Latest News

Dealing with violence in our congregations - a training

11/28/2018

Dear Friends,

In the wake of the horrific shooting at Tree of Life synagogue in Pennsylvania, regional districts of the Department of Justice are offering "Active Shooter" trainings to help give congregations some tools to improve members' safety.

The half day seminar will be December 11 from 9:30 am to noon at the Kennedy Learning Center inside the Robert Matsui Federal Courthouse, 501 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.

The deadline for registration is this coming Monday, December 3.

You may bring up to 3 people from your congregation. You may register here.

Registration is NOT complete until you have received a confirmation email.

Please arrive at 9:00 am. Bring photo ID since this is a secure facility, and you will need to pass through a metal detector and show your ID. This will give you time to process through security and be directed to the Kennedy Learning Center room.

While none of us every wishes to be in a violent situation, we are living in perilous times with horrible events unfolding far too often. If we cannot be at ease in our places of worship, we need to take steps to assure our improved safety.

This event is being cosponsored by numerous law enforcement agencies, local, state, and federal and with the Jewish Federation of the Sacramento Region plus the Interfaith Council of Greater Sacramento.

Please consider attending this important training. And then let us all practice peace so it is never needed.

Thank you.

Steps We Can Take Toward a More Hopeful Society

11/9/2018

Dear Friends,

In the recent weeks we have seen an increase in stunning violence against our fellow humans. From the horrors of the Pittsburgh shootings to the threats against asylum seekers to yet another mass murder at a neighborhood nightclub, violence has touched millions of lives.

What can we do?

We offer a few steps you can take, from the fairly easy to more complex, to stop the angry actions and open peace and kindness bringing more sun in a dark and stormy world.

First, from a former Board member, Joan Leslie, something you can do quickly and easily. Following the horrors at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA, her church set up a table during coffee hour where each person could write a note of sympathy and support. The address is Tree of Life Congregation, 5898 Wilkins Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. If you wish to address the note to the Rabbi, he is Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers. Otherwise general notes to the entire congregation are fine. Be prepared for the unfortunate “next time” this sort of thing happens to a group; it will occur. Stand ready to offer comfort and compassion.

Second, consider reviving our post-911 study guide, Building Bridges of Understanding and beginning a new discussion on religious tolerance. You may find the guide here . Within your own congregation you may have safe discussions about other faiths to learn what’s true – and what is not – about our fellow human beings’ faith perspectives.

Third, consider opening discussions in your community with “the other”, anyone who is not part of your congregation or neighborhood. Perhaps, as Pioneer Congregational UCC did in Sacramento, your minister and a local imam can trade pulpits to share insights into what we have in common, how we differ and why. Community dinners (being mindful of dietary laws for others, Jews and Muslims in particular) bring people together.

Fourth, reach out to groups serving those embattled – immigrants, felons, the poor, Black communities beset by police brutality and gun violence, etc. – to see how you can help. How you can become a voice for their justice by using your resources.

Fifth, hold community forums on issues within your area. Good guidelines can come from the National Issues Forum that helps develop discussions, not debates, by shaping presentations based on multiple options for growth and change, not just two sides on each concern. They have guidebooks on key concerns such as immigration and many other issues. You may find them here.

Whatever you do and however you choose to do it, bring your light and humanity to the endeavor. The only way to cast out darkness is to be the sun. Let the healing rays bring greater peace.

Thank you.

Tell the Department of Justice: Drop charges against church group volunteer

10/31/2018

From our friends at Faithful America:

The Trump administration is pursuing felony criminal charges against a volunteer with a church group that provides water, food, socks, blankets, and emergency first-aid treatments to migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Scott Warren volunteers with No More Deaths—a ministry of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson—and he’s on trial for “harboring” two undocumented immigrants.

Warren’s legal team is arguing his actions should be protected under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act. But while Jeff Sessions has no problem with religious freedom being invoked to excuse discrimination against LGBT people, DOJ lawyers are arguing that aiding migrants "is not required by his beliefs.”

The case is receiving national media attention, showing how a crackdown on church ministries to the most vulnerable is a genuine threat to religious freedom.

Sign the petition:
The Department of Justice must immediately drop all charges against Scott Warren and respect the right of No More Deaths volunteers to freely practice their faith by caring for migrants on the border.

It is clear that this federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act is being used to condone the discriminatory behavior by right-wing religious groups, but was never intended to protect work for justice-seeking people faith. Please sign this petition to support Scott Warren living out his faith commitments and to enable him and others to continue working to protect and aid asylum seekers.

Spread the word! Let CAIR-SV help you with naturalization and citizenship July 26!

7/13/2018

Let our friends at CAIR help you at a Naturalization Fair!!

Can you help us spread the word to those in need (including your families, friends and neighbors) and bring in more volunteers? We want to serve as many people in need of naturalization/citizenship help as possible!

We need interpreters, law clerks, pro-bono attorneys and more at the event.
If you can lend a hand, please email mzahriya@cair.com!
If You Go
WHAT: CAIR-SV Naturalization Fair offering free legal help with U.S. citizenship.
WHEN: July 26; registration from 8:30-8:55 a.m., event from 9-4 p.m.
WHERE: CAIR Sacramento Valley headquarters, 1122 Del Paso Blvd.
MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER*: Call 916-441-6269; email mzahriya@cair.com; visit the event on our website.
* Advance registration is required.

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Families Belong Together marches - please join tomorrow, June 30

6/29/2018

Dear Friends,

We realize this is short notice, but we only recently got our own updates on these marches.

Families Belong Together marches across the country will affirm our commitment to both reunification of children and parents separated at the border and also affirm our opposition to the "Muslim Ban" recently approved by the Supreme Court. We think these policies are horrific and violate the key promise of America as a refuge for all people. It, too, breaks up families by denying entry to those whose families are already here.

The marches are tomorrow, June 30 in dozens of cities in even the smallest of towns. In California there are marches from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Fort Bragg and Eureka. Find one near you and join in!

Please affirm your commitment to fighting for families, affirming the sanctity of families kept intact with sane immigration policies. We need to make clear that this nation wishes to carry on rational immigration standards that benefit new arrivals as they did for our ancestors.

To find a march in your area, please go here, get details on locations, and RSVP for tomorrow's march.

We must be silent no more on behalf of those being harmed by angry fears and bad decisions. Let your presence be testimony for the love of our fellow humans no matter from where they come. Families Belong Together whoever they may be.

Thank you!

We are repeating our darkest days, worst decisions. The Muslim ban today.

6/26/2018

Dear Friends,

Do not mistreat the alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt
(Exodus 22:21)

A brief history of American immigration:

In 1834 Boston Protestants burned an Ursuline Convent in a riot against growing Catholicism and, to some extent, the presence of French Canadian nuns.
Discrimination against if not outright barring of Irish Catholics was the norm from the mid 1830s to the “Know Nothing” era of the 1850s.
In 1882, although Chinese labor had been a critical part in building the nation’s cross-continental railroads, America imposed the Chinese Exclusion Act barring immigrants from that nation.
In 1907 the US created the “Gentleman’s Agreement” protocol in which Japan would no longer issue passports to their citizens desiring to live in America.
In 1923 a court decision barred immigrants from India and stripped naturalized Indians of their US citizenship
During the Great Depression virtually all immigration was barred, and over half a million Mexican migrants were sent back to Mexico.
Jewish immigration was also stopped, causing untold hardship to those fleeing fascism. The St Louis bound for New York with Jewish refugees was turned away consigning Jews to probable death.
In 1942 propelled by fear and anger, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 directing all Japanese and Japanese-Americans to internment camps for the duration of the war.

And what can one add to the horror of forced migration since the 17th Century as Black African slavery. No rights, no freedom, no citizenship for over 300 years, massive exploitation.

All of this and more was done to people who we, as people of faith, consider to be the backbone of our complex society. We make promises. We don’t keep them.

Today’s Supreme Court Ruling upholding a Muslim ban – and make no mistake, that’s what it is – is a reversal of history and an appeal to the worst parts of American history and to our worse natures. This ruling capitulates to fear not to reason, not to love, and not to the very principles we claim to honor as Christians.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions just called those of us opposed to this ban, “The lunatic fringe”. No, we are speaking to our core Constitutional and faith values.

Despite our national commitment to Religious Freedom, religion is being used to bar thousands who are fleeing oppression and who now cannot come to America to seek refuge. Mark you, if those seeking asylum and are Christians from the designated nations now barred entry, this ban will not be upheld. This isn’t about national security. This is about religious discrimination of the worst order.

With the chaos of our Southern border and reversal of the existing laws about the treatment of refugees, the separation of families and internments of children, now we have barriers to Muslims from countries that have done no harm to us at all.

We are descending to rival our darkest actions, our most base nature. History will not judge us well.

This decision cannot stand. We must raise our voices everywhere against the retreat to fear and demonizing of our neighbors. We are called to do this. It must be our charge.

Thank you.

Blessed are the Children. Help us protect them now!

6/20/2018

Update: Keep tuned for updated action alerts following Wednesday's executive order. There is still a lot of work to do, especially in reuniting the families that have already been separated!

Dear Friends,

California Council of Churches is embarking on a nationwide movement with beloved allies to stand against the oppression of immigrant children and their parents. It is https://stopfamilyseparation.org

Why are we doing this?

The actions being taken by this nation against refugees and their children cannot stand. We, as people of faith, must act and do so both in the name of our nation's principles and as those motivated by core faith values.

When our country's Attorney General, Jefferson Sessions can cherry pick Romans 13 to demand that we blindly follow whatever our administration does, we must come back, full tilt, to stand for the fullness of what we believe. The decision to stop refugees who are lawfully applying for legal status and to take their children into custody is neither consistent with democratic laws nor with fundamental human rights nor with our faith teachings in even Romans 13.

We are seeing images that are so appalling, so un-American, we almost have no words. In an abrupt overthrow of existing law, President Trump and AG Sessions have declared that refugees are making illegal entry into our country. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our laws guarantee that those petitioning for refugee status be protected, that families be housed together, while their cases are being evaluated. These are people running for their lives - running from violence in their own countries, running from domestic violence, and threats to their children.  They are obeying the laws that are on the books - they are coming into the US at appointed ports of entry - and suddenly having their children ripped away, with no word where they are.

The children are terrified, locked into what are supposed to be temporary holding pens for those waiting for deportation. They have nothing - no clothes, no toys, nothing. Most of all they have no idea where their parents are and the parents have no idea where their children are.

Our elected officials have sought entry into these holding pens to no avail. But the few journalists and physicians who have gained entry at one of the better facilities say conditions are unspeakable. The children are terrified, and there is no system to assure they can ever be returned to their own parents. No records are being kept properly. Only the boys have been seen at a distance. No one knows where the babies and girls have been placed. No one.

Saying this is reminiscent of Nazi Germany is not an overstatement. The same practices exist now that existed then. And this is our nation engaged in this massive abuse of human rights. We are now the nation practicing crimes against humanity.

We all know Scripture calls us to embrace "the alien" recalling the days of bondage in Egypt. When we omit that fundamental moral teaching and blithely replace it with an offhand misinterpreted call to obey are government blindly, we must rise up on behalf of the children and their parents. We cannot let this stand!

Please join us as we begin taking our voices to the public arena to witness for justice and humanity. Please stay in touch with us as we move through this horror to end the inhumanity and threats to these fragile and vulnerable children. We have embarked on a new collaboration in the company of United Methodist Women and our allies at Texas Impact.

We are starting with a petition to AG Sessions and ask that you join us, sign the petition, and begin using your voice as a person of faith to counter the actions of harm made worse by the pretense of religious approval.    Well, we don't approve of our government in these actions!

https://stopfamilyseparation.org

Please sign the petition. Pass it onto your friends, family, neighbors. We cannot keep silent in the face of this despicable abuse of human beings.

We cannot be silent in the face of these atrocities. The faith community must make our beliefs known. Please join us in ending this harm. We must speak out for these children!

Thank you!

"VietNam: An Inner View" to premier Sunday March 11 in Sacramento. Open to everyone free

3/2/2018

On Sunday March 11 from 1:30-4:00 pm, the California premier of “Viet Nam: An Inner View” will be offered free at the Sacramento Public Library, 828 I Street between 8th and 9th.

California Council of Churches is sending this announcement statewide due to the importance of the message about our understanding of the long-term impacts of war on mental as well as physical health, on moral injury, and on the need for civilians to see what it is we ask of our troops. The panel will also discuss the enduring need for adequate resources for those who, even now, are suffering impacts from their Viet Nam experience.

This screening of a unique inside look at what ordinary soldiers, Marines, and others experienced will be followed by a panel/group discussion with the film’s producers, PTSD counselor Brett Davis, and local veterans including Doug Mitten who arranged the sponsorship of this event by Vietnam Veterans of America Local 500.

“Viet Nam: An Inner View” is an outgrowth of the work of Marc Waszkiewicz, a “Leatherneck” Marine whose experiences in Viet Nam were like those of everyone who served save in one regard; he took 35,000 photos and 8 mm. films that have now become the backbone of this stunning document of what he and his comrades-in-arms saw and did.

The video was based on Waszkiewicz’s book, “The 1000 Yard Stare”. From Marines to civilians, the faces and expressions of the people caught in this ordeal of war capture the humanity of the experience. We see the raw nature of shock, fear, grief, and also the humor and friendship that helped them survive the experience.

Several oral histories were created in preparation for the video’s production to give voice to other veterans, other memories. The men tell their own stories ranging from funny to heartbreaking, and their insights add yet another dimension to the story.

Produced by Oregon musician Lea Jones, the video has a powerful, original soundtrack of songs written by Jones expressly for the events depicted.

The March 11 event is open to everyone at no charge. Donations are appreciated but not required. Full participation in the post screening discussion is encouraged for those who would like to speak.

Parking is free on streets surrounding the Library or for a charge at the City Hall garage on I street between 10th and 11th or at the Capitol garage on L street at 10th with the entrance on 10th north of L on the right.

Anyone who would like to know more about the event may call 916-801-1121. If you cannot attend but would like the materials – the video, soundtrack, and book - they are available for sale online at VietnamInnerView.com

We hope this event and the resources will stimulate a critical discussion in every community about how we treat our veterans, how we make them whole in our civilian world. It is one of our most important acts of advocacy that we can do.

Thank you.

Join a Community Discussion on Hate Crimes in our area - Thursday, October 19 from 6-8 pm

10/12/2017

Dear Friends,

There is no doubt we live in tense and dangerous times. The rise of hate crimes and incidents has escalated to unprecedented levels.

Recent and ongoing events in Elk Grove have created fear and anxiety in many people, and it is upon us in the faith community to find ways to address these events, call upon authorities to take hate crimes and incidents seriously, and to end the hate where and when we can.
Please be invited to a community discussion and forum Thursday, October 19 from 6:00-8:00 p.m.

Speak Up and Out Against Racism and Injustice.
Elk Grove United Methodist Church
8986 Elk Grove Boulevard
Elk Grove CA 95624

Discussion leaders will be LaKenya Jordan, MPH and Addie Ellis, PhD, both experienced problem solvers and discussion facilitators within our community.

From vile messages and vandalism at an Elk Grove African American hair salon to racist graffiti scrawled on a local home, hate incidents and crimes have not mobilized the authorities to take action on these obvious hate crimes. Too often authorities have dismissed these hate crimes as acts of juveniles as if that makes a difference. It doesn’t.

Such acts are a warning – the canary in the coal mine – that tell us something is terribly wrong in our town. They too often are precursors to greater and more deadly violence. We cannot allow this to escalate! Our public safety officials and government leaders must take these incidents seriously!

Please join us even if you’re not from Elk Grove to lift voices of concern and possible solution to this danger that confronts us. Please also come to assure the victims they have our care.

This event is sponsored by California Council of Churches, Elk Grove UMC, Sacramento NAACP, and California Church IMPACT, and the South County African American Coalition. Please join us for this important community action.

Hope to see you there!

This is not over - faithful witness for a just America

8/16/2017

Dear Friends,

Charlottesville was not the end. It was the beginning.

The vicious hate we saw displayed last weekend began Friday night with events largely unmarked by media – groups of peaceful people of faith, standing in witness for justice and equality, were assaulted, spat on, jeered. A synagogue with Friday night celebrants, faced an armed group standing across the street, intentions unknown.

The events on Saturday repeated the violence. A death occurred – a hate crime as it is now being investigated – and two police officers died when their helicopter crashed while monitoring the events unfolding below. Both officers also died.

And into this yesterday we had our president affirm his acceptance of and support for this vicious display of racism, anti-Semitism, fascism.

This is not over. These are not normal times. This is not normal American politics.

We are being called on as rarely before to bear witness for American values of inclusion, equity, anti-fascism, and democracy. It is terribly scary since we tend not to be violent people and have scant knowledge of how to confront violence.

But we cannot be silent. We cannot turn away.

We turn to an excellent ecumenical statement from Called to Resist (calledtoresist.org) that laid out our role as people of faith:

As Martin Luther King Jr. put it, “The church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state but rather the conscience of the state.”

Yes, Call to Resist is a direct critique of our president, but if we do not call out the perfidy of his dreadful racism, xenophobia, proto fascism, and other sins, then who will?

But we must remember he did not cause the racism – he is a manifestation of it. The sin of racism and hate of “the other” is as much a part of our history as is the dynamic of inclusive and loving change. Those exist, side-by-side and always have in America.

We are thus called to stand against the hate, the fear, the selfish greed that drives the rage against fully inclusive democracy.

You don’t have to put your body on the line to make a difference. You don’t have to be a part of a dangerous situation. You do have to speak out, make your views on loving inclusiveness manifest.

We recommend that an excellent guide from the best anti-racist, anti-hate group we know, the Southern Poverty Law Center, become part of your personal and congregational discussion on what to do and how to do it.

You can find the link here

We urge you to find your own voice and strength, however it works – from continued phone calls to care for victims of hate such as scrubbing off hateful graffiti, to quiet but forceful presence at city council and county meetings.

Whatever you do, however you do it – do something. Be silent no more. Our survival not just as a nation but as a nation of justice is at stake.

We need you. America needs you.

Thank you.