JUUstice Washington

A Unitarian Universalist State Action Network

JUUstwa Offers Bystander Intervention Training, April 23, 2021, online

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On Friday evening, April 23rd from 6 p.m. to roughly 7:30, the JUUstice Washington’s Interrupting the School to Prison Pipeline racial justice action team will be offering an online Bystander Intervention trainer.   Courtney Wooten is the developer and presenter of the training.  For more information, see Suburbia Rising

 

The intention of the training is twofold.  The session will provide online training to members of the ISPP committee, but more importantly, the committee invites Washington State UU congregation to designation a member of the congregation to experience the training and use the experience to consider asking Courtney to offer this or other trainings that Courtney has developed to their respective congregations.  If your congregation would like to send a representative, please contact John Hilke at jchilke@comcast.net so that he can include your representative on the Zoom invitation list for the training.

 

Electric Vehicles: the Impacts and Realities, with Landscape Architect Robert Colón, March 25, 5 pm, online.

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Electric Vehicles are touted as a key component to solving our climate crisis. Many consumers are jumping on the EV bandwagon, and companies like Amazon are building a fleet to ship goods by electric truck. Likewise, national environmental organizations are pushing EVs as key to lowering GHG emissions and transitioning to a green economy.

But are EVs a real climate solution? They can be, but ONLY if they coincide with mode shift from roads to rail, mass transit and passenger rail development, redesign of communities, battery recycling technology, and mitigation of lithium mining impacts.

Anything short of these co-occurring developments is contrary to the Green New Deal vision.

We need to ask:

  • How do we avoid trading one extractive model with another?
  • How do we center community self-determination and localization, instead of furthering the worst aspects of globalization?
  • How do we invest in public works in a way that is just, reduces harms, and addresses historic harms?

Solutionary Rail seeks to harmonize our transportation system, and we work with people like Robert to protect our natural areas, design cities that meet people’s real needs, all while reducing GHG emissions. Real solutions – like modeshifting long haul freight, building mass transit and passenger rail – would have an immediate impact on pollution and emissions and would contribute toward racial, environmental and transportation justice.

EVs can be a part of the solution – but these other areas warrant a much bigger investment and more attention. This Solutionary Rail presentation challenges the panacea of Electric Vehicles.

RSVP HERE to join us on Thursday

Workshop: UUA New Day Rising Conference National 2021

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Saturday, February 27 9am-6pm PT/10-7 MT/11-8 CT/12-9 ET, With plenty of breaks

Is your congregation ready to take a new step in changing white supremacy culture? Want to learn what your fellow congregations are working on, and how you might apply it at home? Join a continent of UUs as we explore next steps in creating Beloved UU Communities. On your own: Watch compelling video TED-talk style testimonials from selected congregations around the continent sharing their learnings, hopes and next steps in their quest for racial equity in their congregations. Together on February 27 Worship ~ Workshops ~ Caucusing. Be sure not to miss the worshop “Congregational paths to address both Climate Crisis and Systemic Oppression” with Rev. Karen Brammer!

Conversation with Sam Mace of Save Our wild Salmon and Elliott Moffett and Julian Matthews of the Niimipuu/Nez Perce, Feb. 18, 1 pm

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Photo Credit: NOAA

Earlier this month, U.S. Representative Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) released a visionary proposal to restore abundant salmon and steelhead to our region and strengthen Northwest communities.

Join Backbone Campaign to discuss what this means for wild salmon and the regional economy, in a Conversation with Sam Mace of Save Our wild Salmon and Elliott Moffett and Julian Matthews of the Niimipuu/Nez Perce.

Thursday, Feb. 18th
1pm Pacific / 4pm Eastern
RSVP TODAY

We celebrate Representative Simpson’s courage. The people of the Pacific NW have shifted culture by taking visible actions to protect what we love, because the fate of our beloved resident orca depends on salmon from the Columbia-Snake River ecosystem. By breaching the dams – removing the earthen berm barriers impeding a free flowing Snake – scientists believe we can significantly impact runs of wild salmon. These salmon are critical food for the Salish Sea’s resident orca.

We have always acknowledged that the farmers and shippers who depend on the River need to be part of a recovery plan:

Hear some of our talking points in this short video at a Human Orca Mural we did in Spokane.

Learn more about Grain Train and how it can help farmers along the Snake in this Conversation we had with Ken Casavant, awhile back.

Check out Rep Simpson’s Legislative Framework

Stay updated on this issue with our friends at Save Our wild Salmon

Check out the extensive article by Lynda Mapes of the Seattle Times

Thanks to Representative Simpson’s leadership – as well as much work by grassroots organizers, including Elliott Moffett, Julian Matthews (Nimiipuu/Nez Perce); Joseph Bogaard and Sam Mace (SOS); Michelle Seidelman in Portland; and many others, we are celebrating the future of a wild Snake River, with benefits for all.

School to Prison Pipeline Action Group Needs your Help

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The Interrupting the School or Prison Pipeline group is exploring bystander intervention training opportunities that JUUstice Washington might offer to congregations.  We are checking various options and there are a couple of training opportunities coming up in February that help this exploration.

Bystander intervention training opportunities.  One is coming up on February 13th.  Some key providers include Cortney Wooten, Seattle 350, Peace Keepers, and Poor People’s Campaign.

The first, on February 13, is by a training team out of DC.  They describe it as “an interactive, participatory, beginner’s workshop designed for those that may have none to little prior studies of bystander intervention.”  Payment is on a sliding fee scale.  The two times listed are two sections of the same training.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScUlPNGG7coDk5dQPYW-nbntdz08_iEr2Blj4-07g5SOp4N-Q/viewform

Edmonds United Methodist Church is offering a related workshop “Stepping into Allyship” workshop will be on February 9 from 6-8 pm. As we seek to create beloved community and dismantle racism, we are intentionally making the workshop free for all participants. The workshop will be led by local equity consultant and organizer, Courtney Wooten, who has collaborated with Edmonds UMC over the last three years. We hope that this offering will bless your communities as we work to together dismantle racism and white supremacy.  Registration information is available at Stepping into Allyship (google.com)  The presenter also does bystander intervention training.

The Interrupting the School or Prison Pipeline (post-Summit) group is exploring potential ways to find and boost existing programs that directly interrupt the school to prison pipeline.  Two programs that we are looking into are Speaking Justice and Community Passageways.  If you already work with either of these programs or have insights about their work, please let us know by contacting John Hilke at jhilke@juustwa.org.

The Interrupting the School or Prison Pipeline (post-Summit) group is monitoring and encouraging your engagement with the following legislative proposals dealing the police reforms and racial justice improvements.  We welcome additional assistance in monitoring and insights about these bills.  Please contact John Hilke at jhilke@juustwa.org, if you would like to help.

 

HB 1054 (Johnson) banning choke holds etc.

HB 1092 (Lovick) database of police use of force

HB 1089 (Ramos) compliance with I-940 on independent investigations of police violence

HB 1082 (Goodman) reform process of decertification and sanctions for police misconduct

HB 1088 (Lovick) standardizing reporting of police misconduct and impeaching office testimony

SHB 1044 educational opportunities in prisons

HB 1078/SB 5086  restoration of voting rights when persons leave prison

HB 1090  ban on private prisons

HB 1282/SB 5285 reduced prison terms for participating in educational programs

HB 1310  statewide de-escalation standard and limits on use of force

SB 5226  end debt-based suspensions of driver licenses

HB 1186 youth alternative corrections

SB? 5228 Antibias curriculum development

SB 5229 continuing education regarding antibias practices