DREAM Act passed the House; On to the Senate!

From Bill Mefford of the General Board of Church & Society:

Great news!!!! DREAM just passed the House 216-189!!! See the message below and the targets – please call early Thursday and see if your Bishops and others can call as well. WE MUST DO ALL WE CAN TO SEE THIS DREAM COME TRUE!!!

Now for the hardest part – passing DREAM in the SENATE! The Senate will vote on the DREAM Act at 11am Thursday – that’s TODAY! The votes are even tighter, and we need EVERYONE to call both of their Senators first thing this morning and tell them that as their constituent, you’re relying on them to bring the DREAM Act into law!

Target Senators are listed below with their direct office phone numbers. THIS IS THE FINAL CHANCE – WE MUST BE HEARD IN THE SENATE! VOTES ARE INCREDIBLY TIGHT! PLEASE call and pass this information on to everyone you know!

Post on Facebook, Tweet, send emails, make phone calls, have everyone in your office call during the first 5 minutes of the day – please do EVERYTHING you can to have the pro-DREAM calls overpower the anti ones – they will also be in full force on this.

Senate: 202-224-3121

(make sure to be transferred to both your Senators!)

Thank you all so much for your incredible, inspiring work on this – it has been successful so far, and let’s keep it up and see this through into law!

LET’S GIVE THIS OUR ALL AND SEE IT THROUGH!  MAKE DREAM A REALITY! Thank you again!

Targets & phone numbers:

MISSOURI
McCaskill: (202) 224-6154

LOUISIANA
Landrieu: (202) 224-5824

NORTH CAROLINA
Hagan: (202) 224-6342

INDIANA
Lugar: (202) 224-4814

UTAH
Bennett: (202) 224-5444
Hatch: (202) 224-5251

OHIO
Voinovich: (202) 224-3353

MAINE
Collins: (202) 224-2523
Snowe: (202) 224-5344

FLORIDA
LeMieux: (202) 224-3041

TEXAS
Hutchison: (202) 224-5922

NEW HAMPSHIRE
Gregg: (202) 224-3324

MASSACHUSETTS
Brown: (202) 224-2315

KANSAS
Brownback: (202) 224-6521

SOUTH CAROLINA
Graham: (202) 224-5972

MICHIGAN
Stabenow: (202) 224-4822

VIRGINIA
Warner: (202) 224-2023
Webb: (202) 224-4024

WEST VIRGINIA
Manchin: (202) 224-3954

ALASKA
Murkowski: (202) 224-6665

MARCHA in solidarity with Rev. Lorenza Andrade and the DREAM Act

12/02/2010 – Metodistas Asociados Representando la Causa de los Hispano-Americanos (MARCHA) oficialmente ha abogado por una reforma justa e integral de las leyes de inmigración, y específicamente ha respaldado la aprobación del “DREAM ACT.” MARCHA esta en solidaridad con nuestra hermana la Rvda. Lorenza Andrade, miembro activa de MARCHA, en su acto de desobediencia civil a favor de la aprobación del “DREAM ACT.”  Pedimos a nuestros miembros que oren por ella y por todos los estudiantes y los que participan con ellos, pidiendo que su sacrificio y sus luchas sean vistos por el Congreso como un testimonio fiel y aprueben el DREAM ACT.

Además, pedimos a todos los que lean esta declaración que llamen a sus representantes en el Congreso alentándoles a que voten a favor del DREAM ACT.

ENGLISH: The Methodist Association Representing the Cause of Hispanic-Americans (MARCHA) is on record calling for a Comprehensive Reform of the Immigration Laws and specifically in strong support of the passage of the DREAM Act. We stand in solidarity with our sister the Rev. Lorenza Andrade, an active member of MARCHA, in her act of civil disobedience in favor of the passage of the DREAM Act. We urge our members to pray for her and for all the students and supporters, may their ordeals and sacrifices be a strong witness to Congress and the DREAM Act be approved soon. Furthermore, we request everyone who reads this statement to call their elected officials and urge them to vote in support of the DREAM Act.

Historical Trauma & Native Communities

The United Methodist Church has a role in helping Native communities over come historical traumas.  Shirley Montoya talks about the importance of understanding the impact of historical traumas on indigenous communities.

See and hear more here: The Website of the Native American International Caucus: Historical Trauma

Drop the I-Word. Don’t Feed the Hate Machine!

Click here to take the pledge and get involved!

Take the Pledge: Drop the I-Word!

GCORR joins ARC’s Campaign to Drop the I-Word

By Aisha Russell

Immigration has been a hot topic this year, with fear, racial profiling and human rights abuses coming to light in many a news story. Some of the rhetoric around immigration is fueling the fire for hate speech. As community-based organizations, faith-based groups, non-profits, for-profits and governmental agencies alike, we should be concerned about this threat to the safety and well-being of racial ethnic persons.

The General Commission on Religion and Race today announces its endorsement of Drop the I-Word, a national public education campaign designed to “stop feeding the hate machine.” GCORR is partnering with racial justice think tank, the Applied Research Center and ColorLines.com, urging media outlets and other organizations to stop using the term “illegals” and its derivatives and to sign the pledge to Drop the I-Word.

General Secretary Erin Hawkins signed the pledge last month representing a commitment to affirming the dignity of and recognizing all persons as human beings, using accurate language that reflects our most basic values, and promoting racial equality, justice and advanced race relations for a brighter future for generations to come.

“GCORR is proud to endorse the I-Word Campaign as it reflects our commitment to moving from racism to relationships. Immigrant people are God’s children. We as United Methodists and people of faith cannot tolerate any attempts to dehuminize or devalue immigrant communities,’’ said Hawkins.

We ask that you visit www.gcorr.org/droptheiword to learn more about our involvement in the campaign and to see how you can get involved in this effort to eliminate hate filled rhetoric from our United Methodist conversations on immigration.

Quote of the Week: Relationships must be saved

“After the souls of (people) are saved, the society in which they function will be a good society.  This is only a half truth.  Many (people) have found that they are caught in a framework of relationships evil in design, and their very good deeds have developed into instrumentalities for evil.  It is not enough to save the souls of (individuals); the relationships that exist between (them) must be saved also.”

– Howard Thurman, “What Shall I Do With My Life? (1939)

The quote can be found in the publication, A Strange Freedom: The Best of Howard Thurman on Religious Experience and Public Life.

DREAM Call-In Day Today!

From the General Board of Church & Society:

The DREAM Act is expected to come to a vote soon and our elected leaders need to hear your voice!!! So, from now until the vote is taken, will you pray daily for the DREAM Act to pass?  Also, on December 1 (TODAY), call the Capitol Hill switchboard at 202-225-3121, ask for your Senators and Representative, and urge them to vote for and publicly support the DREAM Act.

• If enacted, the DREAM Act would create a pathway for undocumented immigrant students to legal status.  Students will be eligible for the pathway to legal status if they:
• entered the United States before age 16;
• lived in the U.S. for at least five continuous years immediately before the bill becomes effective;
• graduated from high school or gained admission into an institute of higher education;
• have “good moral character” and not committed certain crimes; and
• are younger than 35 when the bill becomes effective.

The DREAM Act would make a huge difference in the lives of undocumented youth who were brought to the United States by their parents and now, because of their lack of legal status, face obstacles to their future. By removing such barriers, the DREAM Act will allow immigrant students to pursue their dreams through college education or, if they choose to, through military service. DREAM Act students are talented, intelligent and dedicated young people who know only the U.S. as their home and who are ready to contribute to this country and have much we can benefit from.

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The DREAM Act is a bipartisan legislation, sponsored by Sen. Orin Hatch, R-Utah, and Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill. Under rigorous provisions of the DREAM Act, qualifying undocumented youth would be eligible for a 6-year-long conditional path to citizenship that requires completion of a college degree or two years of military service. More information is available at The DREAM Act.

Also see: Dispelling DREAM Act Myths

Quote of the Week: Western Christians share a root problem

A thought provoking quote I thought I’d share…

VCF

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“Western Christians—conservative, fundamentalist, evangelical, and progressive—share a root problem in addressing racism. They are more concerned with their own goodness than with profound transformation or intense emotional engagement that can survive the inevitable conflicts around difficult issues (unity being key and conflicts being scary and bad). They want people of color who will raise the racism issue to be part of their communities, but not if they are too different and don’t already fit in, or if they actually try to get at the root causes of white privilege and systemic white supremacy.”

– Rita Nakashima-Brock, Founding Co-Director of Faith Voices for the Common Good and a minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Read more here: Religion Dispatches: We Might Need the End of Progressive Christianity

Archbishop: Don’t Blame Racism for Your Problems?

It’s Black History Month in Britain and as part of its commemoration, the Archbishop of York and second in the hierarchy of The Church of England, Dr John Sentamu, gave an interview to the UK publication, The Daily Mail.  Last week, it was reported that Dr Sentamu urged young black people in the UK to “stop blaming racism for their problems.”  At first glance, this report appeared to be an example of high-ranking and seasoned person of color in the church in willful denial of the church and society’s history of racism and contemporary racial challenges.  Yet a deeper read into the article possibly reveals a different and more complex story.

While the headline and opening paragraphs begin with quotes from the Uganda-born Archbishop lamenting corrupt leadership in many African nations and cultural pathology of young blacks in Britain (“‘Your future success does not lie in guns, gangs and knives or in the worship of celebrities.’), in following paragraphs we see examples of Dr Semantu engaging institutional racism head on.  The article goes on to reveal, for instance, that The Archbishop has been a vocal advocate against racial profiling and police brutality in Britain for years.

It seems that he acknowledges the racist history of Britain while also trumpeting the responsibility of a younger generations of ethnic minorities to work toward justice and equality.   Is The Archbishop saying “Don’t blame racism for your problems” or “Don’t use racism as a reason to give up?”  Is there a difference? 

What do you think?

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‘Don’t blame racism for your problems’: Archbishop John Semantu urges young black men to work hard for success 

By Steve Doughty
Last updated at 7:55 AM on 19th October 2010

The Archbishop of York has urged young black people to stop blaming racism for their problems. 

Dr John Sentamu warned that prisons, mental health units and young offender institutions held too many black people.  He told a new generation: ‘Your future success does not lie in guns, gangs and knives or in the worship of celebrities.’

Instead, they should ‘work hard’ and ‘stay focused’, he said.

The Ugandan-born Archbishop, second in the hierarchy of the Church of England, also criticised African nations for too readily trying to blame their former ‘colonial masters’ for their difficulties…

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1321630/Archbishop-John-Sentamu-urges-young-black-men-Dont-blame-racism-problems.html#comments#ixzz13VQlO89R

Remembering Bishop James Samuel Thomas

Bishop Thomas gives remarks after receiving award for his contributions to the former Central Jurisdiction and for his role in eliminating that racially segregated structure at the General Conference 2004.

As I write, the homegoing service for Bishop James S. Thomas is taking place at Cascade United Methodist Church in Atlanta, GA.  Bishop Thomas was giant in Methodism who I had the privilege to meet and have conversations with on several occasions.  He was a true prophet and sage and will be missed.

His life and witness should inspire us all to be courageous in the face of the difficult challenges to overcome racial injustices today.  The Spirit and faith that guided Bishop Thomas surely guides us today.

May God’s peace comfort Mrs. Thomas and family.

VCF

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Bishop James Thomas Dies

by Kathy Gilbert, United Methodist Communications

Bishop Thomas was born into a Methodist parsonage family in Orangeburg, S.C., on April 8, 1919. He went to Claflin College and then was a rural school principal in Florence County in South Carolina for a year. He was ordained deacon by Bishop Lorenzo H. King and elder by Bishop Willis J. King. While serving the Orangeburg Circuit he attended Gammon Theological Seminary and later earned a master’s degree from Drew University.

He served as a chaplain at South Carolina State College, a pastor in York, S.C., and then a professor at Gammon Theological Seminary.  During this time, he earned his doctorate degree from Cornell University.

Thomas became associate general secretary of the United Methodist Board of Education in charge of the black colleges. He was in this position when elected to the episcopacy by the Central Jurisdictional Conference in 1964. He served on the staff at Perkins School of Theology, was Bishop in Residence at both Candler School of Theology at Emory University (1992-1996) and Clark Atlanta University (1993-1998).

Thomas spent 12 years in Iowa and another 12 in the East Ohio Conference before retiring in 1988.

Thomas presented the Episcopal Address at the 1976 United Methodist General Conference. He had been president of the General Council on Finance and Administration and president of the Council of Bishops, as well as president of the General Council on Ministries and of the Commission on Religion and Race.

Upon election to the episcopacy in 1964, he was named first bishop of color to serve the Iowa Area of The Methodist Church.  Continued here…

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More information on Bishop James S. Thomas

“A Pioneer and Visionary: United Methodist Bishop Leaves Extraordinary Legacy”
The Times and Democrat, Orangeburg, SC

Walking With King
Bishop James S. Thomas Remembers Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Unlocking the Future: Remembering the Central Jurisdiction