Social Justice is an important part of our ministry as a church. Our church several ways to engage in social mission and social justice defined by our social mission policy.

Beginning in 2017-2018, our chuch began choosing annual social justice themes.  The themes are a way for us to focus more deeply on a given issue, and relate programs and religious education and worship events to the theme throughout the year.  We encourage all of our committees and programs to find a way to connect to the theme, and we encourage members to create programs and outings related to the theme during the year.

The themes for this year are Voter Supression and Racial Justice.

Previous themes have been:

Racial Justice

Reproductive Freedom

Peace and Conflict

Environment (Special focus: Water Justice)

Special Collections and Agency Support

We choose four (or sometimes more, in case of a tie) agencies to hold a special collection for during the year.

The agencies for 2021-2022 are:

• The Aware Shelter
• The Brooklyn Food Pantry
• Jackson Personal Care Ministry
• Planned Parenthood
• The Jackson Pride Center

Other agencies we have supported include:

• The Jackson Interfaith Shelter
• Jackson Interfaith Peacekeepers
• Fair Trade Coffee

We hold emergency special collections for situations like natural disasters or crises in the community.

We also have voted to include the following agencies on our list from which we choose agencies to support.  These agencies, and the ones listed above, are eligible for us to do social mission activities with or for, without needing congregational or board approval for a project.

• Big Brothers/Big Sisters
• Church World Service (CROP)
• Community Action Agency (Jackson County)
• The Clara Barton Center for Diabetes Education
• Disability Connections Center for Independent Living
• Family Service and Children’s Aid
• Leader Dogs for the Blind
• Michigan UU Social Justice Network
• Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) – Jackson
• Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC)

MUUSJN

We are also a proud member of the Michigan Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Network, or MUUSJN! This state network of UU congregations is actively involved in supporting a number of social justice efforts, including voting rights LGBTQ+ issues, racial justice, economic justice, and gun violence prevention. Learn more about MUUSJN here: https://www.uujustice.org/.