Meet the Activate @ GA team!

UUCSJ offers a variety of Activate Youth Justice programs, including at General Assembly. This year, for the first time, we are excited to welcome a team of awesome Activate Youth Leaders who are helping shape, facilitate, and promote our youth justice workshops in New Orleans, in collaboration with the Youth Caucus team. Get to know the Activate Youth Leaders (and a few adults, too) via their bios below and come say “Hello!” if you’ll be in New Orleans in June!


Pablo deVos-Deak is finishing his freshman year of high school and attends the Unitarian Society of New Haven, where he serves as a K1 teacher and is involved with his youth group. Born in Guatemala, he has traveled the world and most recently gone to China for two weeks. Pablo is very passionate about social justice and among other youth leadership experiences, has participated in a youth visit to the College of Social Justice and workshops at the UU-UNO Spring Seminar. Along with being a “sneaker-head” and playing three sports, he also loves trying new foods, playing the the piano, drums and steel pans, and listening to Logic. He looks forward to attending his 7th GA this year!

 



Adele Gelperin
is a rising junior at Mount Holyoke College, where they study religion and education. They grew up in the Unitarian Society of New Haven and now call Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence a second home.  Adele is a handbell enthusiast, a bookworm, and an aspiring elementary school teacher, who can often be found singing songs from Moana, arguing about philosophy, and tromping through the woods. They are an alum of Activate Boston (when it was known as National Youth Justice Training) and are thrilled to join the UUCSJ team and meet even more UUs at GA this year.



Liam McAlpin is a rising high school sophomore from Tahlequah, Oklahoma. He is a member of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Tahlequah and attends Sequoyah High School, an all Native tribal school run by Cherokee Nation, where he is a member of his school’s student council and strives to make his school and community a safe and better place for all. Liam also attends Squirrel Ridge, one of the last remaining traditional Cherokee ceremonial grounds, where he is a proud member of the ground’s leadership and helps keep his Cherokee culture and spirituality alive. When Liam has free time, which isn’t that common, he enjoys making and listening to music, writing poetry and short stories, and spending time with his family and friends.



Chloe Ockey
attends the Unitarian Universalist Church of Fresno in Fresno, California. She is currently a college sophomore majoring in Communication Studies, who wishes to pursue a career in Public Relations. Some of her many hobbies include music composition, writing, and travel. As an alum of Luminary Leaders, Activate Boston, and Thrive West, she has participated in a variety of opportunities related to UU youth leadership and social justice. She can’t wait to meet all of you at General Assembly this year!

 



Abiy Welch
is a first-year student at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. Her hometown is Hillsboro, Oregon and she attends both West Hills UU Fellowship and the UU Church of Eugene. She is a ‘13 GoldMine alumni, ’15 Summer Seminary alumni, is a member of the PWR GoldMine staff and is a peer chaplain. In 2016, she went to New Orleans for UUCSJ Activate Racial Justice! In her free time, she loves to sing hymns and read children’s books to others. The biggest thing that she took away from her Activate! trip was to find something you are passionate about, find that community, and stick to it. Join Abiy at GA for some food, coffee, or just a chat about anything and everything! She says, “Remember: Always. Believe. In. Yourself!”



Kristin Famula
has been a religious educator for the past decade, currently serving as the Acting Director of Religious Education at the UU Community of the Mountains in Grass Valley, CA, and previously as Director of Religious Education at Prairie UU Church in Colorado. As an educator and a life-long UU, she works to create and offer opportunities for people of all ages to deepen their commitment to transforming systems of oppression through reflection, learning and relationships. Kristin also serves as President of the National Peace Academy (nationalpeaceacademy.us), an educational institute dedicated to holistic peace-building. The National Peace Academy focuses on developing and offering learning opportunities for bringing forth the peace-builder in all of us, including through international opportunities for youth leadership and cultural exchange. As a UUCSJ Program Leader, Kristin has led several immersion learning journeys, including last year’s Activate New Orleans and a recent youth journey to the US/Mexico border.


Marissa Gutierrez-Vicario is a UUCSJ Program Leader and the Founder and Executive Director of Art and Resistance Through Education (ARTE). As a committed human rights activist, artist, educator, and advocate for youth, Marissa launched ARTE in 2013 to help young people amplify their voices and organize for human rights and social change in their communities through the arts. Since early childhood, Marissa became interested in the arts and its potential for bringing attention to important social issues within her community. At an early age, Marissa also developed the propensity to lead as a student activist and public servant through her involvement in several non-profit organizations, including: United Students Against Sweatshops, the Advocacy Lab, Public Allies New York, Global Kids, and the UUA. In all of these experiences, Marissa realized the need to support young people in their development as organizers to help cultivate the next generation of social justice leaders. She has recently supported UUCSJ’s expansion of new initiatives in Nicaragua and new training collaborations such as the UNO Spring Seminar.



Angela Kelly is SO grateful to be working with this amazing Activate@GA team and in collaboration with the awesome Youth Caucus staff! As Senior Associate for Justice Education at UUCSJ, her work focuses on developing opportunities to integrate activism, popular education, and spiritual practice. As a teen, immersion learning journeys fueled her own passion for human rights and social justice and in the years since, supporting youth leadership has remained an energizing component of her work, which has included 15 years of organizing in various contexts for peace, community empowerment, health equity, refugee solidarity, and racial justice. These days, being rooted in her neighborhood, running in nature, circling up with kindred spirits, painting and scattering #KindnessRocks, and hanging out in child’s pose renew and sustain her ability to “rejoice & resist”.


We all look forward to seeing you soon!

Creating Space to Grow Racial Justice

It had happened again. Another black man had been shot dead by police, another life lost to the brutality of racism, another painful reminder of the urgency of the Movement for Black Lives. News of Philando Castile’s death in Minnesota came less than a day after the police shot Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge. They weren’t the last to die; in recent weeks, other men, women, and transgender people of color have been killed just for being themselves – and not just by police. These tragedies, and the long-standing systems of oppression behind them, weigh heavily on all who seek to defy hate.

A few days later, 30 young adults gathered in the sanctuary of the First UU Church of New Orleans for the opening worship of Grow Racial Justice. They sat in a circle around the steady flame of a chalice, and to the rhythm of a beating drum, spoke their intentions in turn: Healing. Courage. Compassion. Humility. Rigor. Accountability. Resistance. Community. Clarity. Love.

For the next five days, Grow Racial Justice offered participants the tools, resources, and relationships to support their racial justice leadership. The UU College of Social Justice and the UUA’s Thrive Program for Youth & Young Adults of Color organized the retreat and training, in in collaboration with two other groups: Standing on the Side of Love, and the Center for Ethical Living and Social Justice Renewal. As the struggle for racial justice lives on in our streets and courtrooms, congregations and communities, it was a timely opportunity for young activists to deepen their faith, lift their spirits, build community, and develop skills for organizing within and beyond Unitarian Universalism.

In two uniquely tailored, parallel programs, young adults of color and white young adults explored their racial and ethnic identities, reflected on the effects of internalized racism, and considered how their own experiences compel them to action. They shared stories, struggles, songs, and practices of resistance and resilience. The two groups then came together to learn skills in anti-racist facilitation and grassroots organizing from long-time movement leaders Aesha Rasheed and Caitlin Breedlove. They left with a shared commitment to lead the work required to advance racial justice in their home communities and within themselves.

Participants echoed one another in reflecting on the value of the program. One young adult of color shared, “My time at Grow helped me form a deep, action-oriented commitment to racial justice. I’ve been inspired to preach sermons that speak the truth about racial (in)justice and my own experiences, to volunteer with my local Black Lives Matter chapter, and to be public with my own actions, thoughts, and struggles in the fight for racial justice. I can do all of this because I know there is a community of support, helping me move forward.”

Grow Racial JusticeAnother participant from the white cohort added, “I believe Grow transformed my work from ‘facebook activism’ into true action. I better understand how organizing for change means matching commitment with a plan for how to do it… If we truly want to show up for the world in the ways our principles commit us to, we need to do white-on-white work to dismantle white supremacy.”

A third, who participated in the Thrive cohort, said, “This was a life-changing experience – physically, mentally, and most important, spiritually. I can’t wait to create movements with these people.”

Shortly after Grow Racial Justice concluded, the UU College of Social Justice brought together 15 teenagers for Activate New Orleans: Racial Justice and the Beloved Community, also hosted by the Center for Ethical Living and Social Justice Renewal. Like the participants in Grow, the youth left this training with new bonds of friendship, a deeper understanding of systemic racism, and a stronger commitment to taking the next steps in their social justice journeys.

Too much hateful rhetoric has filled the airwaves this year. Unrelenting acts of racist aggression continue to distress and dishearten us. Still, the voices of the young leaders who joined us at Grow and Activate Racial Justice offer hope. They remind us that joining together to defy hate through personal transformation and strengthened activism can help us undo racism and foster our collective liberation.

This article initially appeared in the Fall 2016 edition of Rights Now, published by UUSC.

UUCSJ at 2016 General Assembly

General Assembly (GA) is a special opportunity for Unitarian Universalists to worship, witness, learn, connect, and join together in advancing human rights. The theme for GA 2016 is Heartland: Where Faiths Connect and will focus on interfaith work and answering the question “How are we crossing faith borders as we bring more love and justice into the world?” The UU College of Social Justice has planned some exciting workshops and events this year in Columbus, OH on this theme that we hope you will join us for. Also, you can stop by the UUSC/UUCSJ booth to say hello. We would love a chance to meet with you and help you find your place in the exciting work we do.

Here are the exhibit hall hours:

 

  • Wednesday, June 22, 12:00–7:00 p.m.
  • Thursday, June 23, 10:00 a.m.–4:45 p.m.
  • Friday, June 24, 10:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, June 25, 10:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
  • Sunday, June 26, 12:00–3:30 p.m.

Friday, June 24th

Beyond the Border: Local Actions on Immigrant Rights
Friday 6/24/2016, 4:45 – 6:00 p.m.
Hyatt – Union E

The UU College of Social Justice and Standing on the Side of Love bring groups to the U.S./Mexico Border to witness the crisis facing migrants and refugees when they arrive. Hear about the actions these participants have taken, and learn skills to mobilize your congregation, from supporting immigrant-led organizing like #Not1More to stopping new anti-immigrant policies.

  • B Loewe, #Not1More and Mijente

Saturday, June 25th

Bridges Not Barricades: Faith in a Time of Fear
Saturday, June 25, 3:00 – 4:15 p.m.
Convention Center – E170-172

In a time when fear and the rhetoric of exclusion are on the rise, interfaith partnership is essential. Our theological diversity and commitment to tolerance position us well for these alliances, yet we are often unprepared to join in interfaith worship, prayer, or even conversation with people of different religions. How can we reclaim the vocabulary of our faith and take our place at the interfaith table?

  • Rev. Kathleen McTigue, UUCSJ

To find out more about General Assembly, including information on registration, the schedule, housing, and more, visit the UUA’s website here.

Click here to find out more about UUSC’s workshops and events.

 

UUCSJ at General Assembly

General Assembly (GA) is a special opportunity for Unitarian Universalists to worship, witness, learn, connect, and join together in advancing human rights. The UU College of Social Justice has planned some exciting workshops and events this year in Portland, OR. Also, you can stop by the UUA Expressway to say hello. We would love a chance to meet with you and help you find your place in the exciting work we do.

Here are the exhibit hall hours:

  • Wednesday, June 24, 12:30–7:30 p.m.
  • Thursday, June 25, 10:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
  • Friday, June 26, 10:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, June 27, 10:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m.
  • Sunday, June 28, 10:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.

SCHEDULE

WEDNESDAY

Activate! A Pre-GA Event
Wednesday, June 24, 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Portland

UUCSJ looks forward to offering the second annual Activate GA on Wednesday, June 24, 2015, in Portland, Oregon. Our day will begin by exploring systems of oppression and social change through a variety of interactive activities. We will then put our justice values into action by discussing climate justice and our role in it as people of faith. The program will conclude by developing action plans to articulate and engage justice work during General Assembly and back at home. It’s not too late to sign up! Find out more here.

THURSDAY, June 25

Talk the Walk: Speaking Justice in the Language of Our Faith
Thursday, June 25, 10:45 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Oregon Convention Center, Rooms B117–119

Historical movements for justice have often been inspired and sustained by religious faith and practice. Ours is an activist faith, yet when we take action in the public sphere our religion is often invisible. How might we bring our own justice commitments into deeper conversation with our spiritual lives, and learn to speak our convictions in the language of our faith?

  • Lindi Ramsden, Starr King School for the Ministry Acting Dean of Students and Community Life
  • Rev. Kathleen McTigue, UUCSJ Director

Living in the Intersections: Service Learning Through a Justice Frame
Thursday, June 25, 3:00–4:15 p.m.
Oregon Convention Center, Rooms B113–114

Congregations undertake service-learning trips with the best of intentions. Yet such journeys can unwittingly perpetuate systems of injustice. Join the UU College of Social Justice to find out how service learning can be a pilgrimage of witness and solidarity, based on deep education & insight that lead us to new ways to build alliances for justice when we return home.

  • Mark Hicks, Fahs Collaborative Laboratory for Leaders in Faith and Learning Director
  • Rev. Kathleen McTigue, UUCSJ Director

How the Work of Change Can Change You
UUCSJ and UUA
Thursday, June 25, 4:45–6:00 p.m.
Oregon Convention Center, Rooms A105–106

Join Youth Caucus and the UU College of Social Justice in an exciting workshop where we’ll learn from participants in Activate (formerly NYJT) social justice trainings for youth. We’ll hear about what interests them about justice work, what they learned in programs in New Orleans and Boston, and how they are acting for social justice work back home. Come get inspired!

  • Laura Lubin, UUCSJ Associate for Youth and Young Adult Programs
  • Bart Frost, UUA Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries

FRIDAY, June 26

General Assembly General Session III
Friday, June 26, 8:45 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

UUSC President Bill Schulz will present on UUSC and its 75th anniversary during this session. Immediately following, Rev. Kathleen McTigue will give a brief overview and update on the UU College of Social Justice. This will take place between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.

If I Had a Hammer: Best Practices in Youth Service Learning
Friday, June 26, 1:15–2:30 p.m.
Oregon Convention Center, Rooms B113–114

Service trips are a tradition for many youth groups: it’s powerful to travel, learn, & volunteer together. But what makes a trip succeed? What shifts it from a fleeting experience into lasting insight? Join UUCSJ to explore our shared capacity for transformative youth trips. Come hear from participants, leaders & hosts — and share your wisdom, too.

  • Laura Lubin, UUCSJ Associate for Youth and Young Adult Programs
  • Sam Wilson
  • Deanna VanDiver

Solidarity Across the Food Chain
Friday, June 26, 4:45–6:00 p.m.
Oregon Convention Center, Rooms F151–152

Join the Food Chain Workers Alliance and the UU College of Social Justice for this interactive workshop, as we launch a new training program to unite UUs and food chain workers (in farms, restaurants, warehouses, and markets). Help build alliances across class, culture, and four key sectors to “HEAL” our broken food system: Health, Environment, Access, and Labor.

  • Hannah Hafter, UUCSJ Senior Associate for Service-Learning Programs
  • Rev. Kathleen McTigue, UUCSJ Director
  • Jose Oliva, Food Chain Workers Alliance Director

SUNDAY

UUCSJ Booth Closes at 2:30 p.m.
Last chance to visit us at the booth.

To find out more about General Assembly, including information on registration, the schedule, housing, and more, visit the UUA’s website here.

Click here to find out more about UUSC’s workshops and events.

Justice is What Love Looks Like in Public – MLK

Justice is What Love Looks Like in Public – MLK

The following post was written by Rev. Kathleen McTigue, Director at the UU College of Social Justice (UUCSJ).

Our General Assembly starts in just a few days, and it’s built around the theme, “Love Reaches Out.” For the UU College of Social Justice, this raises the natural question: What does love have to do with justice?

Our culture is saturated with images of superficial romantic love, which can leave us feeling jaded toward the word itself. But love worth the name is a force that has moved our human world toward goodness for thousands of years.

Some of our most treasured philosophers from ancient times understood this. They devoted their considerable brainpower to the study of human love in its deepest sense. Plato’s best sound bite on the topic was, “Love is the pursuit of the whole.” Socrates considered love the binding agent in human existence.  He said, “Love… spans the chasm that divides human beings and gods, and therefore in love is all bound together.”

This is another way of saying that the most important kind of love is an active choice. It isn’t something that happens to us, “falling in love” as though stumbling into a hole in the ground. It isn’t a feeling, romantic or otherwise, but a stance we choose toward the world, a way of turning ourselves toward union.

When we think of it this way, it’s clear that love and justice are so connected that it would be hard to tease them apart. Love is a yearning for wholeness; and this yearning in turn moves us to act for justice.

So at General Assembly this year, watch for the bright orange CSJ buttons that lift up our favorite words on the topic: “Justice is what love looks like in public.” See you in Providence!

Come meet us at General Assembly!

General Assembly (GA) is a special opportunity for Unitarian Universalists to worship, witness, learn, connect, and join together in advancing human rights. The UU College of Social Justice has planned some exciting workshops and events in Providence, R.I. Also, you can stop by the UUA Expressway to say hello. We would love a chance to meet with you and help you find your place in the exciting work we do.

SCHEDULE

WEDNESDAY

Activate! A Pre-GA Event
This one-day event for high school youth is an introduction to social justice education with the UU College of Social Justice. We’ll talk about our call to justice work, and explore UUSC’s work on minimum wage and workers’ rights. To learn more and sign up, click here.

THURSDAY

Learn, Love, Act: Best Practices in Service Learning
UUCSJ and partner Center for Ethical Living and Social Justice Renewal
Program ID: 114
Thursday, June 26, 12:30–1:45 p.m.
RICC Rotunda

Come to an interactive session in which UUCSJ will share best practices for UU experiential learning: what works, what doesn’t, and why. We’ll explore some of the pitfalls of service-learning trips and invite you to share your own stories of success and struggle. Come learn, teach, and be inspired!

  • Rev. Kathleen McTigue, UUCSJ
  • Rev. Deanna VanDiver, CELSJR
  • Evan Seitz, UUCSJ
  • Laura Lubin, UUCSJ
  • Derek Mitchel, UUA

Learn, Love, Act: Voting Rights and Our Call to Action
UUCSJ, UUA, and partner NAACP
Program ID: 134
Thursday, June 26, 4:00–5:15 p.m.
RICC West Lobby

The destructive power of money is whittling away at the most basic right of our democracy: voting that is free, fair, and accessible. Join UUCSJ and the NAACP to find out how you can help mobilize our faith community beyond congregational walls, in response to this critical call for justice.Rev. Kojo Nantambu, North Carolina NAACP

  • Rev. Jay Leach, Minister, UU Church of Charlotte, NC
  • Rev. Rob Hardies, Minister, All Soul’s Church, Washington, DC
  • Rev. Kathleen McTigue, Director, UUCSJ
  • Susan Leslie, Director, Congregational Advocacy and Witness, UUA

FRIDAY

Learn, Love, Act: Catalyzing Youth-Led Social Justice 
UUCSJ and partner Boston Mobilization
Program ID: 100
Friday, June 27, 12:30–1:45 p.m.
RICC Ballroom BC

Justice work is a transformative way to engage youth with congregations, nonprofits, and movements. Join the UU College of Social Justice and Boston Mobilization to explore innovative strategies. Teens, advisors, those called to justice work: come share your powerful experiences. Let’s build a better world — with youth in the lead!

SUNDAY

General Session VII
Sunday, June 29, 8:00–10:30a.m.
UUSC President Rev. Bill Schulz will be one of the speakers during this session.
Immediately following, Rev. Kathleen McTigue will give a brief overview and update on The College of Social Justice.

To find out more about General Assembly, including information on registration, the schedule, housing, and more, visit the UUA’s website here.

Click here to find out more about UUSC’s workshops and events.