Blog

Immigrant Justice Day 2012: One California

Update June 8th: The Trust Act will be heard in the Senate Public Safety committee on Tuesday, June 12th.

On May 21^st, Unitarian Universalists joined immigrants, advocates, community members, and policy makers in raising our voices on behalf of all of California’s immigrant families at the State Capitol in Sacramento. The UU Legislative Ministry of CA (UULM CA) collaborated with the CA Immigrant Policy Center and many other immigrant justice groups for this day of education, witness and advocacy.

We were there to support  AB1801 (Ammiano), the TRUST Act—a bill to restore trust and accountability to California’s participation in the Secure Communities (S-Comm) program, respecting the wish of local communities to opt-out of the program and implement safeguards to guard against racial profiling. [See Restoring Trust: Congregational Grassroots Resources for Breaking ICE’s Hold on our Communities to learn about the local opt-out movement.]

While UUs across CA are organizing to come to Justice GA in Arizona, we also know there is very important work to be done in California.  The UU Legislative Ministry has formed a statewide Immigrant Justice Team with UU lawyers, immigration advocates, clergy and lay leaders who are working to build a network for long term, effective engagement of California UUs in immigrant justice with the first priority being the protection immigrant families and restoring trust in law enforcement by resisting the S-Comm (Secure Communities) program.

People came in vans and buses and drove in from across the state, including from Los Angeles, San Diego, Visalia, Fresno, San Jose, Oakland and San Francisco.  Two dozen UU clergy and lay leaders participated, wearing our  ‘Love’ and UULM CA shirts, and carrying our Standing on the Side of Love banner, ,joining a group of 400 allies.

Attorney Daniel Stracka, Executive Director of UURISE (UU Refugee and Immigrant Services & Education) and the UULMCA Immigrant Justice Team Co-Convener, was among those who traveled all the way from San Diego County.  A team from Mt. Diablo UU Church in Walnut Creek rode up on the train, and UUs from conservative Merced to progressive Berkeley joined immigrants from across the state.

UULM CA helped to lead and anchor the interfaith prayer and procession that began the day, joining the Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights, and Franciscan, and Jewish leaders.  Following the prayer for the people, we marched from the steps of the Cathedral to the steps of the Capitol, accompanied by the drums of Rev. Wendy Bartel, co-minister at the Sierra Foothills UU Church, and lifting our voices in song –  “Soon and very soon.. we are going to change the world… For all families, we are going to change the world…”  (See words to the entire song  below.)

We rallied at the Capitol where Assembly member Tom Ammiano, author of the TRUST Act,  said, “We  have many people in California who contribute to the economy, to family life, to religion. Deported, incarcerated, denied income and split from their families, this is not democracy.”

UUs were assigned to teams to visit their legislators with members of the other immigrant justice groups from their area. We were particularly proud to join in the visit to Assembly member Bill Monning, a UU from Monterey County, and co-author of AB1081, who, as a long time advocate for farm worker justice, was able to dialogue fluently in both Spanish and English with the constituents visiting his office.

Amy Moses-Lagos, Immigrant Justice Steering Committee member for UULM CA (and former immigration legal aid) and ministerial intern at Mt. Diablo UU Church said, “We were very impressed that Assembly member Joan Buchanan met with us herself . She really took the time to listen to our concerns and seemed supportive of the goals of the TRUST Act.  The meeting helped us see what a difference we can really make on this issue. One of our members had a conversation with Victor from Street Level and was touched by a comment he made.  He said (paraphrasing), ‘In El Salvador, I never would never have considered doing something like this.  Now I have realized that we can come together, speak up and improve things for ourselves.’  We were very impressed that the lobbying group was so diverse and included many immigrants.”

To help participants prepare for advocacy visits on Immigrant Justice Day, UULM CA held a webinar led by Angela Chan from the Asian Law Caucus.

In addition to Immigrant Justice Day, UULM CA is starting to organize at the county level.  We had our first meeting on May 19th of UUs interested in helping LA County follow the lead of Santa Clara County to stop collaboration with S-Comm.  We also had folks out in the strawberry fields in Watsonville that same weekend learning from farm workers and experts on globalization and the broken immigration system.

Through our advocacy we are creating new partnerships and relationships and helping to build The Beloved Community.

Lyrics to the song we sang at the Interfaith Prayer and Procession

1.  Soon and very soon, we are going to change the world (x 3)
Together, together, we will change the world.

2.  No more crying here, we are going to change the world (x 3)
Together, together, we will change the world.

3. For all families, we are going to change the world (x 3)
Together, together, we will change the world.

4.  Come and walk with me, we are going to change the world (x 3)
Together, together, we will change the world.

5.  Prayer and advocacy, we are going to change the world (x 3)
Together, together, we will change the world.

Rev. Lindi Ramsden is Executive Director of the UU Legislative Ministry of California.

More >

Catholic Bishops Defund Immigrant Resource Center Compañeros Over LGBT Affiliation

Compañeros is a small nonprofit that works to protect and expand immigrant rights and culture in the Four Corners area of southwestern Colorado, including helping poor immigrants with healthcare and other basic needs. For years Compañeros received significant funding from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (C.C.H.D.), an anti-poverty initiative of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Sadly, that has changed. Why? Simply because the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC), of which Compañeros is a founding member, joined in partnership with One Colorado, a state wide LGBT advocacy organization.

In February, Compañeros was informed by the Diocese of Pueblo that they were in danger of losing their funding from the C.C.H.D. due to their affiliation with an organization that supports marriage equality for same-gender couples.

In other words, the Catholic hierarchy asked Compañeros to make a choice. They could either leave the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, which connects them to a state wide network of organizations and resources, or they could lose $30,000 a year, which amounts to more than half of the organization’s revenue stream. Making a tough decision, Compañeros chose to remain in solidarity with their LGBT civil rights partners.

“We can’t go against our core principles by taking money that we think will ultimately result in the division of this community,” said Nicole Mosher, executive director of Compañeros.

In response, LGBT organizations like One Colorado pledged to support Compañeros financially, as have many Catholics who disagree with the hierarchy’s decision. Former Gov. Bill Ritter, Jr. criticized the decision, writing in the Denver Post, “We should not tolerate a culture war that distracts us from the core Gospel message of addressing poverty and hunger in a serious way.” And the group With Charity For All, which collects donations for Compañeros, was created by “conscientious Catholics who are concerned that the Catholic Church’s charitable activities are being threaten by the increasingly reactionary right-wing politics of the Catholic bishops.”

Compañeros is a key collaborating partner of the UU Fellowship of Durango. Please consider supporting their crucial work. Just click here to make a donation today.

More >

Lift Up Your Voice in the National Days of Witness

The message below went out on Tuesday, May 29, 2012 to Standing on the Side of Love supporters. You can sign-up for these emails here.

---

This week, many of us commemorated a profoundly tragic anniversary. On May 28, 2010, 42-year-old Anastasio Hernandez Rojas was tased and beaten while in Border Patrol custody. He died shortly thereafter. A San Diego resident since he was a teenager, Anastasio was captured at the U.S.-Mexico border while trying to return to his wife, Maria, and his five children after having been deported. The incident, captured on camera, offers a chilling glimpse of his screams and pleas for his life as a dozen agents stand over him. Border Patrol has refused to release the names of the agents responsible or reveal whether those involved have been disciplined. More than 30,000 people have signed a petition calling for justice. But Anastasio is not the only victim. According to a PBS investigative documentary on Anastasio’s death, in the past two years, Border Patrol agents have killed at least 8 people from San Diego to Texas.

Anastasio’s story has been weighing on my mind and my heart as we approach Justice General Assembly in Phoenix in just a few short weeks. I know he is just one of countless individuals who have died or been killed at the border, in detention, or in the desert. Still, when I see his face, it is a searing reminder of why we are so committed as a denomination to seeking justice for all people living in our country, regardless of where they happened to be born. On June 20, over 3,500 of us will join our friends in the Southwest to shine the light of justice on the crimes being committed in the name of the U.S. government, and to flood our country with love. We will raise our voices to demand better.

Many of you will not be joining us in person, but will certainly be with us in spirit. If you cannot make it to Phoenix, please consider taking part in our National Days of Witness for Justice, June 20-24.

Click here to learn more about actions that you can take in solidarity.

There are millions of reasons why advocacy for migrants and their families is a core part of our social justice work. In April, Alfonso Martinez Sanchez, 39, died in the Sonoran desert along the Arizona border while trying to return to his wife and children. Hundreds die in this desert each year while trying to reunite with their families. From January to June 2011, Immigration and Customs Enforcement removed 46,486 undocumented parents who claimed to have at least one child who is an American citizen. It is for all these reasons, and many more, that we are going to Phoenix. We are going to Phoenix to demand the reform of our system of mass detention and deportation; to call for oversight for Border Patrol, which is daily committing human rights abuses; and to lift up our voices against the shameful spate of SB1070 copycats springing up across the country and in favor of compassionate laws that allow families to stay together.

I’m fortunate to be able to take the time to be in Phoenix and stand in solidarity with those mired in this immoral system, forced to choose between being away from their families or being in the country without papers. But wherever you find yourself this third week in June, you can join us—in prayer, through public witness in your local community, by calling elected officials and making a personal plea for an end to the criminalization of entire communities, and by visiting a local detention center and meeting firsthand with those who are trapped in this system, separated from their children, loved ones, and livelihood.

Click here to find out how you can join in our National Days of Witness for Justice.

Thank you for all you do to infuse this campaign with such incredible spirit.

Love,

Dan Furmansky
Campaign Manager
Standing on the Side of Love

P.S. I signed a petition to the Justice Dept. seeking answers and accountability for Anastasio Hernandez Rojas’ death. Will you please sign as well? Click here to sign.

More >

Congregation Repudiates the Doctrine of Discovery

The Doctrine of Discovery is what was used by European monarchs to justify the expropriation of Native American lands by their explorers. It is a Christian theological teaching that was developed in a series of 15th century papal bulls and 16th century charters. Since the 1823 decision of Johnson v. M’Intosh, the doctrine has also been used by the U.S. Supreme Court to support decisions invalidating or ignoring aboriginal possession of land in favor of colonial or post-colonial governments. In fact, it was even used by the Court to settle a case as recently as 2005. Furthermore, the principles of the doctrine are alive and well in recent legislation such as Arizona’s anti-immigrant law, SB1070.

On May 20th, the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland passed a resolution during its annual congregational meeting repudiating the Doctrine, as well as calling for the full implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Grounded strongly in UU principles, the resolution declares the Doctrine of Discovery to be “a relic of colonialism, feudalism, and of religious, cultural, and racial biases having no place in the modern day treatment of the American Indians.”

“In a country where we theoretically have separation of the church and the state, it is deeply disturbing that a theological doctrine continues to have a significant influence on the law,” said Rev. Colin Bossen, minister of the Society. “I am proud of the congregation for repudiating the doctrine. I see their vote as part of a process to re-examine the religious roots of this country and its relationship to colonialism. It is my hope that the vote can be part of an ongoing dialogue about the United States government’s oppression of the indigenous peoples of the continent.”

The vote took place as part of a national dialogue the Unitarian Universalist Association is having about the doctrine. The congregation calls not only on the delegates of the 2012 Justice General Assembly to support a similar resolution in June, but also on all UU congregations as well as other communities of faith to join them in adopting “positions of repudiating the Doctrine of Discovery and implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.”

For more resources from the UUA about the Doctrine of Discovery, check out the Cooking Together project.

More >

Celebrate Pride!

The message below went out on Tuesday, May 29, 2012 to Standing on the Side of Love supporters. You can sign-up for these emails here.

---

The first time I ever attended a Pride celebration, I wasn’t there to express pride over being bisexual, or queer, or transgender, or genderqueer—I first celebrated Pride long before any of these labels spoke to my experience, when I was just a little blond kid standing on the side of love as a Unitarian Universalist, proclaiming that here was a religion that was welcoming rather than condemning.

Pride (also known as “gay pride” or “LGBT pride”), usually celebrated in June, offers a space to affirm, celebrate, and be proud of sexual diversity and gender variance. Over the last four decades it has spread throughout the globe and spun off many variations, such as youth pride, Latino/a pride, transgender pride, and many more.

Hundreds of UU congregations celebrate Pride, whether by marching in a parade, holding a Pride or Welcoming Congregation related service, or simply flying a rainbow flag. It is a powerful way to bear witness and welcome—and there is a lot to celebrate and a lot of continuing struggles to raise awareness around this year!

In honor of Pride, LGBT Ministries and Standing on the Side of Love are announcing a new resource offering 10 Ways to Celebrate Pride.

Check out these ten ideas and share your own! How have you celebrated Pride as a Unitarian Universalist? How has your congregation stood on the side of love with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people?

Thanks to the active example of my home church, I never had to worry that my faith community would close its doors to me because of my sexual orientation or gender identity. And I knew that my fight against injustice toward queer and transgender people was grounded in my religious tradition. I have a lot to be proud of.

In faith,

Alex Kapitan
Congregational Justice Administrator
Unitarian Universalist Association

PS: Email love@uua.org to submit a blog post and share your story of Pride!

More >