Welcome to the Action Center Weekly Update. Each week, we will provide a brief analysis of critical issues in this political moment, share immediate actions you can take, and provide helpful resources to deepen knowledge and practice of our collective work to side with love.
Nothing is inevitable. All justice movements are powered by ordinary people who come together to defeat oppression and build a loving world. You are not alone. We have power. Together we can practice and win a just and loving world where all of us thrive.
Remember we build strong movements when we take action together. Organize teams and networks that can take these actions together. For support on practical organizing skills and support check out our Organizing School and Skill Up resources.
Top Lines for this week:
Decriminalization: It is more and more clear that we cannot count on the courts to uphold the law or the administration to do as the courts say when it comes to immigrant rights, but we know that we can count on communities of resistance and protection.
Democracy
We are witnessing the consolidation of power in the hands of the few instead of the many. Democracy is a process and practice grounded in our values of interdependence that affirms the inherent worth and dignity of all. We are the majority, but we must organize our communities to build the power to defeat authoritarianism and build a truly multiracial democracy.
The Update/Action
In North Carolina, Republicans are dangerously close to overthrowing the results of a statewide election for a pivotal Supreme Court seat. It may come to citizens shutting down operations of the government to stop the outright subversion of voters’ will. Popular Information has provided outstanding coverage of the attempted election subversion.
As expected, the GOP voter suppression bill, HR 22, passed narrowly in the U.S. House. As we’ve previously noted, HR 22 would force states to require that people show proof of citizenship every time they register to vote, imposing often-costly burdens on up to 90 million potential voters (or disenfranchising them).
A filibuster is planned in the Senate, but please do not take your Senators’ votes for granted on this dangerous bill, regardless of their party. Margaret Sullivan provides an update and runs down the Senators most likely to be influenced by your calls (Capitol switchboard: 202 224-3121).
On a positive note, Harvard University refused to comply with Donald Trump’s attempt to blackmail the school into abandoning justice and instead published this strong response. Trump demanded that Harvard submit to political overseers who would ensure professors, staff, and the student body conform with the demographic and ideological preferences of his regime.
Watch/Listen:
Harvard’s Ash Center recently hosted an informative panel discussion: Organizing and mobilization during democratic backsliding. “The thing about rock bottom moments is that you realize that you cannot keep doing what you've been doing and expect an outcome that's any different.”
Join:
Like Research? Join the May Day Strong Research Party (April 15 at 7ET) with LittleSis and ACRE/BCG to learn how to research corporations enabling the right-wing agenda.
Read:
A Threat Model for Opposing Authoritarianism: Five principles for working safely and effectively to stop the authoritarian takeover attempt.
Gender & LGBTQ Justice
Every body is sacred. Side With Love unapologetically affirms that trans people are divine, that abortion is a blessing, and that no one is disposable. Attacks on identity is a part of a divide and conquer tactic that relies on the belief that one group's safety comes at the expense of another group's safety. Solidarity is the moral and strategic mandate of our time, and we must rise to challenge these attacks and build communities of care and safety for all.
The Update:
In response to rising threats against LGBTQ+ rights, trans communities, and reproductive freedom, calls to action have been created and they need our support, education, and collective resistance to sustain movement. Lambda Legal has launched an Emergency Response Fund to defend LGBTQ+ individuals and people living with HIV nationwide, drawing on past victories and preparedness. This week we also explore deeper learning through resources like Nat M. Esparza’s work on inclusive communities, trans identity training by Transforming Hearts Collective, and advocacy opportunities for sexual and reproductive health care. Additionally, in case you missed it, the recording of the 2025 Transgender Day of Visibility event , (hosted by the UUA ) is included in the link below!
Act:
“This is a difficult moment for our communities, but we have faced this challenge before, we have been strategizing and planning for this possibility, and we will hold the line. We successfully blocked multiple attacks on our communities during the first Trump administration, and we are prepared to do so again. We know how to win.
That’s why we’re launching an Emergency Response Fund that will bolster our resources and ensure that Lambda Legal’s team can respond forcefully nationwide to defend the rights of LGBTQ+ people and everyone living with HIV. The fight ahead is long and it will be tough.
Make no mistake. We are ready to oppose any anti-LGBTQ+ actions this new administration takes. With you by our side, we will continue to defend LGBTQ+ people and everyone living with HIV. We’re not going back!”
Read:
Beyond Trans Visibility: Imagining Blueprints for Inclusive, Liberatory Community by Nat M. Esparza
“I believe we build the world with our choices.
With our habits, our rituals, our blueprints.
With who we imagine into our lives—and who we forget to.”
Learn:
Transforming Hearts Collective is hosting a stellar trans training for UU Congreations:
“This brief course is designed to offer you an introduction to gender diversity and trans identity, help you understand the current political attack on trans people and the misinformation that is part of that attack, and train you in how to create safety and belonging for trans people in UU congregations in this moment.”
Join:
Act For Sexual and Reproductive Health Care
“Hopeless, sad, and ready to fight — we feel all these emotions and more. What matters now is what we do with these feelings and how we take action.
Here are some of our most urgent actions, so you can join the fight for reproductive freedom today.”
Watch/Listen:
2025 Transgender Day of Visibility recording hosted by the UUA
Decriminalization & Immigration
Criminalization and dehumanization are a political and spiritual project. We must dismantle the false idea that safety for some must come at the expense of safety for others. As people of faith, we cannot affirm the worth and dignity of all while privileging the well-being of a chosen few. We proclaim a future where care and safety are abundant because our relationships are cultivated through mutuality, not domination.
Migrant detention and deportation. The school to prison network and mass incarceration. Unceasing police violence toward Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities. Bills making protest and resistance movements illegal. Laws criminalizing poverty, gender identity and expression, sex work, abortion, accessing and providing health care. All of these forms of criminalization are used by the state to disrupt, disempower, and dehumanize our communities.
The Update:
This week, a number of courts sided against love in their decisions.
Federal judge sides with Trump in allowing immigration enforcement in houses of worship. The UUA is party to this lawsuit.
An immigration judge issued a devastating ruling that student activist, legal permanent resident, and soon-to-be father Mahmoud Khalil can be deported based on outrageous and baseless charges of the Trump administration.
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Kilmar Abrego Garcia must be returned to the US, but so far the Trump administration has refused to comply. The administration deported Abrego Garcia to the notorious prison in El Salvador despite a protective order meant to prevent his removal from the country. Meanwhile, Trump welcomed Salvadoran President Bukele to the White House yesterday.
It is more and more clear that we cannot count on the courts to uphold the law or the administration to do as the courts say, and that we must count communities organizing resistance and protection. Such organizing has had some success:
Sackets Harbor NY mobilized and freed mother and children abducted by ICE. Read the Principal’s powerful letter statement here
Farmworker organizer Alfredo Juarez was abducted by ICE and organizing is successfully delaying his deportation.
Act:
Tell university presidents to publicly commit to protecting student rights.
Donald Trump has signed an executive order targeting university students who protest Israel's genocide against the Palestinian people. This order threatens non-citizen and international students with deportation, and also pressures universities to monitor and report on students who speak up for Palestinian rights. It's a clear attempt to silence growing campus support for Palestine by threatening students with serious consequences for constitutionally protected expression. Last week, we asked you to reach out to your alma mater (if you have one) – now the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights and Palestine Legal have made it easy to write to university presidents across the country to demand publicly commit to protecting student rights.
Sign the Solidarity Pledge by United We Dream, Make the Road, and CASA: “I pledge to be one of 10,000 people people who, inspired by the civil rights movement, will put my body on the line in strategic actions as soon as Trump begins mass deportations of children, immigrant youth, and workers. I pledge to challenge Trump’s anti-immigrant attacks by working to create welcoming and loving communities, speaking up in defense of our neighbors, and supporting families with information and mutual aid.”
Read:
Getting overwhelmed and discouraged? Here’s an antidote: A Culture of Care: The Secret to Building Organizations People Want to Stay In By Chanelle Gallant and Tom Malleson.
Learn:
Mijente wrote up this helpful break down of the phases of the President’s tactics criminalizing immigration and how deportation is being wielded as a political weapon
Join:
The Feds are Knocking: Grand Juries & State Repression Webinar
Wednesday, April 16, 2025, 6:30-8 PM ET
Federal agents use tactics like “door knocks” and grand jury subpoenas to target activists and surveil social movements. This training will cover how to support activists in federal investigations and grand jury proceedings. Attendees will learn about federal grand jury subpoenas and litigation, with a focus on representing witnesses who wish to litigate the validity of a subpoena. This training will provide guidance for attorneys, and help prepare activists and support teams for what to expect throughout the grand jury process. Speaker: Mo Meltzer-Cohen is an educator, attorney, and abolitionist, serving overlapping communities of activists, queers, and prisoners.
Watch/Listen:
Criminalization at the Core of Authoritarianism, Fascism, and Resistance
If you missed this live last week, the recording is well worth a watch with an all star panel!
Climate Justice
A just and loving world is a flourishing world. If we are to realize a world with no fossil fuels, where clean energy is a human right, and all beings thrive, we need new systems, norms, approaches, and ways of being to bring that world into existence.
The Update:
Climate injustice has the same root causes as the systems of oppression we fight so hard against. While climate disruption impacts everyone, BIPOC communities are hit first and worst and least resourced to respond. The Trump administration is not only denying this reality, they consider “environmental justice” part of “illegal DEI preferences.” On Friday, the Department of Justice announced that they would terminate a historic settlement designed to help improve the widespread sewage infrastructure problems in the “Alabama Black Belt”. The majority-Black residents in Lowndes County have suffered from inadequate sewage treatment, often using “straight piping” to manage sewage. Straight piping allows untreated sewage to flow from residents’ toilets into their backyards, often where children play, causing public health risks. The EPA defines environmental justice as “the fair treatment of all races, cultures, incomes, and educational levels with respect to the development and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. Fair treatment implies that no population should be forced to shoulder a disproportionate share of exposure to the negative effects of pollution due to lack of political or economic strength.” (note, the EPA’s page on Environmental Justice has been deleted). However, the DOJ called the historic agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy” and noted that they are working to close EJ cases quickly. This is just one example of many where the Trump administration is working to eliminate environmental justice initiatives, regardless of the impacts on the American people. It’s also a great example for why our congregations need to double down on our commitments to protecting those most harmed by climate injustice.
Read:
What is Environmental Justice – Southern Environmental Law Center
Addressing Environmental Justice to Achieve Health Equity – American Public Health Association
Learn:
Learn about how the new Green Sanctuary 2030: Mobilizing for Climate Justice process and materials have been completely redesigned for greater ease and impact.
Join:
Green Sanctuary 35th Anniversary Call for Renewal with President Sofía Betancourt
Wednesday, April 16, 2025 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM ET (Please note the Time Zone!)
Celebrate 35 years of Green Sanctuary and renew your congregation's commitment! Join President Sofía and friends to celebrate this impactful and transformative program that has organized UUs to take action on climate for 35 years, and learn about the new Green Sanctuary process that will carry our faith through the coming years. All are welcome! Renew your commitment to faith based actions that advance climate justice in our communities.