From the minister:
Thank you for participating in an anonymous vote for this year’s Action of Immediate Witness at General Assembly! You recommended the following top 2, with ties for the remaining 4 options.
- Protect the Dreamers, the Recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) with a Pathway to Permanent Residence
- Organizing for Health Equity
I cast a tie-breaking vote for #3: Stop Cop City. Here is an excerpt from the AIW:
The Atlanta Police Foundation, in partnership with the Atlanta City Government and a committee of more than 40 corporate donors, has proposed the construction of a $90 million militarized urban warfare training complex, deemed “Cop City,” in the heart of a predominantly Black Neighborhood. The Cop City campus requires the destruction of 381 acres of land in one of Atlanta’s largest remaining green spaces, known as Welaunee Forest, South River Forest, and one of the “four lungs” of Atlanta. The Welaunee Forest is sacred land to the Muskogee people. Read the full description here.
Here’s some background on why I made this choice. As a UU minister, an important part of my call is to serve the health and well-being of the interdependent web of life. I have been an environmental advocate since I first learned about interdependent food webs as a 12 year old at summer camp on the Salish Sea. As a Board Member at Earth Ministry/ Washington Interfaith Power & Light, I deepened my understanding of environmental justice: that the impacts of environmental harm consistently have greater impacts on people who are marginalized. My advocacy shifted to look at how we can work on environmental justice issues disproportionately impacting Black, Indigenous, and Communities of Color.
As it turns out, VIUU’s votes aligned with the UU majority. These 3 actions will be moved forward onto the GA agenda. Here are the voting results: 805 Votes: Protect the Dreamers; 648 Votes: Organizing for Health Equity; 414 Votes: Rise Up to Stop Cop City.
