Category: Social Justice

News from the Social Justice Committee or related to social justice and posted by another group

Iraqi Refugee Family Arriving Next Week

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from Huguette Sansonnet, Refugee Committee

An Iraqi family of a couple with a two-and-a-half year old child will be arriving from Jordan by way of Frankfurt on January 22nd. The refugee committee has been busy assembling furniture and household items to move into the new apartment for them. If you have or know someone who has 4 chairs and a bed appropriate for a young child, please contact Huguette right away or phone the congregation’s office at 604-261-7204.

The family is originally from Iraq.

Donations to support the Refugee Committee’s sponsorship efforts can be made to the church, marked “refugees” and are tax deductible.

How Refugee Sponsorship Works at UCV

By Kaitlin Duck Sherwood, Leader of a Refugee Sponsorship group

The Refugee Committee helps refugees in two different categories:

Private Sponsorship, where the refugees are named and known (what I call the “let’s bring in grandma” category) and

the Blended Visa Office Referral (BVOR) program, where you want to help somebody but you don’t care so much who.

With the Private Sponsorship, the sponsors are legally responsible for 100% of the financial support for the first year; with BVOR, the sponsors are legally responsible for a portion (around 60%) of the financial support. With both Private and BVOR, the sponsorship group is responsible for 100% of the logistical and emotional support.

While the Vancouver Unitarians Refugee Committee does all of the support for some of the refugee families, a very important role is to facilitate sponsorship for other sponsorship groups, such as my own group of private individuals. To sponsor a BVOR family, a sponsorship group must partner with a Sponsorship Agreement Holder (SAH) such as CUC. By facilitating the work of other sponsorship groups, the Vancouver Unitarians Refugee Committee acts as a “force multiplier”, allowing sponsorship of many more refugees than the Refugee Committee members could handle by themselves

The Unitarian Church of Vancouver, as a constituent of Canadian Unitarian Council (CUC), makes sure the sponsorship groups raise enough money to support the family, vets the sponsorship groups, holds the money, advises the sponsorship group, helps pick a family off an anonymized list (that only the SAH has access to), coordinates communication between the sponsorship group, CUC, and IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada), meets the family and signs the legal documents to formally take responsibility of the family at YVR airport, and passes along in-kind physical donations (like clothing/furniture/kitchen supplies) from UCV members, and provides more advice. And more advice.

Ultimately the Unitarian Church of Vancouver is responsible if for any reason the sponsorship group is not able to meet the government requirements. And the Canadian Unitarian Council is responsible if UCV is not able to meet the requirements. So we all work closely together to make sure everything is done well. And this works.

Once the sponsorship group (which might be the Refugee Committee itself) finds out when the family’s plane will arrive, it kicks into high gear.

For example, we got the news seven days in advance that the Eritream family of three would arrive on March 6, 2018. After we got the news, we arranged temporary housing, got them a phone and cell plan, stocked their temporary housing with some food, found a permanent apartment, helped them fill out a massive number of forms, helped them get Social Insurance (SIN) cards and a bank account, got them winter coats, took the father to a medical appointment, showed them how to use their debit cards to buy transit Compass Cards, took them shopping for essentials (like underwear!), helped them phone their friends back in the camps, took them to the Ethiopian Church, and did a lot of talking, orienting, and many other details too minor to call out explicitly.

Shortly after those urgent matters, we will co-sign the lease on their apartment, move donated furniture into the apartment, buy a small amount of furniture, help them buy groceries and cleaning supplies, help them register the boy for school, register for English classes, take a bus/Skytrain ride, get library cards, and get to eye and dental exams.

Longer-term, we will check in periodically to make sure they are adjusting well and give help as needed (e.g. to help mediate disputes or help them find trauma counselling), and help them find jobs.

As the leader of a sponsorship group, I am deeply grateful to the work the Refugee Committee does. Not only would it not be possible for us to sponsor a BVOR family without the Refugee Committee’s legal umbrella, it would have been much more difficult to muddle through without easy access to their institutional knowledge and large stockpile of donated objects.

People ask: How can I help?

For the family who just arrived, things are pretty much in hand. There are always expenses before, during and after the settlement, so donations to the UCV Refugee Fund is the most obvious way of helping. (Yes, tax receipts are issued). If you attend on Sundays, bring stuff for the thrift sale table and buy stuff. Julia absolutely refuses to give a “price”– it’s all by donation. All items that are donated find a good home. If they’re not needed by our refugee families, they’re sold at UCV. If they’re not sold after a while, they’re donated to the Mennonite Central Committee who ensure they’re used.

Now, speaking of that table, Julia and George do a huge job storing, setting up, distributing items. If you have storage space or a way to transport items around, I’m sure they could use help.

Help out at a fundraising lunch or event.

The big ask is: When we have families arrive, they need temporary housing for about two weeks. On short notice.

An even bigger ask: Form a group of five and take on the responsibility (and joy) of sponsoring a family. We can put you in touch with other leaders who can show you the ropes. It’s a big job–and a very rewarding one.

The committee meets monthly: show up and learn more and you’ll see where the needs are.

Do you have other questions or offers? Send an email and we’ll forward to the right people.

 

Transitioning: Are You Mystified About Gender?

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by Mairy Beam   

Are you mystified about gender? Don’t really get what the fuss is about? Perhaps you are curious. Maybe you are as fascinated as I was when I met my first transgender person. There is a lot more information available now but it is still an area where knowledge and awareness are increasing.

I first met a trans person in 1993. I was fascinated. At that point I was writing short stories, not plays, and Roberta immediately became a feature in my stories. My interest in trans gender has ebbed and flowed over the years. Peaking when a colleague or friend came out as trans, ebbing when life got busy. It is only now 25 years later that I understand the intrigue.

In 2013 a group of students in the ACT II program at Ryerson University decided that it was time that the queers should be more visible. ACT II is a theatre program for people over 50. You would think that theatre would be progressive, and in many ways it is, but all the roles were either male or female, and often we lesbians found ourselves playing some man’s wife.

We created a documentary theatre piece called Closets and Cubicles where we told our coming out stories. Mostly we talked of sexual orientation, but we included some reference to gender. Gender was something we struggled with, that we didn’t fully understand ourselves. The audience loved our play mostly, except for the gender parts which they just didn’t get.

In 2015 I organized a smaller group of two gay friends and one other lesbian to explore gender more. I wrote a play for this group, but they were not much interested in it. It was a role reversal called My Way or the Highway. It takes place in a world where women have the power, and a husband is struggling to assert himself. It was produced in Toronto in 2016 and had a reading here at UCV in 2017. People found it quite funny.

Meanwhile the group was developing a play about a transwoman coming out, and the reactions from her partner, her sister, and her brother in law. This play called Out and About was a much more honest look at the issues arising from an adult deciding to transition. It was a great group to try to grapple with the issues. I remember at our first meeting when we learned about the concept of cisgender. It’s a little like learning that white is a race (not just the standard or default). Out and About was produced in Toronto and Vancouver in 2017.

A year ago I completed yet another play about gender as my fascination had continued unabated. At its heart it is a dialogue between a trans man and a non-binary gender person. I wanted to delve into how a person who believes strongly in the binary gender, who has the physical characteristics of one gender but feels their essence is the other, how such a person talks to someone for whom gender has no meaning. This play is called Body Parts. It will be produced as part of the New Ideas Festival in Toronto in March 2019.

So, why this fascination about gender? It’s not just because it’s a hot topic, and plays on this topic are more likely to get produced. No, it’s much more personal than that. I have decided that I’m non-binary gender. All the reading and research that I did on the topic, talking to others who are trans of some type, it all started making so much sense to me. All my life I’ve had characteristics that society generally deems masculine, for example being very analytical. On the other hand I’ve no desire to be a man (though there clearly are advantages to that). I don’t want to leave the company of women, but I’m reassured that many women’s gatherings now include non-binary people.

I don’t mind which pronoun you use for me – she/they/whatever. I don’t intend to have any surgery or make drastic changes in my life. I am happy just to discover the benefits of living a freer life, a life not defined in any way by gender. I will join the fight for more inclusive language, and to get rid of the practice of having only two check boxes for gender. I will join in the high energy of the Trans march – the best part of Pride weekend, in my opinion.

If you are curious, I recommend the book, Gender Failure, by Ivan Coyote and Rae Spoon. It is entertaining and informative. Ivan Coyote is a great story-teller. You may have heard them on the CBC. They also wrote Missed Her which I recommend.

It’s always great to hear from a variety people speak of their personal experiences. For this I recommend Beyond Magenta: Transgender teens speak out by Susan Kuklin, and Trans/Portraits: Voices from Transgender Communities by Shultz, Jackson Wright.

 

Inspiration and Resistance for Global Citizens in 2019 and Beyond

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The seventh Unitarian Universalist principle calls us to affirm and promote respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. When human and other life is so critically threatened by human-induced climate change and kleptocracy as it is now, it is even more important that we find ways to affirm life. Following are some links to a few inspiring books, films, and podcasts to help us remember that our efforts toward environmental protection, climate change mitigation, and opposition to tyranny matter, and, collectively will make a difference. (All of the podcasts are accessible through iTunes and the Apple podcast app.)

CBC Tapestry podcast: “Finding Hope in the Climate Crisis”- 4 Jan 2019. Link. Excerpts from the 2018 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Toronto. The podcast features comments by Margaret Atwood and Vandana Shiva. Host: Mary Hynes. Related Film: The Seeds of Vandana Shiva. Trailer.

CBC Front Burner podcast: “China’s plans to dominate space” – 7 Jan 2019. Features comments by Namrata Goswami about China’s very long range plans to secure resources from beyond the earth to sustain their culture. Host Jayme Poisson. Link.

Slate’s Live at Politics and Prose – podcast link: YouTube Video.

“Timothy Snyder, On Tyranny: Twenty lessons from the twentieth century.” 9 Mar 2017 – Published just after the election of Donald Trump as 45th President of the USA, Snyder succinctly alerts readers and listeners on strategies for resisting tyranny. Two years old now, this book and podcast ring truer than ever. The Youtube version shows the lively nature of this bookstore and we get to see the people asking the questions. Snyder also has a more recent book “The Road to Unfreedom”. Both books are available from the Vancouver Public Library.

Slate’s Live at Politics and Prose – podcast – Sarah Kendzior “The View From Flyover Country.”

A series of essays originally published in Al Jazeera English on the rise of oligarchy in the USA and globally based on Kendzior’s experience as a reporter and scholar on Western Asian autocracies.

Gaslit Nation – podcast – Sarah Kendzior and Andrea Chalupa host a very hard-hitting, no holds barred commentary against oligarchies.

 And…Gaslit Nation has one of the best-ever graphic images. Image source.

The UrbanDictionary defines “Gaslighting” as “A form of intimidation or psychological abuse, sometimes called Ambient Abuse where false information is presented to the victim, making them doubt their own memory, perception and quite often, their sanity.”

USC Canada – Like Vandana Shiva, USC Canada (formerly the Unitarian Service Committee) is a Canadian Charity that is strategically focusing its work on building resilience through ecological agriculture, and especially through global seed security and diversity. Link.

Women’s March – Discussion and Poster-making

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Sunday January 13 7:30-8:30 pm Fireside Room, Vancouver Unitarian Centre, 949 West 49th at Oak

Women’s March – Discussion and Poster-making

Cayla Naumann  just moved to Vancouver in May of last year after having lived 15 years in Victoria. She grew up in the Unitarian Church San Jose, California.

She will share her knowledge of Women’s March Canada, the H.E.R.S. principles and participation in the March On event on January 19th, and other events year round. She’ll share her experience of what WMC – Victoria has done, ideas for what she thinks WMC – Vancouver could do, but mostly she wants to try and build a network of women supporting women.

Here’s what she says about herself by way of introduction:

I’m a biologist, very passionate about social justice and environmentalism. I’m involved with Women’s March Canada, I organized the Victoria March last year and am trying to get the Vancouver chapter up and running. I’m also interested in gardening and reading/bookclub (some friends and I started a badass ladies bookclub in Victoria and I haven’t found a similar group in Vancouver yet). I’ll be 30 years old in April and live in Marpole (South Vancouver) and I’m the admin for the Buy Nothing Marpole FB group part of the Buy Nothing Project.

Optional: Make a poster to take on the march.

If you can bring felt pens, poster board, cardboard sheets, glue guns, wooden dowels or sticks, etc. please let Cayla know at cayla.naumann@gmail.com or just bring with you.

This is part of the Annual Women’s Gathering which starts at 5:30 pm with a potluck dinner.

More information here: http://vancouverunitarians.ca/events/annual-womens-gathering/
If you’d like to come to a poster-making session at a different time, contact Cayla and we’ll try to set something up.

 

Links:

March On Vancouver (organizers of Vancouver’s March) https://marchoncanada.ca/march-on-cities/march-on-vancouver/
Women’s March Canada https://www.womensmarchcanada.com/
Women’s March Global https://womensmarchglobal.org/

Three Environmental Events Coming to UCV

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Above: Connecting to the environments in which we play. — Image from The Radicals

Whether you are a longtime environmentalist concerned about oil tankers and other issues, a social justice activist supporting First Nations concerns — or if you know nothing about these topics and feel now is a good time to start learning — the Environment Team is hosting three upcoming events for you!

EVENTS

(1) Ravens People Rising
(2) The Radicals — by Beyond Snowboarding
(3) Intergenerational Activists Dinner

RAVEN PEOPLE RISING
Saturday January 19th, 2019
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Location the Sanctuary

This is a film screening, fundraiser and discussion with Heiltsuk Nation members about their court challenge to enshrine governance of their homelands and waters into law.

With the Unist’ot’en conflict in the news every day, hearing about the Heiltsuk case is relevant and important for us to gain an understanding of Indigenous issues in BC and Canada.

Click here for more information.

The RADICALS — by Beyond Boarding
Friday February 15, 2019
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Location the Sanctuary

The RADICALS is a documentary film that follows four snowboarders and surfers driven to become social and environmental stewards through their connection with the environments in which they play.

Follow them as they show the Tahltan fight for the Sacred Headwaters, BC Hydro’s destruction of salmon waters in Xwísten territory, art as resilience on Haida Gwaii, and a coastal uprising against fish farms off the coast of Vancouver Island. Each Indigenous community teaches the athletes to understand what it means to be truly Radical.

Intergenerational Activist Dinner

Friday March 15, 2019

7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Location Hewett Hall

Following the success of the fall 2018 Inter-generational Dinner, we are holding another gathering.

This time the topic: Lessons Learned When Things Went Wrong.

Come join us in Hewett Hall for dinner (courtesy once again of UBC Community Eats). We will follow dinner with stories from some seasoned environmental and social justice activists as they talk of lessons learned from past campaigns. This is a great chance to make new connections, share stories, and learn from their experiences.

24 UCV Members Participate in Write for Rights 2018

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We grouped letters going to the same person and mailed 17 big envelopes.

December 10th, 2018, marked the 70th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by world leaders at the United Nations.

On December 9th, 24 UCV members met in the Fireside Room to write letters for for priority cases identified by Amnesty International that need global attention.

A total of 88 letters were mailed!

Write more!

Amnesty International Group 52 meets the second Tuesday of every month except August at 7 p.m. in Hewett Hall.

Contact: momus1@hotmail.com or wadej@shaw.ca or colleenandwendy@gmail.com

David Buchanan, Chair of our Library Committee, also invites your questions, comments and interest. davidfbuchanan@gmail.com

We Are an Inclusive Community

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Our congregation includes and values members who identify as

  • lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, asexual, queer, straight
  • many different ages, genders, ethnicities, abilities
  • single, married, common-law, divorced
  • having various roles within a diversity of family structures
  • Pagan, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian, Muslim, Agnostic, Humanist, Atheist

 

and intersecting combinations

creating a diverse community of

unique individuals with shared values

Click here to download our Genders and Sexualities Alliance Brochure

Reconciliation Ideas Table

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The Social Justice Committee will be hosting a monthly ideas/information table.  Please stop by to browse through books  by indigenous authors, pick up free copies of articles and give us your thoughts about what Reconciliation means to you.

Books may be checked out for one month.  Please leave your name and email address on the book check-out sheet.

Here are some ways to be involved:

1. Donate to Raven Trust

RAVEN sees the inequity in accessing the justice system and is supporting those First Nations willing to take actionable steps to achieve parity.  Read more about Raven Trust.

2. Support Tsleil-Waututh Nation’s efforts to Protect the Inlet
by writing a letter to Premier Horgan and your MLA

3. Read and share: ACTION ALERT – Application for Injunction Served to Unist’ot’en Camp

4. Read: Resources on Allyship and Solidarity

From Colonization to Reconciliation (?) A Reading and Discussion Group

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February 20 to April 3 2019, Wednesdays 7-9 pm in the Fireside Room

To begin to effect truth and reconciliation between settler Canada and First Nations peoples, Ryan McMahon, the Anishinaabe activist, challenged us to read and engage with our foundational laws, treaties, Acts, and  official Commission reports and recommendations.  “Let’s use pre-existing documents, studies, inquests, etc. that have done ALL the heavy lifting for us,” he said.  “It’s not too late to look back at where we’ve been, determine what went and is wrong, and fix things on a go forward basis.”

At the Unitarian Church of Vancouver (UCV), we’re going to try and take up Mr. McMahon’s invitation.

Together, we will read the The Indian Act, The White Paper, relevant portions of the  Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, the Kelowna Accord,  the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Summary Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Click on links in previous paragraph to see full text of most of these documents. Click here for an overview of Indian Act and other documents

No prior knowledge or expertise is expected (it’s a journey we’re taking together).  Just a willingness to read, discuss, listen, learn and be changed.

Reading materials to be provided, with help to cover copying costs appreciated.

Proportional Representation Leads to More Fair and Inclusive Government–Letter to the Editor for PR by Rev Steven Epperson

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Reverend Epperson submitted the following letter to several newspapers.  It is posted here for interested members of the congregation.

Proportional representation leads to more fair and inclusive government
By Reverend Steven Epperson, Unitarian Church of Vancouver

I want to add my support to those individuals and groups, including the BC Conference of The United Church of Canada, in their endorsement for the proportional representation (PR)  option in the electoral reform referendum in British Columbia.  Advocacy for the practice of “the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large” has been a bedrock principle of the Unitarian religious tradition throughout its nearly 500 year-long history.

Under our current First Past the Post (FPTP)—or “winner-take-all” voting system—the party with the most seats can form a government even if it received a minority of the popular vote. That means, in effect, that political parties win 100 per cent of governing power, even if they received only 40 per cent or less of the vote. Thus 60 plus percent of votes are disregarded, an outcome which can foster resentment and alienation – as was well noted by former Liberal premier Christy Clark in 2009.

The main change, which is found in all three PR options in our ballots, is that the percentage of votes should bring the percentage of seats. It is basic common sense, apart from some details of process, and the bedrock principle is sound.  That is why about 90 other democracies in the world use PR, including Commonwealth entities such as Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

This topic should not be a partisan one – although regrettably it has become so – because all the B.C. parties have suffered unjustly under the FPTP system (such as the B.C. Liberals in 1996). The “No to PR” campaign mostly uses negative attacks on the referendum process instead of defending its electoral status quo, raising the question: Is it able to?

The No campaign slogan hails FPTP as “Simple, Stable and Successful.”  Where is any mention of democracy there?  Too often the most “simple” and “stable” systems are autocracies.  And “successful”—for whom, exactly? The majority of voters, or for those like the “No” side which condescendingly – and wrongly – asserts that PR is “too complex and confusing,” and resorts to video ads of goose-stepping soldiers to confuse and scare B.C. voters?  This last outcome would be prevented by the PR rule that fringe parties must gain at least five percent of the vote, while their combined total is now usually at less than one percent. In fact, the greater inclusivity of the PR system may assist in reconciliation with our aboriginal peoples.

People often express to me their astonishment over the US voting system with its anti-democratic, antiquated Electoral College that enabled the current president to win despite winning 2.8 million fewer votes than his rival.  Isn’t our own FPTP, winner-take-all voting system – designed in 13th century Britain to fit a two party system – similarly antiquated?

Think of how our federal Conservatives in 1988, with 43 percent of the popular vote, formed a “majority” government and then rammed the Free Trade Agreement through Parliament, despite being opposed by parties supported by 57 percent of the population. In a different FPTP twist, here in B.C., think of how the Liberals won 58 per cent of the vote in 2001—a majority to be sure—yet they gained every legislative seat except two because of FPTP.  This left the province with no official opposition for four years.  Such results could happen again under the old system.

I worry about the long-term effects of FPTP’s winner-take-all politics on our young people and future generations.  If having voted with a majority, their votes are then disregarded as a result of our FPTP system leading to “false majority” governments, they will feel that their votes are wasted; they may understandably conclude they are in effect disenfranchised, and wonder: why bother to vote at all?

Let us learn about different electoral systems and refuse patronizing claims that these are “too complex” for us to understand.  Trustworthy information is available in the Elections BC booklets and website. The four options in the referendum are also explained in your ballot package.  Moreover, if voters do not like how a new PR system works out in practice, you can vote to reverse it in the second B.C. referendum, that is, you can “try it before you buy it.”

I will be voting for Proportional Representation.  It is a step on Canada’s path to political maturity, and towards a more fair, inclusive and accountable government.

Rev. Dr. Steven Epperson

Unitarian Church of Vancouver

949 West 49th Avenue

Vancouver, BC V5Z 2T1

References:

Canadian Unitarian Council Resolution on Imagine Democracy

United Church of Canada, BC Conference Statement

United Church Supports Proportional Representation for Justice