Social Justice Initiative Process

Social Justice at FUSF is structured to enable our justice work to be mission-driven and to allow a deeper focus on three or four issues. This approach was adopted based on a model presented by the UU College of Social Justice.

Key to this approach, social justice activities at FUSF are coordinated by the Board of Trustees, which is responsible for determining the focus of the church’s social justice work based on proposals from motivated groups within the congregation.

Responsibilities

The Board of Trustees will, on an as-needed basis:

  • review initiative proposals
  • determine recipients of the monthly Plate Giveaway
  • identify issues or actions that need immediate or short-term response
  • have initiative leaders share progress and needs, and follow with input and support
  • build a strong sense of a unified social justice community at FUSF

Initiatives and Actions

Proposals

To be approved as a church focus, a proposal must have a minimum of three core group members who are committed to an initiative for at least 12 months.

A proposal must:

  • connect and be consistent with our Unitarian Universalist values and principles
  • identify a grassroots partner organization
  • have measurable, achievable goals
  • provide at least 3 modes of action for congregational engagement
  • provide a means of reflection on the actions

Each proposal is reviewed by the Board who, using the Social Justice Framework, has the authority to accept an initiative or not. Only approved initiatives are eligible to use the FUSF name and claim sponsorship by FUSF. This includes the use of FUSF banners at public events.

Current Initiatives

The Board of Trustees has approved three initiatives:

Immediate Actions

Immediate actions are organized directly by the congregants, with as-needed approval and support from the Board, and are focused on a short-term goal to be accomplished in less than a year.

FUSF involvement in UU the Vote was identified as our first immediate action. UU the Vote is a voter mobilization campaign engaged in the lead-up to national elections, which has taken the form of letter-writing campaigns aimed at turning out under-represented voters in swing states.