Date: 9/9/2021, 6:25 pm, updated 1/28/22 by Jim Bigelow
Status: Ratified by BUUF congregation on 1/11/22
Note: This resolution is inspired by the Action of Immediate Witness ratified at the 2021 General Assembly of the UUA: Defend and Advocate with Transgender, Nonbinary, and Intersex Communities (PDF)
WHEREAS, our faith has publicly called for transgender-affirming actions for over three decades and trans, nonbinary, and intersex people are a cherished part of Unitarian Universalism;
WHEREAS, In 2020 the Idaho legislature proposed three anti-transgender bills and two were signed into law.
WHEREAS, in 2021 over one hundred anti-trans U.S. state laws have been proposed, particularly targeting trans youth and trans people with the least power, enabling discrimination in sports, healthcare, education, birth certificates, and beyond, and at least eighteen bills have been passed in eight states;
WHEREAS, anti-trans bills use false notions of “religious freedom” and “protecting” women and children as an excuse for discrimination;
WHEREAS, Unitarian Universalism supports human rights and dignity for all, including access to employment, education, public accommodations, housing, transportation, sports and recreation, healthcare, voting, and public services;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT we, the members of the Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, affirm that living one’s identity, in terms of gender identity/expression, sex characteristics, and affectional/sexual orientation, is part of our free exercise of religion, and that religious exceptionalism that promotes discrimination abridges human rights and our free exercise of religion;
FURTHERMORE, WE RESOLVE TO
- Support, collaborate with, and increase material inclusion of trans, nonbinary, and intersex Unitarian Universalists by:
- Giving power and resources to trans, nonbinary, and intersex youth, adults, and organizations,
- Respecting all people’s self-identified names and pronouns, and all people’s privacy regarding trans, nonbinary, or intersex history/status,
- Working to ensure accessible all-gender restrooms are available in all our spaces,
- Ensuring all social and spiritual practices and communications use inclusive language, and
- Offering rituals for name or pronoun changes and other important milestones;
- Support local organizations led by trans/nonbinary/intersex people and their efforts to reimagine policing, decriminalize sex work, fund shelters for the unhoused, and other efforts that help trans/nonbinary/intersex people, particularly those who are low-income, BIPOC, and/or disabled;
- Engage in regular learning about gender diversity, including the unique experiences/needs of intersex people, and help educate the broader public, particularly medical and mental health professionals; and
- Build Beloved Community by engaging intersectional anti-racism and anti-oppression, deepening relationships across difference, sharing power equitably, and centering the leadership and needs of those targeted by multiple systems of oppression.
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