This is Part 2 of a three-part article on reinventing Social Justice at UUSS. In Part 1, we presented the concept of narrowing and concentrating the focus of social justice work so that we can thoughtfully and strategically maximize our impact on long-standing injustices. An effective plan must broadly inspire widespread participation and support from the congregation. It cannot be a project for a few; it must be one for which there is widespread member engagement, like the UUtheVote project last Fall, in which our effort involved over 70 volunteers.

To be effective, the project cannot simply take on a broad umbrella of injustice such as food insecurity, homelessness, or criminal justice. These umbrella problems are simply too big for us to have enough impact. We might choose one of these umbrellas as a starting point, but then must narrow down our focus to one small area. For example, the newly formed NYS UU Justice Network grew out of some local downstate justice initiatives. One of these started with the criminal justice system, but then they narrowed their focus to incarceration and then further narrowed it to confront the cruel and unjust practices of solitary confinement in NYS prisons. After a multi-year effort, the state legislature recently passed the HALT Act that finally curtailed these long-standing injustices.

Congregational projects that are truly impactful must go beyond the often very popular kinds of activities that serve to help persons in need. Helping others is important; it inspires our compassion, and it feels good. But it’s not justice. So, we cannot stop there. We must also confront systemic structures in our society that perpetuate injustice.

A basic model of effective social justice projects is that they include the six circles of social justice initiatives: direct service, education, witness, advocacy, community organizing and leadership development. These six areas will be more fully explored in Part 3 of this article which will appear in future issues of Circuits.

If you want more information, or wish to share your thoughts, please contact John Reschovsky at jreschovsky@nycap.rr.com, co-chair, The Social Justice Action Team