2.10.26 Action Center Update

Side With Love

Welcome to the Action Center Weekly Update. Each week, we’ll share:

  • A brief analysis of critical issues in this political moment

  • Immediate actions you can take

  • Resources to deepen knowledge and strengthen our collective work to side with love

Nothing is inevitable. Justice movements are built by ordinary people who come together to defeat oppression and nurture a loving world. You are not alone. We have power. Together, we can create a just and thriving future.

Movements are strongest when we act together. Organize with your teams and networks, and take these actions in community. For practical tools, see our Organizing School and Skill Up resources.

Democracy

Core Principle: Democracy is not a destination but a practice rooted in interdependence and the worth and dignity of all. While authoritarianism consolidates power, we are the majority—and we must organize to build a truly multiracial democracy.

The Update:
The right of the people to decide what they want for their communities lies at the heart of democratic life. The work to protect and care for our neighbors, to refuse the politics of fear, and proclaim the promise of pluralism and interdependence is the foundation of our faithful practice. Right now, both are threatened. The unleashing of ICE in our neighborhoods continues a legacy of state violence meant to silence movements that have won historic democratic victories. We know that this violence and intimidation touches every part of our lives — from students in our schools and local businesses to our elections themselves — shaping the conditions under which people feel safe enough to participate in public life. At the same time, the reintroduced SAVE Act and state copycat bills threaten to create new barriers for millions of voters, disproportionately burdening military voters, tribal nations, rural communities, survivors of natural disasters, communities of color, and the tens of millions of married women whose legal names may not match documentation. The Justice Department’s push to collect voter data nationwide demonstrates an intention to centralize control over elections and raises serious concerns about efforts to subvert voters and undermine constitutional protections.

For Unitarian Universalists, democracy is not merely a political system — it is a spiritual practice rooted in our commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of every person. Our faith calls us to refuse fear and to organize boldly, defending access for every eligible voter while building resilient, justice-centered democracy infrastructure grounded in love, courage, and collective power. At this moment, our faith invites us to strengthen the networks of solidarity that ensure our communities can participate fully and freely in shaping the future we deserve.

Take Action:

Resources:

Gender & LGBTQ Justice

Core Principle: Every body is sacred. We affirm that trans people are divine, abortion is a blessing, and no one is disposable. Attacks on identity are designed to divide us—solidarity is our moral and strategic mandate.

The Update:


In this political moment—marked by institutional cowardice, escalating state violence, and a chilling willingness to abandon the most vulnerable—the work of pastoral care, truth-telling, and collective action is not ancillary to justice; it is justice. As Unitarian Universalists, we hold the inherent worth and dignity of every person as non-negotiable, which puts us in direct conflict with a system that asks medical institutions to sacrifice trans youth, reproductive freedom, and bodily autonomy to appease authoritarian pressure. The erosion of trans healthcare, the rollback of abortion access, and the normalization of lies about our bodies are not isolated crises but interconnected expressions of the same moral failure. And still—despite the grief, exhaustion, and righteous anger—we refuse despair as an endpoint. We gather. We learn the truth of our histories. We shut down lies. We show up in the streets, in digital spaces, and in spiritual community. Spaces like The Woodlands and so many others exist because care is not passive, and survival is not neutral. Rooted in love, accountability, and collective resilience, we choose to act—not because hope is easy, but because solidarity is sacred, and another world is still possible when we build it together

Take Action:

Pastoral Care as Activism
Attend The Woodlands — March 1

The Woodlands is a monthly, online spiritual community gathering for trans, non-binary, gender non-conforming, gender expansive, and intersex people—and for the parents and caregivers who love and support them. Rooted in care, connection, and collective resilience, this space centers pastoral care as a form of active, embodied justice.

Meeting times by time zone:
Eastern: 4:00 PM
Mountain: 2:00 PM
Pacific: 1:00 PM
Alaska: 12:00 PM
Hawaii: 11:00 AM

Come as you are. You belong here.

Register to attend and for more information.

Resources:

  • Read: From Erin in The Morning:

    “The Cowardice Of American Medicine On Trans Youth Care”

    “The first year of the Trump administration has offered a master class in how powerful institutions capitulate to right-wing pressure rather than defend the marginalized people who depend on them. That pattern has played out across American life—from newsrooms to elite universities to television networks—but few sectors have folded as quickly or as completely as medical institutions facing federal threats over transgender care. Now, after a bruising week of far-right pressure and coordinated messaging, one of the most consequential shoes has dropped.”

  • Learn: New free resource: The ultimate toolkit to shut down lies about Trans+ People
    Simply learning that Trans+ people have always been here shuts down the pernicious lie that we’re a “trend”, “modern fashion”, or “social contagion”. Find out about facts like these from the latest workbook by QueerAF.

  • Join: From Mobilize:

    Reproductive Rights Events & Rallies Defend reproductive freedom by joining a pro-choice rally or march near you. Join activists nationwide demanding abortion protections, sign a petition, raise money for groups providing abortion access, or attend an event to learn more about the fight for reproductive rights.

Decriminalization & Immigration

Core Principle: Criminalization and dehumanization deny the dignity of our communities. Safety cannot come at the expense of others. As people of faith, we proclaim a future of care, abundance, and mutuality—not domination.

The Update:
In this time of moral crisis, our faith calls us to live our values through courageous and prophetic action, and that is what Unitarian Universalists across the country are doing.   While some are encouraged by changes in leadership in apparent decreases in ICE in some places, the fundamental structures are building and we must continue to build our movements to build a world where every child and family is safe and thriving, as both UU Rev. Norman Allen in Maine and Kelley Hayes wrote this week. During last week’s national Week of Action against the violent, immoral actions of ICE, hundreds of UUs  made several thousand phone calls - so many that we are extending the week of action through this week as well!   

Take Action: 

Resources:

  • Read: 

  • Learn: 

    • Six Questions Congregations Need to Answer About Community Safety in this Moment Meaningful, effective response requires us to engage in faithful, values-based risk assessment and discernment that recognizes our unique landscape and community. This worksheet is an invitation for your congregational leadership and members to have a resourced, grounded, and accountable analysis of your congregation’s capacity to nimbly and resourcefully respond to any crisis.

  • Watch/Listen:

    • The Gathering: Stories of Faith over Fear 

    • Listen to stories of resistance and resilience by Unitarian Universalist Congregations - from SF Bay Area court watch vigils to UU presence at Chicago's Broadview Detention Center, and UUs showing up for community safety during the recent ICE surge in Maine.  Recording also includes live music from Songs for Liberation, who sings outside Broadview and at so many other actions.  The Gathering is  Side With Love's monthly event to strengthen your spirit, make sense of the threats to democracy, and take meaningful action alongside others! Recording will be posted here

Climate Justice

Core Principle: A just and loving world is also a flourishing one. A fossil-free future is possible, where clean energy is a human right and all beings thrive. To get there, we must create new systems, norms, and practices.

The Update:
Care as climate action - CAL

“The real action is happening locally anyway,” environmental justice lawyer and advocate, Monique Harden, explained in The State of Environmental Justice Under Trump 2.0.  Trump’s unrelenting attacks on climate change, clean energy, clean water, environmental protections, environmental justice, wildlife protections and more aren’t stopping us.  Harden encourages us to “take a breath” and focus on the truth that we can still affect really positive outcomes for environmental justice and community health…and it starts at home.  While the Trump administration is doing its best to roll back regulations so polluters can pollute with no accountability, there is still so much that we can do at the local, county, and state levels.  

You can fight for stringent industrial pollution at the state legislature.  You can pack hearings at Public Utility Commissions to press for clean energy commitments.  

You can protect your water supply by refusing to accept fracking and injection wells.  

You can encourage county commissioners to focus on disaster preparedness and response.  

You can show up at your city council meetings to advocate for climate resiliency plans.  

You can partner with your racial justice team to work together for climate justice in your congregation.

You can advance climate justice in your community.  

“Bringing the fight to areas of government where there might be opportunities to achieve environmentally just results is an important thing to do, because each victory that can be achieved can be looked at when the opportunity comes again for new federal standard setting,” says Harden.  She’s so right.  UUs in communities across the country are renewing their climate commitments through the new Green Sanctuary 2030: Mobilizing for Climate Justice process and community through commitments and actions that advance our Four Essentials of Climate Action - Justice, Community Resilience, Congregational Transformation, and Mitigation.  

We know that the climate crisis is not an isolated and singular challenge.  Climate justice is racial justice, gender justice, immigrant justice, Earth justice, and so much more. The UUA’s Four Essentials of Climate Action recognize the unique, but interconnected, areas that are critical to realizing a just and thriving future.  They also help ensure that our climate actions are balanced and grounded in UU values.  Has your congregation renewed your commitment to climate action?

Take Action:

Resources:

Green Sanctuary for Our Kids

Creating Climate Justice is not just for adults! Our Green Sanctuary activities can engage with our children and youth programs, and those programs can also shape our Green Sanctuary work. Come learn from Julie Rigano, Director of Family Ministry at the UU Church at Washington Crossing in New Jersey, who will share her experiences on how the GS work with children and youth, especially the Climate Justice Revival materials, has enhanced programming for all. Let’s Reimagine Together not only our future but how we get there together. Come together for shared learning and mutual supports with other UUs transforming our congregations through climate justice. Green Sanctuary 2030 community meetings usually take place on the third Wednesday of the month at 4PT - 5MT - 6CT - 7ET for 90 minutes.  Sign Up Now

  • Watch/Listen: 

Green Sanctuary Celebration 

Need a whole bunch of great ideas in a short amount of time?  Watch the 2026 Green Sanctuary Celebration!  UU congregations shared very brief - under 3 minutes! - updates on their climate justice actions.  It’s fast, it’s fun, and you’ll find yourself with a ton of great ideas - and connections to other UUs doing this important work.

Rev. Dr. Sofia Betancourt’s Call for Renewal

UUA President, Sofia Betancourt, calls on all congregations to renew their commitments to climate justice through the Green Sanctuary 2030: Mobilizing for Climate Justice program.

The Law and Environmental Justice

Learn more about ways you can take action for climate justice in your community in this interview with Monique Harden, environmental justice lawyer and advocate in New Orleans who is quoted above, by Living on Earth, Public Radio’s environmental news magazine.  

 Together, we practice the world we long for. Together, we win.

2.3.26 Action Center Update