witness to social inequity. Working together with other groups and other faith traditions, we can make a significant impact in 2011-2012 to restore the effective voice of "we the people" and help to heal our democracy.
The Social Witness Process is facilitated by the Commission on Social Witness. It currently generates two types of consensus statements, Statements of Conscience, which result from study and action on a selected issue, and Actions of Immediate Witness. We passed three AIWs at GA this year and the text is below. For more information, see the Social Witness Process page on the UUA website.
Protest Representative Peter King's Hearings on "Muslim Radicalization"
BECAUSE Unitarian Universalist Principles affirm the goal of a just community, representing unity in our multiracial world;
WHEREAS the hearings of Rep. Peter King, the Chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, which profess to present the "radicalization" of the Muslim community, have begun as of March 10, 2011, and he intends on pursuing these hearings;
WHEREAS these hearings fail to acknowledge or represent the complexity of the American Muslim community;
WHEREAS the vast majorities of the Arab and Muslim American communities are law abiding and committed citizens and residents of the United States;
WHEREAS such hearings lead to demonization of Arab and Muslim Americans and incite more hatred, racism, and division along racial and religious lines;
WHEREAS the first amendment to the Constitution states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof";
WHEREAS, on March 6, thousands of interfaith protestors demonstrated in Times Square against the "Muslim radicalization" hearings; and
WHEREAS, on May 21, a coalition of Unitarian Universalist congregations, 25 civil rights and interfaith groups, including chapters of the NY Civil Liberties Union, local mosques, and peace activists demonstrated in front of Rep. Peter King's office in Massapequa Park, Long Island, NY;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association affirms multiracial unity and interfaith solidarity in the interest of world peace and calls upon member congregations to:
* urge our local congressional representatives to halt Rep. Peter King's hearings; and
* join coalitions working against the divisive idea of "Muslim radicalization" and advocating for interfaith unity.
Support Southern California Supermarket Workers' Struggle for Decent Wages and Benefits
BECAUSE our Unitarian Universalist Principles affirm "the inherent worth and dignity of every person" and call for "justice, equity and compassion in human relations" and
BECAUSE our denomination has a long history of opposing racism and sexism;
WHEREAS full-time supermarket workers in Southern California (SoCal) earn an average of less than $30,000 per year, despite the high cost of living in the area;
WHEREAS many workers get only 24 hours of work per week and therefore earn far less;
WHEREAS SoCal supermarket workers are disproportionately African-American and Latino;
WHEREAS SoCal supermarket workers are disproportionately female;
WHEREAS the 5-month strike/lockout of these workers in 2003 resulted in reductions in health insurance and pensions;
WHEREAS, despite that, the 62,000 members of United Food and Commercial Workers voted overwhelmingly on April 21, 2011, to authorize a strike against the three major SoCal supermarket chains-Ralphs, Albertsons and Von's;
WHEREAS the supermarket chains are demanding further increases in workers' payments for health insurance;
WHEREAS, by authorizing a strike, the supermarket workers acted on behalf of all workers, courageously rejecting the Great Recession rhetoric of "shared sacrifice," which has so far meant primarily that only workers (employed and unemployed) and their families sacrifice;
WHEREAS, in 2003, the supermarket chains adopted a "national strategy," relying on profits from operations throughout the US to offset losses in Southern California; and
WHEREAS it appears likely that the workers will strike within a few weeks of this General Assembly;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association:
· Calls upon UU congregations in Southern California to support the supermarket workers in ways such as: educating our members, organizing petition campaigns and pledges not to shop at supermarkets where workers are on strike, holding demonstrations, walking picket lines, serving meals to the workers if they strike, and organizing congregations of other denominations and the community in general to do the same;
· Calls upon congregations outside Southern California to a) support the strikers in ways they consider appropriate such as: letters of support, donations to the strikers, petition campaigns, demonstrations at markets owned by the parent companies of the three supermarket chains: Safeway (Von's), Kroger (Ralphs and Fry's), and Supervalu, Inc. (Albertsons); b) collect pledges not to shop at stores owned by the chains if the workers strike; and c) urge members of the community not to shop at those stores until the strike is settled.
Oppose Citizens United - Support Free Speech for People
BECAUSE Unitarian Universalists believe in the "inherent worth and dignity of every person," and in the "use of the democratic process" in society at large;
WHEREAS the U.S. Supreme Court decision of January 21, 2010, in Citizens United v. FEC enshrined corporations as persons and equated money with speech;
WHEREAS this unprecedented ruling has already resulted in unlimited spending by corporations in state and federal elections in 2010, flooding the political marketplace with corporate money, drowning out the voices of individuals, and jeopardizing the very democracy that we hold dear;
WHEREAS anonymous, unlimited campaign spending and its associated domination of the media conflict with the fourth and fifth UU Principles;
WHEREAS Congress cannot pass a law to overturn the Supreme Court decision, once the Supreme Court has interpreted the Constitution to say that corporations have the First Amendment rights of people;
WHEREAS continuing this precedent might result in ever increasing gaps between rich and poor, concentrated efforts by the wealthy to control elections by vast infusions of money into campaign front groups, and increasing corruption of the democratic process; and
WHEREAS we are entering the first presidential election cycle in which this ruling takes effect, so the urgency is for people to speak up NOW in opposition to this ruling and in support of a Constitutional amendment to overturn it, so that this is part of the presidential debates in 2012;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly urges member congregations to sign the resolution for The People's Rights Amendment proposed at www.freespeechforpeople.org and encourage their congressional representatives to sponsor such a resolution in opposition to the Supreme Court decision in Citizens United (Find your U.S. Representatives at www.house.gov.); and
BE IT RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly urges member congregations to support pending and future federal and state legislation requiring maximum disclosure by corporations of all political contributions they make, whether directly to candidates or indirectly to advocacy groups; and
BE IT RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly encourages member congregations to support similar motions of other organizations such as Move to Amend, People for the American Way, and Public Citizen (See www.movetoamend.org, www.pfaw.org, www.citizen.org.); and
BE IT RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly encourages member congregations to press their state senators and representatives to file similar state and local resolutions opposing the equation of corporate political speech with the free speech of individual persons and to use as models the 2011 state resolutions of Massachusetts, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington State, and the local resolutions of the towns of Brewster, Chatham, Dennis, Great Barrington, Orleans, Provincetown, Truro, Wellfleet, and Williamstown, Massachusetts (See www.freespeechforpeople.org, 2011 resolutions); and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the 2011 General Assembly encourages the existing 11 UU legislative ministries in the UU State Advocacy Network (UUSAN, www.uustatenetwork.org) to consider adopting "Oppose Citizens United-Support Free Speech for People" as a core issue among their statewide efforts, and encourages member congregations in states that do not YET have a legislative ministry to start one by contacting Interim Administrator Nancy Banks, at nancy.banks1@verizon.net or 617-835-5426.
| 
We will have our next RE fundraising lunch on Sunday July 31st, following the service. Since our last Ice Cream Social was very successful, and everyone seemed to love it, we will do another!! Ice cream in the summer!!! There will be all the fixin's for cones & sundaes, so everyone can have their ice cream their favorite way. $5 suggested donation, but no ice cream lover will be turned away!!
The Ministerial Search is underway and we want to give you as much information as we can. The committee you elected is made up of the following people: Peter Becskehazy, Evalyn Bennet-Alder, Gwen Goodman, Betty Meikle, Pat Reddemann, Anne Tatum, and Sybelle van Erven. We have finished our retreat and begun the serious work of searching for a new minister for Mountain Vista UU/UUCNWT.