January 2021
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JUUstice Washington Organizational News
2020 Northwest Justice Summit
This year’s Summit was a HUGE success and we thank you all for your presence and participation! Let’s keep the momentum going and stay connected throughout this new year and well into the future. Summit webpages are being updated with the information and activity gathered over the two sessions including summaries, links to videos, links to resources and more, so keep checking back. We will be following up with you individually and as groups, so please stay in touch with us about what you’re working on and let us know when you need support. One way to communicate your needs is by adding them to our community needs spreadsheet, we pull from this for announcements, calendar updates, and more.
If you did attend our Summit please take time to submit an evaluation
*This project was funded in part by the Fund for Unitarian Universalist Social Responsibility.
JUUstWA Board adopts the 8th Principle
December 20, 2020: The Board of JUUstice Washington has unanimously adopted the 8th Principle and we will be encouraging UU congregations throughout the PNW to consider adopting the 8th Principle as well.
Be it resolved that the Board of JUUstice Washington
has adopted the 8th Principle which states:
“We, the Board of JUUstice Washington,
Washington State UU Action Network and member of CUUSAN,
covenant to affirm and promote: journeying toward spiritual wholeness
by working to build a diverse multicultural Beloved Community by our actions
that accountably dismantle racism
and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.”
Get more information on the 8th Principle here.
January 21, 2021, 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM. Third Thursday: JUUstWA’s Emergent Strategy & Intersectional Networking Sessions. Join us monthly for Zoom-based Intersectional Justice Networking Sessions and emergent strategy meetings. Take time to Network & Collaborate with other community partners and justice-oriented congregations. Designed as an Open House where you can come and go as you please. REGISTRATION LINK
UUA News
Call for Program Proposals!
Circle ‘Round for Justice, Healing, Courage is the theme for General Assembly 2021. A variety of GA programs will provide registrants with tools to live into our mission and continue the work of our faith. You are warmly invited you to submit a Program Proposal for the 2021 Virtual UUA General Assembly. Proposals are due in two phases. Phase 1: Due January 15. Phase 2: Due January 29. Propose a GA Program
News from Our Action Teams
Environmental Justice Action Team. Environmental Justice Calendar
January 6th at 4pm JUUstice Washington’sGreen New Deal Action Team subgroup meeting. To find out more about the Green New Deal check here. To obtain Zoom link, email Sharon at office@juustwa.org or actionteams@juustwa.org
Two legislative bills to watch will be reintroduced this legislative session that have a direct impact on environmental justice issues. Both bills will likely be assigned new bill numbers but you can view previous bills to orient yourselves on the goals of the bills.
The Washington STRONG Act, developed by Rep. Debra Lekanoff, D-Bow, Rep. Sharon Shewmake, D-Bellingham, and Sen. Liz Lovelett, D-Anacortes, enables new financing tools that will stimulate the economy and create jobs, transition to a clean energy economy, and fund investments that benefit families, businesses, and communities across Washington. Read more here and watch for it in the WA legislature.
The Washington HEAL Act will be making its way through the legislature again this session, although because it’s a new session, it will be assigned a number legislative bill number. Passing the HEAL Act, will define and enforce environmental justice in our state, ensuring communities unfairly burdened by cumulative environmental health impacts will be at the front of agency directors’ minds as they make decisions about environmental policy, enforcement and investments. The HEAL Act ensures cross-agency accountability to communities most burdened by environmental health impacts – and to closing the health disparity gap in our state. So far, 89 diverse groups across our state agree that it’s time for our state to ensure ALL in Washington have a right to a healthy environment — clean air and water where we live, work and pray. (Front and Centered website).
Legislative Advocacy. Legislative Advocacy Calendar
January 10, 2021, 2-4 pm. Faith Action Network Legislative Session Training. 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! More here.
Prepare for the upcoming Legislative Session by learning how to negotiate the leg.wa.gov website. The Legislative Information Center provides a number of classes and tutorials that will help you navigate the website, how to prepare for a committee hearing, and provides a number of other educational materials.
Legislative Advocacy Days by various groups on a myriad of topics will soon start being scheduled. Take what you learned from the Summit and be ready to speak to legislators. Watch from mid-January through February and join the sessions and trainings. Then report back to us so we can pass the information onto the rest of the JUUstWA membership!
Faith sources to follow for this year’s legislative agendas:
- Washington State: Faith Action Network, Earth Ministry,
- Federal: UUs for Social Justice, Washington (DC) Interfaith Staff Community Working Groups,
Refugee, Immigrant and Migrant Solidarity (RIMS) Action Team. RIMS Calendar
January 23, 2021, 11 am – 1 pm. Summit Follow-up for RIMS Overturning Leg Agenda (Online). Follow-up call to action from issues that popped at the summit. To obtain Zoom link, email Sharon at office@juustwa.org or actionteams@juustwa.org
First/American Indian Nations Solidarity (FAIN) Action Team. FAIN Calendar
January 4, 2021. Rebuild the Earth Summit follow-up meeting. The Rebuild and Maintain the Beauty of the Earth strategy session from Part II of the Summit will be meeting again at 7:00 pm. We will be discussing projects that we want to work on individually and speaking to actions we want to take as a group. Click here to join us. If you did not attend either FAIN session of the summit and are still interested in joining this group, contact Deb Cruz.
Center for Native American Health, Spokane, opens January 2021. The new The Center will support students who identify as American Indian or Alaska Native (AI/AN) or as First Nations indigenous, and peers, faculty and staff colleagues, tribal partners, and community stakeholders are invited to visit and partake in enriched cultural and educational events.
Economic Justice Action Team. Economic Justice Calendar
January 18, 2021, 10-11 am. Northwest Poverty Action Network Advocacy Day. This Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (January 18, 2021), join Poverty Action members from across the state as we demand a more just Washington state. On Lobby Day you will:
- Join thousands of Washingtonians as we advocate together for racial and economic justice
- Share your story directly with your lawmakers
- Take action for a just recovery and stronger, resilient Washington
You are the experts and the heart of our collective fight to end poverty in our state. When our network comes out in force, we affect lawmakers’ decisions as they begin the legislative session. Click here to view the event details.
Racial Justice Action Team. Racial Justice Calendar
January 05, 2021 – 12:00 PM Washington Coalition for Police Accountability (WCPA) 2021 Legislative Priorities Preview Briefing via Zoom. UUs working towards criminal justice reform and police accountability will be given “talking points” usable in advocacy notes to write to legislators and the chairs of key committees. During the Webinar upcoming police accountability bills will be reviewed. Police tactics – sponsored by Representative Jesse Johnson Decertification and loss of license for officer misconduct – sponsored by Senator Jamie Pedersen Use of force – sponsored by Representative Jesse Johnson Civil liability for police use of force – sponsored by Representative My-Linh Thai Independent criminal investigations and prosecutions – sponsored by Representative Debra Entenman Click here to view the event details.
January 11th. The Public Safety Committee will meet virtually every week on Tuesdays 8am-10am, Thursdays 1:30pm-3:30pm, and Fridays 10am-12pm. Become part of the policy-making process. There will be at minimum 8 pieces of legislation on transforming policing in WA this coming session, most of them co-sponsored by Leg District 23rd’s new rep Tarra Simmons. They will all come through the Public Safety Committee.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
Why Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Matters To Your Congregation – UUA. Online workshop. Our faith is changing and we need innovation in worship, in leadership, and in new communities. How do we support the innovators and risk-takers among us? What can we learn from them for our own congregations?
Movies for Justice
Social Justice Film Festival – Highlights of Social Justice Film Festival 2020. January 22, 2021 @ 12:00 pm – January 24, 2021 @ 11:59 pm. The Social Justice Film Institute and Northwest Film Forum present Best of the Fest 2021 – TRANSFORM: Another World Is Possible.
Ancestral Waters. For three years, the Puyallup Tribe has fought against and raised awareness about the liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility currently being built on the Tribe’s ancestral land, known today as the Tacoma Tideflats. Construction began without key permits or meaningful consultation with the tribe but the facility can still be stopped in court. Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light is coordinating screenings of Ancestral Waters in faith communities across the region. If you would like to schedule a screening and discussion in your spiritual/religious community, please contact maddie@earthministry.org. For more information on the film visit Native Daily Network.
Wellness for Activists
DeeplyRooted: “And God is the Water” with LYLA JUNE /176.
This week, Lyla June gifts us with a poem that rides with the rushing current of Creation and beckons us to wade into the ever-moving stream of life. Allow Lyla’s poem to wash over you, to uplift your capacity to find strength, forgiveness and connection in times of adversity. May Lyla’s testament to the ancient power of water and geologic time invite deep healing and love into your life. Listen to Lyla’s podcast here and check out other inspirational podcasts at For The Wild.
JUUstWa’s Emergent Strategy Sessions will always include somatic practices for sustainable activism. Register for January’s Session