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The Unitarian Universalist Society of Rockport, Massachusetts, held its 28th annual march and worship service to honor Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy. Alexis Toliver, a local Black Lives Matter organizer, spoke during the service about the urgency and hope in today’s work against racism. (Gloucester Times – 1.18.16)
Members of Sierra Foothills Unitarian Universalists in Auburn, California, joined more than 100 other community members of all ages and many ethnicities to honor King’s memory. Member Lisa Joseph Boch spoke about the need to connect racial and environmental justice. (Auburn Journal – 1.19.16)
At an interfaith event to commemorate King’s legacy, people gathered in Keene Valley, New York, to share their hopes for people fleeing war-torn countries like Syria. "I have a dream that we will be able to bring families to the North Country, and make hospitable communities for them," said Ginger Slater, a member of the Adirondack Unitarian Universalist Community in Saranac Lake. (Lake Placid News – 1.20.16)
More than 100 people attended a Black Lives Matter workshop at First Unitarian Society in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Speakers included Maria Hamilton, mother of Dontre Hamilton, who was killed by a white police officer, and the Rev. Julie Taylor, a St. Louis-area Unitarian Universalist minister who has been organizing in the wake of the 2014 fatal shooting of Michael Brown. (Journal Sentinel – 1.16.16)
More coverage:
“East Side Black Lives Matter panel challenges comfort zones” (RIFuture.org – 1.16.16)
“In Leominster, King's legacy lives on” (Sentinel & Enterprise – 1.18.16)
Replacing banners and continuing the dialogue on race
After their Black Lives Matter banner was stolen, the Rev. Kendyl Gibbons of All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church in Kansas City, Missouri, said the congregation plans to replace it as soon as possible. The new banner will be placed in an even more visible location than the last. (KSHB.com – 1.18.16)
At a ceremony to install its third Black Lives Matter banner, members of Valley Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Chandler, Arizona, joined with members of the community for a discussion about inequality and the hope for a more compassionate future. (Arizona PBS – 1.21.16)
UUA presidential candidates in the spotlight
The Rev. Alison Miller, senior minister of the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship in New Jersey, is profiled as she announces her candidacy for president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. If elected at the June 2017 General Assembly, Miller will be the first woman to head the denomination. The Rev. Sue Phillips is also seeking the position of UUA President. (MorristownGreen.com – 1.20.16)
UU World also covered the announcement of the UUA presidential candidates.