JUUstice Washington

A Unitarian Universalist State Action Network

Netse Mot: Bringing Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut Home!

by Leave a Comment

An orca breaches in view of Mount Baker in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands (AP, 2015/Eliane Thompson)

Netse Mot 2021-Call to bring Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut Home

2021 will focus on the return of Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut (Tokitae/Lolita) to the Pacific Northwest from Miami Seaquarim in Florida.  In the 1970s Southern Resident Orca youth were forcibly and violently taken from their pods and shipped out to aquariums and parks all over the world. Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut (Tokitae/Lolita) was taken to Miami Seaquarium where she is the last surviving Orca youth taken.  Lummi Nation has been trying for decades now to have her returned but Miami Seaquarim is refusing to release her.  In 2019, two Lummi women, Squil-le-he-le and Mah Tahs working with Earth Law Center, invoked the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and announced their intent to sue Miami Seaquarium if the Seaquarium.  To date (April 2021), Miami Seaquarim is still refusing to release Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut. Squil-le-he-le and Mah Tahs are calling upon us to respond as well.

  1. For individuals, they are asking that we sign the petition established by Earth Law Center that is collecting signatures to go to Miami Seaquarim and its parent and affiliates—Palace Entertainment and Parques Reunidos Servicios Centrales SA.
  2. For groups and organizations, they are asking that we sign a request to Governor’s Inslee (WA) and Brown (OR) and BC Premier John Horgan to sign a proclamation to support the efforts to bring her home.  Please sign by 24 May 2021.  We’d like to present it to the Governors in June during Orca Action Month.
  3. We are also being asked to reach out to other Indigenous connections we may have and invite them to sign the Indigenous Statement of Solidarity.  The request also includes a video of ceremonies in solidarity.  If you have connections with an Indigenous group, please ask them to contact  Julie at info@sacredsea.org.

More info can be found at sacredsea.org or our other webpages on the Totem Pole Journeys dedicated to her at https://juustwa.org/program-areas/issues/first-american-indian-nations/our-work/totem-pole-journeys/tokitae/ and https://juustwa.org/program-areas/issues/first-american-indian-nations/our-work/totem-pole-journeys/tokitae/tokitae-totem-pole-returns-home/

UUs and Elders Build Momentum for Drawdown Initiative, Now to June 2021

by Leave a Comment

For the past few weeks, UU Ministry for Earth and Elders Climate Action have been busy with the UU Project Drawdown Initiative 2021. UU DD 21 mobilizes teams or individuals to earn points for taking a variety of actions for climate and environmental justice. You can SIGN UP and take part in the challenge at any time until June, when the collective efforts will be compiled in a video to be shared and celebrated at UUA General Assembly. Get inspired with these highlights of progress so far.

Learn More

Townhall on Homelessness: Break the Cycle: Preventing is Ending Homelessness, Apr. 5, 2021, Online

by Leave a Comment

nca Davis-Lovelace (WaPPC Chair & ED of REACH) around ending and preventing homelessness. Topics will include:

  • Rent relief
  • $15 minimum wage
  • Governmental response to houselessness
  • Housing insecurity during a pandemic

and  more!

YOU MUST REGISTER HERE TO GET THE ZOOM LINK (limited to 500 registrants):

Sponsored by: REACH (Renton Ecumenical Association of Churches), WA Poor People’s Campaign, Local WFSE 843, Legacy of Equality & Leadership Organizing (LELO), Seattle Indivisible, and more.

Join us in a panel discussion moderated by Rev. Bia

Panelists Include:

Shukri Olow is a mother, a community organizer, a doctoral candidate, King County employee, and a candidate for King County District 5 (covering the cities of Kent, SeaTac, Tukwila, Burien, Normandy Park, Des Moines and Renton).

Chris Franco is the Director of Military & Veterans Affairs for Truman National Security Project, Army Military Veteran, & candidate for King County Council District 9.

Sharon Lee is Executive Director of the Low Income Housing Institute

Iris Guzman is a Highline Public School Social Worker & candidate for SeaTac City Council.

Dawn Bennett is the Co-Founder & Executive Director of Multicultural Education Rights Alliance & Candidate for Mayor of Kent.

Violet Lavatai is the Executive Director of Tenants Union of Washington.

Joseph Todd is the Deputy Chief Technology Officer at King County, WA & Candidate for Renton City Council.

 

Community Solar Bill HB 1046

by Leave a Comment

The community solar bill, HB 1046 was introduced and initial hearings took place January 12. You can review them by clicking on the bill number, above, and then the TVW link at the bottom of the bill page. Slide the slider about 15 minutes into the hearing for this bill.

This is the same bill that was passed last year but vetoed by the governor because it involved state expenditures for solar incentives. This year’s bill stripped out the funding but left in place the mechanism for incentives from other funding sources. The bill would require the Utilities and Transportation Commission to adopt by rule a program for the procurement of electricity from community solar projects by investor-owned utilities.

 

It now appears that the bill is dead for the session, since it has not cleared the policy committee by the cutoff date.

Announcing Faith Action Network’s 2021 State Legislative Agenda and Trainings

by Leave a Comment

Please find our 2021 Legislative Agenda (fanwa.org) where you can also download and share a copy.

Each year the FAN Governing Board and staff, in collaboration with our coalition partners and input from our Spring Summit attendees and the FAN Program Committee, approves FAN’s Legislative Agenda that guides our work during the state legislative session. We will be adding and adjusting priorities even as the 2021 session gets underway, so please check back here for updates.

Be sure you’re receiving our weekly E-News for legislative alerts starting in January. You can learn more about the bills on our Issue Fact Sheets page, which we continue to update as we receive bill information. And each week we will update the progress of the bills through our Bill Tracker.

Plan to join us for an Advocacy Day near you, held virtually this year for Spokane/Eastern WA 1/30, Olympia-focused 2/11, and Central WA 2/20. More information and registration links will be posted soon!

This year we are offering two pre-session trainings, on Wednesday, January 6, 6:00-8:00pm, and Sunday January 10, 2:00-4:00pm. Both will have the same content: An introduction to what to expect of the 2021 virtual legislative session and our legislative agenda by Paul Benz, with breakout rooms/workshops on specific content areas and some Advocacy 101 training. Registrations and more information to come on those, please hold the date!