The Power of Partnerships
One of our UU Asheville Justice Ministry partners is The Unitarian Universalist Ministry of North Carolina (UUJMNC -Yes, we love acronyms! Here is a link to my acronym sheet cheat. Please submit entries that are missing!) UUJMNC has supported our “UU the Vote” events that mails postcards to disenfranchised voters. Executive Director Rev. Lisa Garcia-Sampson works tirelessly as a compassionate advocate with NC and national justice partners by reaching out to our legislators in the General Assembly to encourage them to vote in the interest of our citizens for Medicaid expansion, to protect voting rights, reproductive justice and many other high priority issues that affect our state. It can often seem to be an endless struggle, but Lisa and her partners (including many UU congregations) are relentless.
Each Friday, the Zoom Action Hour brings UUs and allies from across the state to ground themselves in the power of community, recap issues of the week and plan action on issues impacting our state and country. They make phone calls, send e-mails, write letters to the editor and learn together. Tomorrow at 11AM, DownHome North Carolina organizer Isabell Moore will speak with us about Public School Strong – the fast-growing state-wide movement that is equipping local communities to fight for adequate funding, and against racist and anti-LGBTQ policies in our schools. You can join via Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/91029655107 and sign up for the weekly Friday Action Hour promo email here.
A few of our members attend Zoom Action Hour regularly:
“One of the best hours of my week… Community, education, action and really good music… I’ve learned so much, taken action on a wider range of topics than I would on my own and had 2 letters to the editor published on Sundays… I feel so grateful to have an opportunity to participate…” – Bernise Lynch, they/them/theirs
“I believe the Weekly Action hours are great because: 1) they often have great guest speakers who talk about justice-related issues we would never hear about and; 2) they make it easy for you to help by identifying which elected officials to contact and providing suggested text for phone calls or emails.” –Ed Prestemon
“I attend Friday Action Hour when I can… Rev. Lisa is tuned into what is happening in our state legislature in real time and gives us excellent information on actions that we can take to effect change. She makes it fun, nurtures our spirits and reminds us of the UU values that drive us to do justice work together. It’s wonderful to be on a zoom meeting with UU’s from around the state of NC who are also passionate about social justice and to hear what actions they have taken in their home congregations….We hear from interesting guest speakers. Recently the executive director of Carolina Jews for Justice led a workshop on understanding Antisemitism.” – Joanne Fox
Consider joining us tomorrow, and be on the lookout for future events sponsored by UUJMNC. Their Annual State Wide Gathering is Oct. 7 at The UU Fellowship of Raleigh. It’s an opportunity to join UUs from across the state to celebrate their work in 2023 and look ahead to 2024.. There will also be an opportunity to participate virtually. Register Here! I will be attending via Zoom and can host a watch party if you would like to join me. There might also be an opportunity to carpool. Please reach out if you are interested.
In faith & grounded in community, we can make a difference,
Rev. Claudia Jiménez
Minister of Faith Development