Justice Advocacy Corner

Welcome to the Justice Advocacy Corner! Here is a central hub for information sent to the UUCB Office about what steps can be taken to stand up for justice - on both local and federal levels.

For an even more detailed and extensive collection of action items, please visit the Side with Love Action Center, found at this link: https://sidewithlove.org/actioncenter

Urgent Action

Federal Budget - Contact your legislators!

The US House has passed a new Federal budget to implement MAGA priorities. This budget is a moral monstrosity that would make catastrophic cuts to Medicaid, SNAP (food stamps) and HUD (rental help), among many, many other essential services, while providing enormous tax cuts for corporations and billionaires.

It will now move to the US Senate. Republican leadership is targeting passage before July 4th. The politics of this terrible bill are shaky, and we can stop it in the Senate. Please call or email our Senators and Governor Braun asap and urge them to stop this cynical, inhumane budget bill.

The linked document has a sample call/email script plus "fast facts"/talking points. Keep it short and firm--but polite. Multiple calls and emails up to your personal capacity would help magnify the strength of our voice!!

You'll also find contact information for US Representative Erin Houchin, Governor Mike Braun, and US Senators Todd Young and Jim Banks. Young and Banks have direct influence with their votes in the House and Senate, while Braun has influence as a Republican governor. We're including Erin Houchin's information in case the bill hasn't passed the House by the time this appears (and for future reference!).

Advocacy in Bloomington

Update for June 14 No Kings Protest

On Saturday, June 14, UUCB will rise up for democracy as part of the "No Kings" nationwide day of defiance, with protests planned in hundreds of cities and towns (nokings.org). Our Democracy Task Force has decided to focus our efforts on Bloomington, where organizers are planning a protest from 12-3 pm outside the Monroe County Courthouse, including live music, a Community Impact Fair, and more.

Stay tuned to Friday Updates for the latest plans, and stop by the table in Fellowship Hall after service to talk about how you can be involved. 

Want to volunteer on June 14? Please sign up here if you want to learn more about volunteer needs at the protest. 

Need a ride? We won't be organizing a carpool, but if you need a ride please send an email to democracy@uubloomington.org. 

Want to make signs? Great! We'll set up a sign-making station the morning of June 14 at the UUCB Clothing Swap, so you can stop to swap and prepare for the protest!

Why not Indianapolis? We've learned that June 14 is also the day of Indy Pride, and so the protest energy in Indy that day will understandably be split between the massive Pride parade that morning (10am) and the No Kings protest that afternoon (12-2pm) at Lugar Plaza. After realizing this and connecting with organizers in Monroe County, we decided to shift our June 14 focus to Bloomington. That said, we completely understand if anyone from UUCB wants to attend Indy Pride that day! 

Advocacy From Home

Find Your Legislators!

Use the link below to find your legislators.
https://iga.in.gov/information/find-legislators

• Also, consider using the "5-calls" app - Susan Swaney, our Director of Music, recently recommended this. It is an easy way to make 5-calls a day to your representatives and legislators covering the topics you would like to express. The team behind the app does research on policies and even writes scripts that are helpful to use when calling your legislators. Click this link to find out more: https://5calls.org/

• Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray recently mentioned a very helpful tool for getting in contact with her representatives - her phone! She saves all of their numbers in her phone with their names, affiliations, and job title. That way, when you have an issue you would like to discuss with their offices, their phone numbers are already saved to your phone. Taking the time to do this once makes the effort much easier later!

Community Care

Rainbow Room Summer Session—an LGBTQ+ sex education webinar series that's expanding nationally this summer! This initiative is deeply important, offering education that is free, accessible, inclusive, and medically accurate, specifically created to affirm and empower queer and trans communities, while remaining free and welcoming to everyone.

• Every Sunday | June 1 – August 24
  4:00 PM EST / 1:00 PM PST
  Free & virtual via Zoom
  Each session dives into a different topic co-presenter by educators across the country—from medically accurate sex ed to gender-affirming care, queer history, healthy relationships, and more.

You can view all Upcoming Topics + Registration Links here:
Feel free to register for as many sessions as you'd like!

Our Community: Queer Culture and History
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/6VYwRPceSgaSdbK5mMerLg

Consent
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/JlrVQg6LRUGThkOjfb5I6Q

Know Your Options: Birth Control, Advocating for Yourself, and Reproductive Justice
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/o0X9rd_2RMGF3Km9LKkQWA

Celebrating All Bodies and Anatomy
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/EIfJsRp9SYS6b-4tByC89Q

Sex and Safety on the Internet: Online Safety and Empowerment
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/UVksLk5AQz2mtkR5M1keSg

Gender Affirming Health Care 101
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/lQDJVN0lR0ewGNCGaQ5VRQ

Mental Health, Community Support, and Resilience
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/Qrz6ozXTTaSDVSMSBUGvpA

Deconstructing Sexual Scripts (18+)
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/6Jko1ZpDS5iv-lzDKQ5bQQ

Safer Sex: STIs, Birth Control, and Stigma
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/UFSTrDFtS_mprZvoOFtOzQ

HIV/AIDS: Health, History, Advocacy, and the PrEPsent of Access
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/oLZuX8a0SpWMrFiWZ9Y_9Q

Modern Queer Healthy Relationships
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/50HAL-OZTPqkNLbi5sWhYw

Body Image, Body Changes, and Transitioning
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/lLyycBzbTimb5QmivAeoug

Queer Family Building
https://ppswcf-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/dBOTpmKERSasJiogSjwLmg

Resources

From Side with Love

"Grounded, Resilient, & Responsible. Responding and Organizing In Authoritarian Times" Webinar Slides (PDF)

"Grounded, Resilient, & Responsible. Responding and Organizing In Authoritarian Times" Toolkit (PDF)

Information about Bills and Policies

This is a good overview of how federal cuts in workforce personnel harms our local communities: https://mailchi.mp/monroedems/action-alert-71022-call-houchin-no-doge?e=f94d1e7939