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.
Call to Action on Federal Funding for Housing Supports
The Trump administration is trying to cut funding that enables housing for people who would otherwise be homeless. These cuts will be felt across the country and in our own community. If these funding cuts happen the number of homeless people in our streets will likely double!!
There is time to act but not much. The linked document provides more information and guidance on how we can take action to prevent this looming catastrophe. Please have a good look and strongly consider making your voice heard!!
Call to Action on IGA Bill(s) to Criminalize Homelessness
Both the IGA Senate and the House have destructive bills to criminalize homelessness. The senate bill, Senate Bill 285 has passed committee and is headed for a floor vote. The house bill, HB 1431: Street camping. is not currently scheduled for a committee hearing. Please have a look at the linked call to action below and contact your senator ASAP!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xU1X14vr2IdnVBcP1wTy5r0J7gKe7PZ6RvB2Zo8x2Os/edit?tab=t.0
Senate Bill 285 is the homelessness criminalization bill that is progressing. It has passed out of committee and is now shown in the category of "second reading" for tomorrow's senate session. This means it is open for amendments prior to a final vote. So far no amendments have been proposed. Please consider contacting your senator tomorrow to urge a no vote. Talking points and contact info are in the linked google doc. Also the linked "wfyi" piece summarizes some of the points that are being argued.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xU1X14vr2IdnVBcP1wTy5r0J7gKe7PZ6RvB2Zo8x2Os/edit?tab=t.0
https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/homeless-camps-targeted-again-through-new-bill-at-the-statehouse
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!
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
