Racial Justice Ministry

The mission of the Racial Justice Ministry is to

raise awareness and understanding of and engagement with racial identity and racism, including our individual and collective opportunities to achieve racial justice.

The Racial Justice Ministry is also guided by the UU 8th Principle, adopted by the Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship during 2019, which states that we 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.

We believe it is more important than ever to have resources for educating ourselves about racism and actions we can take, both individually and collectively, to dismantle the many oppressions that Black, Indigenous and People of Color face. The purpose of the Racial Justice Ministry (RJM) website is to provide these resources. We invite you to be a regular visitor to the website. If we can make this website more useful to you in some way, please let us know. You can contact us at  racialjustice@boiseuu.org.

Announcements

January 2020 Suggested video of the month

The suggested video of the month is: How Structural Racism Works. This 2020 video (23:27 long) is a lecture by Professor Tricia Rose from Brown University in which she defines structural racism, outlines “colorblind ideology” as a direct challenge to anti-racist work, and describes the “How Structural Racism Works” project at the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America,” which she directs. Click on this STRUCTURAL RACISM VIDEO link to view the video. Then click on this STRUCTURAL RACISM DOC link for a PDF document to help you further explore the topic of structural racism.

January 2020 program: Systemic Racism

The link, Zoom meeting ID, and passcode are good for both program sessions.

What can you do?

As a person concerned about racial justice, you may be asking what you can do. Click here IMPORTANT ACTIONS WE CAN TAKE NOW for a short list of things you can do, beginning now, to work toward racial justice.

Racial Justice Vocabulary

Click here VOCABULARY for a list of terms that are frequently used in discussions and materials related to racial justice.

Learn more about …

These pages are periodically updated with new topics, information, and resources. We invite you to visit frequently and explore the available information.

NEW PAGE: EFFECTS OF SYSTEMIC RACISM. Systemic racism (AKA structural racism and institutional racism) is racism that is embedded throughout a society. It is not defined by its intent but by its adverse effects on people of color . The result is that, over time, people of color, as a group, experience a variety of lasting adverse effects. Tangible evidence of these lasting adverse effects can be seen in several common indicators of physical, economic, and social well-being. Click here to view or download a EFFECTS OF SYSTEMIC RACISM document.

BLACK AMERICANS WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT. Click here for the BLACK AMERICANS PAGE.

THE SHORT LIST. Click for a SHORT LIST of print and video resources to get started learning about race and racism in the U.S..

IDAHO INDIGENOUS PEOPLE. Click for the IDAHO INDIGENOUS PEOPLE page.

MOVIES AND BOOKS. Click here for the MOVIES AND BOOK Page, including titles of movies and books that will help you better understand race and racism.

NATIVE AMERICANS WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT . Click here for the NATIVE AMERICAN WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT page

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE. Click here for the INDIGENOUS PEOPLE PAGE.

DEFUNDING THE POLICE. Click here for the DEFUND THE POLICE PAGE

ORGANIZATIONS WORKING FOR RACIAL JUSTICE IN THE US. Click here for the RJ ORGANIZATIONS page.

REPARATIONS. Click here for the REPARATIONS page.

SYSTEMIC RACISM: DEFINITION AND HISTORY. Click here for the SYSTEMIC RACISM AND HISTORY page.

INTERSECTIONALITY. Click here for the INTERSECTIONALITY page.

Racial Justice Ministry Programs

The Racial Justice Ministry offers a variety of programs intended to help anyone learn more about racism and become more engaged with racial justice activities. These programs are briefly described below.

Racial Justice Education

During the fall of 2019 and winter of 2020, the RJM held monthly in-person programs using videos and group discussions to increase awareness and understanding of topics related to race and racism. The programs were discontinued during March of 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic but will resume during the fall of 2020 using Zoom. Handout materials from each of the past programs can be found at Monthly program materials. RJ Education also posts links to short suggested videos with suggested questions or activities. Posted videos can be found at Suggested videos of the month

Racial Justice Action

Meets twice a month via Zoom. Meetings are open to the community and focus taking positive steps to end racism based on a list of 75 Things White People Can Do.

Wake Up Coffee Circle

Every Wednesday, 9:00-10:30 AM Wednesdays via Zoom. These unstructured conversations are open to all interested individuals and offer opportunities to talk about recent events or whatever else might be on our minds, related to racial justice, and to support one another. Drop in any time, stay as long as you want. Information about the Coffee Circle, including the Zoom link can be found in each week’s BUUF “Weekly Gazette.”

Racial Justice Community Google Group

The Racial Justice Community is a group of BUUF and community members who share information, announcements, resources and support as we work toward racial justice. To join the group simply send your name and email address to racialjustice@boiseuu.org and ask to join.

RJM Archive