The JTWTC is hosting several events in St. Louis that we want you to know about:

On Friday, June 23 at 2:15 pm in America's Center Room 231:

Staking Our Place on the Journey

This session will provide a presentation of the Committee's past and prest work. It will include a panel of stakeholders representing various traditionally marginalized groups in an attempt to create a snapshot of the state of our Association's transformation in its anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multicultural mandate.

Friday June 23, at 4:00 p.m. in America's Center Room 231:

Staking Our Claim on the Future

This session will present the JTWTC's vision for its work with the districts this coming year. We will share ideas, approaches, and suggestions with congregations and others on how you can work with trained volunteers, district and UUA staff in helping more our association along our journey toward wholeness.

Saturday June 24, approx. 8:44 a.m. America's Center Room 3

The Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee Report

Our chairs, Rev. Monica Cummings and Carolyn Cartland will present a report to the delegates focusing on our plans to monitor and assess our Association's transformation in areas of anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multiculturalism. We will outline our new strategies and summarize our plan for working with districts to evaluate the association's work thus far.

Read this:

http://journeyfromcalgary.blogspot.com/

Dear Colleague,

The Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee is excited about our recent decision to refine our mission. Over the past several years we have realized that our broad focus, in which we tried to be all things to all people, including assuming liaison responsibilities to a long list of UUA committees and affiliate groups, has diverted us from our original 1997 charge to “strategically plan, coordinate, monitor, assess, and guide the transformation of the UUA into an authentic anti-racist, anti-oppressive, multi-cultural faith community”. We believe we have not been able to provide the type of effective assessment the Association needs. By narrowing our focus and providing quality in-depth analysis, we are confident we can better provide a more useful and meaningful report on the status of our journey toward wholeness.

Using a model employed by the Commission on Appraisal, our intention each year will now be to choose a particular area of Association life to explore in depth, concluding with a report to be published and available to the General Assembly and to congregations. Our first area of exploration will be the anti-racist, anti-oppressive multi-cultural transitioning within the districts. We will survey district leadership, select a sample of representative districts to examine in depth, and will publish a report for the 2007 General Assembly. Our work is just beginning, and our hope is that this effort will highlight best practices as well as program gaps that will be meaningful for Association and administrative staff as they support all districts, committees, and UUA affiliates in moving towards our vision of wholeness.

Our “course correction” means that we will no longer emphasize our liaison relationships. It is our hope and intention that our new direction will generate increased focus, energy, and collaboration towards our mutual goals. As part of communicating our re-definition and encouraging work at the district level, we invite members of UUA committees and affiliate groups to join us at two workshops the JTWTC is holding at GA on Friday afternoon, June 23. Please check them out when the GA catalogue arrives later this spring.

We look forward to seeing you at General Assembly and continuing the journey together.

The Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee:

Rev. Monica Cummings
Carolyn Cartland
Rev. Sean Dennison
Bob Gross
Dr. Julio Noboa
Rev. Charles Ortman, BOT Liaison
Taquiena Boston, President’s Liaison

We are looking for two new members. If you are interested, we ask that you contact any of us or the UUA Board’s Committee on Committees. This is an appointed committee, so you may be asked to fill out an application and not everyone who volunteers will become a committee member, but if you are interested we want to know.

We are especially interested in people with a deep understanding of anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multicultural work and its challenges; who are “team players” with collaborative work styles; who have skills in information technology and/or statistics and analysis; and/or who have experience in Religious Education.

Let us know if you are interested!

From the UUA World online:

The elevator story

A racially-charged encounter seen through different eyes reveals worlds of difference.
By Special Review Commission

As members of a commission appointed to look into contentious events at the 2005 General Assembly were interviewing witnesses and participants, they heard two very different accounts of a single event. In their interim report to the UUA board of trustees in January 2006… the commission members shared both accounts in “The Elevator Story: A Metaphor,” which they offered for reflection on the complexities of racism and ageism. –The editors

Or you can find the whole interim report here. (pdf)

It is hard to believe it’s been almost three weeks since our Ft. Worth General Assembly ended.  Since then, I’ve been the Best Man at my best friend’s wedding, packed my kids for a month at camp, dealt with several emergency pastoral concerns and attended a weekend gathering in the Uintah mountains with members of my congregation. Today feels like my first real day of rest since I flew to Ft. Worth. That said, I hope other members of the committee will fill in anything I might forget to mention.

The committee began by attending and presenting our work to the Stakeholder’s Gathering on Thursday.  We heard clearly that we need to continue to improve our communication with stakeholders, as they were unaware of much of the work we’d done this year, especially the review of the Ministerial Credentialing paperwork and our meeting with Meadville Lombard Theological School.  Our emphasis on building relationships with stakeholders has begun, but been less successful than we’d hoped. It was clear that stakeholders at the gathering did not feel "in the loop" about the work of the committee.

We also talked briefly with the stakeholders about our hope that we can ground anti-racism, anti-oppression and multiculturalism in our congregations, working at the grassroots and helping this work become a part of our identity as Unitarian Universalists. We discussed engaging our communities in creating a theology of wholeness that is specifically rooted in our Unitarian Universalist heritage and values and that will inspire our congregations to transform themselves into communities that truly welcome and work for equity, justice, and compassion in ALL human relations and institutions.  We hope our theological schools will become leaders in this work.

We also let the stakeholders know of some upcoming changes in our committee. Our Chair, Rev. Sofia Craethnenn, will be joining the staff of the UUA as the Program Coordinator for Racial and Ethnic Concerns and therefore will no longer be able to serve on the committee. The Committee on Committees has selected yours truly, Rev. Sean Parker Dennison, to serve as the next chair of the committee. An additional committee member will also be chosen in the near future.

On Friday at GA, we met as a committee, and then met with members of the Accessibilities Committee to learn of their work and how we can better support and partner with them to provide advocacy for people with disabilities in our association. This was the first such meeting with the Accessibilities committee and began the very process of building relationships and communication that we so hope to see happen with all of our stakeholders.

On Saturday at GA, we presented a report of our work to the Plenary and then attended the gathering of Congregational Presidents at the invitation of UUA President Bill Sinkford and Moderator Gini Courter.  We were glad to be able to observe and reflect upon the dreams, desires, needs, and frustrations of the Congregational Presidents in approaching or continuing anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multiculturalism work in their congregations. We were also pleased to invite twenty-five congregational presidents to attend a special focus group with us on Sunday morning.

On Sunday, over 30 congregational presidents joined us for breakfast and a further discussion of how we might increase congregational involvement in doing the work of anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multiculturalism.  We had a wonderful discussion that addressed fears and resistance to the work, resources available to congregations, and a vision of what our association might look like if we truly embodied wholeness and justice, from our smallest congregations to the whole of our association.

On Sunday evening we also had committee members present at the Committee on Committees workshop. This allowed us to inform people about the work we do and invite them to consider supporting and even joining the committee. Throughout GA we also had a booth in the exhibition hall which we each spent some time in, meeting people and handing out materials about the committee and our contact information, including this blog. A special hello to any who have recently taken the time to find us here! 

While there was a lot to do at GA, it still feels to me like a small beginning. Our committee’s charge is vast and we are accountable to many.  Building relationships, improving communication, envisioning ways to engage others in this important work in new ways…there is a lot ahead.  Still, we are committed to each step of this journey, knowing wholeness is worth every effort.

It has been too long since we updated this site. Since our last post, many exciting things have happened:

• We reviewed the entire Credentialing process for new ministers and suggested changes that we hope will help make the materials and the process more anti-racist, anti-oppressive and multicultural.  The Ministerial Credentialing Director, Rev. David Pettee, has already begun implementing some of the suggestions and has taken other to the Ministerial Fellowship Committee for discussion.
• We met with students, faculty, and staff of Meadville Lombard Theological School to review the history of anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multicultural work and the school and to help clarify directions for the work to continue.
• We sent a representative to meet with District Executives and District Consultants at their most recent meeting.
• We’ve continued to connect with stakeholders in this work and hope to send representatives to the stakeholder’s gathering at General Assembly in Fort Worth, as well as have conversations with as many stakeholders as we can at GA.

More details to follow…

What a Successful General Assembly in Long Beach!

The Transformation Committee for Wholeness and Justice had a full agenda at GA.

- The TC had a meeting with the UUMA Executive Committee which was an open discussion on how the UUMA can engage more fully in ARAO work and is open to conducting a self assessment to bench mark where they are today

- The TC held two workshops on “Congregations on the Journey” where we listened to the successes and struggles of congregations actively engaged in Anti Racist, Anti Oppression work

- Networking with UUA Service Staff provided opportunities to hear about development of resources like a Welcoming Congregation curriculum based on ARAO and ARAO consultancy program - both in development from the UUA Identity Based Ministries

- Networking with Diverse and Revolutionary UU Multicultural Ministries (DRUUMM) and attending their annual meeting as well as the Asian Pacific Islander Caucus of DRUUMM annual meeting. Provided an opportunity to hear about planning for regional Multicultural Family retreats, the formation of African Descent Caucus as well as the La Familia Global Caucus, and recognition that these groups provided speakers at GA - Delores Huerta (spoke on New Immigration rights) and John Tateishi, Executive director of the Japanese American Citizens League, (spoke on the Internment of Japanese Americans in WW2 and similiarities to internment of Arab Americans today). And to recognize a new generation of People of Color who are finding DRUUMM as a spritual home for People of Color and an entry into UU community through DRUUMM.

I thought that this was a great GA because of the movement of the Service of the Living Tradition to Friday night allowed for a real Sunday service.

The call to Congregational presidents to name the agenda that Boston and the UUA Staff should be providing and supporting was fresh and inviting to build a tighter relationship with all levels of the UUA and the beloved community

I was honored to be there with you!!

Kim Varney

Hello from Long Beach! The festivities here begin on Thursday, but those of us on the committee who are also ministers are beginning to arrive to participate in the UU Ministers Association and Liberal Religious Educators Professional Days. Here is a brief rundown of where you can find committee members at GA:

Thursday, June 24–Collegial Conversation–Hyatt Regency Beacon Room Rotunda
Friday, June 25–various committee members will attend workshops of relevance to our work.
Saturday, June 26–We’ll be on the stage at Plenary (approx. 9:30 a.m.) to introduce ourselves.
Saturday, June 26–1:30 to 2:45 pm–Workshop “Congregations on the Journey” Conf. Ctr. Rm 102B
Sunday, June 27–2:00 to 3:15 pm–Workshop “Congregations on the Journey” Conf. Ctr. Rm 101B

Look for our materials in the Exhibition Hall. We’ve got a super-sized business card and a place to leave us your card so we can hook you up with others interested in creating an Association where wholeness and justice prevail.

If you’d like to have a conversation with a member of the committee and can’t make our workshops, feel free to look for us (Our name tags will say “Transformation Committee for Wholeness and Justice” under our names.) Or leave a message on the message board.

See you on the beach…or in the convention center, at least.

Transformation Committee
Spring Meeting
April 23-25, 2004
Washington, DC

Present: Rev. Sofia Craethnenn; Kim Varney, Chair; Rev. Monica Cummings; Rev. Charlie Ortman, Board Liaison; Matt Moore; Dr. Julio Noboa; Bob Gross; Rev. Sean Parker Dennison; Taquiena Boston, President’s Representative; Simona Munson, Staff Support.

Friday, April 22

Committee check-in.
Overview of agenda & covenant

Committee added items to the existing covenant for meetings:
*Step forward/back (air time)
*Safe enough space
*Confidentiality honored
*Honesty & amnesty
*Right to pass (“listen more”)
*Acknowledging a range of oppression (inclusive lang.)
*Direct communication (no triangulation)
*Being ourselves (humor)
*Body honoring

History of Journey Toward Wholeness Transformation Committee
Taquiena led a discussion of the history of the creation and existence of the committee. The committee created a list of current challenges/perceptions/realities that exist within the denomination:

*Reorganization (of two years ago)—dismantling anti-racism vs. expanding
*Continuing “Black/White” dichotomy
*Original model had limited linkage among oppressions
*Identity politics/”small pie” priorities
*Language usage/choice
*Original Model’s limits—use of guilt; hang up on “racist;” Christian orientation; name confusion
*We can accomplish an end to oppression within Unitarian Universalism
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