05.27.25 Action Center Weekly Update

Side With Love

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.

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:

June 14 National Day of Action—No Kings, Just Us: Join Side With Love, UU the Vote, and national partners for a coordinated mobilization rejecting authoritarianism. With political violence on the rise, attacks on fundamental freedoms mounting, and coordinated efforts to undermine democratic institutions accelerating, this is a moment for moral clarity and bold public witness.

Reckoning in New Jersey: Newark Councilmember LaMonica McIver has been charged with assault, following her arrest alongside Mayor Ras Baraka earlier this month during an attempted oversight visit to the Delaney Hall detention center.

Federal Budget and Democracy Under Threat: As Congress advances a new budget reconciliation bill, proposed cuts would devastate Medicaid, expand school voucher programs, and funnel more wealth to the already powerful—all while undermining the very fabric of participatory governance. The UUA has signed on to a national interfaith letter with Americans United for Separation of Church and State, opposing this legislative assault on public good and democratic values.

Act:

Join:

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:

This week’s collection of resources highlights opportunities for education, action, and advocacy around gender and reproductive justice. The newest Sacred Incantations Deck by Enfleshed features 76 spiritually rooted cards created by trans, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming artists. Liberating Abortion, by Renee Bracey Sherman and Regina Mahone, explores the long-standing role of abortion in communities of color and the systemic racism behind its restriction. Two Unitarian Universalist courses (there are much more of course) are highlighted for understanding and responding to anti-trans rhetoric, and for building truly inclusive congregations. Meanwhile, Texas Republicans are advancing a bill to further limit abortion access and prevent state-level legal challenges.

Act:

“The deck of cards is 2.75in by 4.75 in. They feature 76 incantations, a title card, and a color key for the seasons. The 76 incantations are separated into four seasons: germinating, rooting, blooming, decaying. Each season is represented by a shared color in the deck. 19 different artists each interpreted incantations from all four seasons; one additional artist, Ben Eshleman, created the stunning dandelion card-backs and the box cover. All 20 artists identify within the trans, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming communities.”

Read:

“People of color have been having abortions since the dawn of time, yet our access is continuously under attack. In Liberating Abortion, award-winning abortion activist Renee Bracey Sherman and journalist Regina Mahone illustrate the long racist history that brought us to this moment, uncover the hidden figures who set the foundation activists and storytellers are building on today, and explain how abortion has been and remains essential to the health of our communities.”

Learn:

“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:

“This course is for individuals, groups, and congregational teams who want to take their knowledge and skills to the next level in terms of trans identity and how to create congregations that are fully inclusive and affirming of the full breadth of gender diversity.

Over six sessions you will deeply explore the intersection of trans identity, spirituality, and faith community, and gain the grounding, context, and skills to transform yourself and your congregation.”

Watch/Listen:

You can listen to this article by clicking the link above.

“Texas Republicans are rolling ahead with a controversial bill that seeks to further restrict abortion access in the state, while making it impossible for it to be challenged in state courts, despite Democratic objections.”

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:

The Movement for Black Lives writes: “Five years after the murder of George Floyd, the truth remains clear: a racist system cannot deliver real justice for our people, and this is why we continue the struggle for power. Five years ago, 26 million people flooded the streets in what became known as the ‘Uprising of 2020’, demanding an end to state violence against Black people in the U.S. and around the world. In honor of George Floyd’s life and community, we continue to mourn and send love to his family, the Brooklyn Center, and the greater Minneapolis community.  In this time of violent backlash and the state's retreat from its responsibilities, it may feel instinctive to shrink away—but our survival depends on the opposite. We must come together, organize, build community, and resist—united in our struggle.” It is not a coincidence that this month, as Interrupting Criminalization writes, “The administration recently released several executive orders aimed at increasing police power, personnel, resources, and impunity, and targeting sanctuary cities and jurisdictions opposing its mass detention, deportation, and aggressive policing agendas.”

Act:

  • Sign the petition to exonerate Brian "Hakiym" Simpson, a CAL FIRE-trained wildland firefighter, a father of four, a poet, and a long-standing community advocate. In the summer of 2024, he traveled to Oregon to serve during wildfire season. While off-duty, he was racially harassed by a white firefighter. Days later, that same man violently attacked him. Hakiym tried to walk away. But he was chased down a quarter-mile driveway and forced to defend himself. In court, the white aggressor admitted to starting the fight and to throwing the first punch. A toxicology report confirmed the man had fentanyl and opiates in his system. Multiple witnesses confirmed that Hakiym did not initiate the altercation. But Hakiym was the one arrested. Tried by an all-white jury in Josephine County, he was convicted and is now serving 70 months in prison at Snake River Correctional Institution.

  • Sign the Pledge to Stop Avelo Airlines’ Deportation flights and join the week of action starting May 27th

Read:

Learn:

Join:

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:

Last week, tornadoes devastated parts of Missouri and Kentucky, resulting in at least 21 people dead and many people losing their homes and access to basic necessities like clean water. As of May 19, FEMA continues to offer no aid to people impacted. Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe is waiting on FEMA’s assessment before he plans to “ask President Donald Trump to declare the tornado destruction a ‘major disaster,’” which is government jargon for local governments to receive federal help during times of disaster. Meanwhile, the damage across St. Louis is gargantuan. This is unusual for tornadoes to destroy large urban areas. Five tornadoes touched down in the metropolitan area alone. The people don’t have weeks to wait for a response from FEMA. Action St. Louis and For the Culture STL responded immediately when the federal government did not. They launched the People’s Response Hub “to meet the urgent needs of our neighbors across St. Louis.” They are actively responding through May 31. However, they need resources, volunteers, and money. On their website they published, “If you are a corporation or nonprofit wanting to partner or collaborate, or planning a large-scale supply donation, please email response@actionstl.org.”

Act:

Read:

Watch:

05.20.25 Action Center Weekly Update