Morale is a precious organizing resource - Resources from November Gathering
In the whirlwind of polycrisis that we live in, we paused last night to move our bodies to the beat of Matt Meyer’s drums, sing songs of liberation, and drink the wisdom of longtime organizers Samm Pheiffer, Caitlin Breedlove, and Nicole Pressley. As Nicole reminded us, “We are rooting down in our humanity and it is gorgeous. We can build an entirely new way of being. We absolutely have this radical agenda that we have all we need, and that no one should go hungry, and that everyone can be housed.” We hope that The Gathering helped you root down, boost your morale, and excite you for the ongoing work of building a pro-democracy movement.
We also invite you to make a super simple short selfie about The Gathering!
If you missed us live, you can watch the recording and view the presentation slides.
As we said at The Gathering, our faith calls us to not only be part of building power for democracy, but also to stay in relationship to collectively boost morale. Here are the next steps we invited you into:
Ground yourself. What is 1 thing you will do to tend to your spirit and regulate this week?
Amplify. What is something you will share with 3 people tomorrow?
Tool to take back to your congregation:
Be sure to read our Action Center Weekly Update for specific actions you can take this week. We publish the update every Tuesday on our Action Center. If you are on staff or the board of your congregation, we have a special version of The Gathering called Now What just for you on the Wednesday after each Gathering.
Resources & quotes we shared
Scot Nakagawa’s piece “No, This Is Not How to Negotiate With Authoritarians”
Chalice lighting quote: “Humble yourself to what is. Accept that this is what has unfolded so far. Notice that you have your whole life to shape what comes next.” - adrienne maree brown
Samm Pheiffer: “My deepest belief is that movements only work when the people closest to the harm are closest to the power.”
Caitlin Breedlove’s book All In: Cancer, Near Death, New Life
Oxfam Report that “And as of 2024, over 40% of the U.S. population—including 48.9% of children—is considered poor or low income.”
Stay connected with Matt Meyer:
Sign up for his email list
Sanctuary Boston's album and check out their music video
Purchase Matt's children’s book “Desmond Gets Free” here
Read Matt’s nerdy articles on the history of congregational singing in UUism
Support folks impacted by climate disasters from Jamaica to the Philippines by donating to the UU Disaster Relief Fund
Side With Love Links
Side With Love’s Dos & Don’ts Grounded, Resilient & Responsible Toolkit
Bookmark the webpage for The Gathering to see all the dates, a promotion kit, recordings, crisis resources, and links.
May we keep rooting down in our humanity.
May we continue building the relationships and communities that are necessary to make democracy an idea that is worth fighting for.
May we dedicate ourselves to love today and always,
Rev. Cathy & Side With Love Staff Team
Ps. Don’t miss our December 8th Gathering, which will be a bit different from our usual agenda – Rev. JeKaren Bell will lead us in a ritual of creative lament.
