Social Justice Report to the Board, Sept 15, 2022

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Jim Bigelow and BUUF Social Justice Ministries

Social Justice Mission

Our mission is to support BUUF members and friends in working for justice and equity in human relations in ourselves and our community guided by our eight UU principles.

Social Justice Strategy

We focus our social justice work by following the Unitarian Universalist Association’s key priorities:

Our work is done by the justice ministries, coordinating with a social justice council. 

  • the BUUF Social Justice Council supports:
    • members who wish to put their faith into action through BUUF Justice Ministries,
    • movements and organizations that align with our mission, community needs, and the justice work of the UUA and ourselves through the BUUF Plate Partner program
    • congregational awareness of justice issues through social justice resolutions and social justice workshops.
    • Proposed resolutions for 2022:
  • The Racial Justice Ministry (Racial Justice and the 8th Principle)
    • Mission: raise awareness and understanding of an engagement with race and racism. This includes our individual and collective opportunities to achieve racial justice.
  • The Refugee, Immigrant and Asylum Seekers Ministry (Immigrant Justice)
    • Mission: To support and advocate for immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers in our community (and beyond).
  • The Climate Action Team (Climate & Environmental Justice)
    • Mission: Plan and implement activities to educate and motivate BUUF members and friends to combat the climate crisis, reflecting our 7th Principle,

Tactics

  1. Follow through on the actions for our justice resolutions
    1. Social Justice Resolution to Defend and Advocate with Transgender, Nonbinary, and Intersex Communities, January 11, 2022
    2. Dismantling Racism, December 8, 2019
    3. Supporting Immigrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers, December 8, 2019
    4. Healthcare For All, January 2019
    5. Responding to Climate Change, January 2019
    6. Resolution on Gun Safety, May 20, 2018
  2. Build and maintain relations with local non-white communities, e.g.  Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, Japanese
  3. Build and maintain relations with groups with similar values, e.g. Planned Parenthood, WCA, Wassmuth Center
  4. Continue efforts to decenter whiteness and to understand personal and systemic racism
  5. Advocate for comprehensive, humane immigration reform
  6. Collaborate with refugee & immigrant support groups such as the IRC & ANA
  7. Create awareness among BUUF membership about immigration, refugee and asylum seeker support
  8. Counter tactics of  groups promoting illiberal democracy
    1. Support education and teachers
    2. Support libraries
    3. Support targeted communities, e.g. LGBTQ, unsheltered people
    4. Support the dignity and worthiness of all people, resisting a division of people into worthy and unworthy, e.g. poor people are unworthy of assistance
    5. Support voting rights
    6. Support peaceful, nonviolent conflict resolution
  9. Create and support efforts to mitigate the effects of an increasing unsafe climate, e.g. extreme heat, smoke, drought, power outages
  10. Be prepared for political violence

Projects (2022 – 2023 program year)

  1. Building a Pro-choice faith Coalition
  2. Fall Social Justice Resolutions
    1. Supporting Reproductive Justice
    2. Saving the Salmon by Breaching the Four Lower Snake River Dams
  3. Racial Justice Ministry bi-weekly meetings, 2 programs with speakers: October Indigenous People’s day and December, Black Music
  4. Support the Climate Action Team in finding new leadership, propose the goal of making BUUF carbon neutral.
  5. Be a  source for justice and Liberal Democracy ideals in the community by investing in public media, such as PSAs, to increase our public promotion of justice and compassion in our focus areas. 
  6. Continuing and sustaining our work for justice for refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers
  7. LGBTQ Community support – focus on trans youth & families

Potential Long Term projects

  1. A long-term commitment to a pro-choice faith coalition or Interfaith Justice Coalition
    1. Seed initial funding for staff (including future fundraising)
    2. Support creation of organizational mission, vision and strategic plan
    3. Focus on state-wide organizing
  1. Set a date for BUUF to become carbon neutral as an fellowship-wide project
  2. Plan to make BUUF power independent and a cooling center over a course of ten or more years. Work with other organizations and the city to establish cooling centers throughout the city and county.
    1. As droughts, heat and smoke intensify BUUF needs to plan how to respond. The Idaho Statesman article, White House unveils new climate data mapping tool says that if there is no reduction in the greenhouse gas emissions that by the end of the 21st century temperatures will reach 114 in Boise with nearly a month of temps above 105.  Even the reduced emissions model shows an increase in days when temperatures exceed 100 degrees. Smoke will increase and worsening drought could impact power generation. 
  3. A funding program to give angel grants to people and organizations led by BIPOC members doing community work that aligns with our values. 

Continuing Funding

  1. $15,000/year or 5% of the yearly budget for Social Justice Work
  2. Hire a BUUF publicist to support the public presence of BUUF in the community

Incorporate into long-term goals

  • Become an outspoken source for justice and Liberal Democracy ideals in the community by investing in public media, such as PSAs, to increase our public promotion of justice and compassion in our focus areas. 
  • Continuing and sustaining our work for justice for refugees, immigrants and asylum seekers
  • LGBTQ Community support – focus on trans youth & families