As we embark upon the new year, many of us are seeking to renew our commitment to UU values and justice action. Immigrant, refugee and minority communities and individuals are especially uneasy about what 2017 may bring. If East Shore seeks to become a more welcoming home to all, we need to deepen our understanding of our own place in the world spiritually and socially.
UUCSJ Journeys
The UU College of Social Justice provides opportunities in experiential learning to expand our capacity to understand and to act for justice. UUCSJ offers justice training and small group trips for individual youth, adults, and congregational groups. Even if a particular congregation is organizing a trip, individuals from other congregations are free to join.
Below is just a sample of journeys available in the coming year. Please note that there is an application form and deadline to take into consideration if you are interested in participating in a just journey.
May, 2017:
- Nicaragua – Fair Trade and Climate Change – May 13 to 20; register by March 12th, 2017
June, 2017:
- Border Justice: (Organized by UU Fellowship of Northern Nevada) – June 12 to 17; register by May 12th, 2017
- GROW Racial Justice – (New Orleans prior to UUA General Assembly intended for UU young adults) — June 17 to 20; apply by February 1st (priority deadline)
July, 2017:
- Activate New Orleans: Racial Justice – July 16-23, 2017; register by May 1st, 2017
For more information on any of these, please visit the UU College of Social Justice website. Please speak with Marilyn Mayers if you would be interested in helping organize a just journey for East Shore’s congregation in 2018.
Madres Berks
Before Obama left office, a group of 16 mothers, also known as the Madres Berks, who have been in immigration detention for over 17 months wrote a letter to President Obama to ask for their release. The mothers are being held in Berks County Residential Center in Pennsylvania and have all come to the U.S. seeking asylum. Research has shown that prolonged detention has detrimental effects on the psychological and emotional development of children. The Madres Berks and their children have now spent two Christmases in detention centers, and many of them need medical attention. Their plea comes at a time when these families are even more afraid of what will happen to them under the new administration. The one thing they ask is for Obama to “pardon us, just as you did with these other people, you who still have the power to do so, and allow us to reunite with our families.”
Read more about the effects of immigration detention in UUSC’s research, No Safe Haven Here: Mental Health Assessment of Women and Children Held in U.S. Immigration Detention. Also, stay tuned for more updated information in our upcoming report, Waiting for Refuge: Benefits and Challenges of the Central American Minors In-Country Refugee Processing Program.
Last year, UUSC published a report, No Safe Haven Here: Mental Health Assessment of Read more about the effects of immigration detention in UUSC’s research, No Safe Haven Here: Mental Health Assessment of Women and Children Held in U.S. Immigration Detention. Also, stay tuned for more updated information in our upcoming report, Waiting for Refuge: Benefits and Challenges of the Central American Minors In-Country Refugee Processing Program.