The Church & Society/Social Justice Committee was busy in 2022 with activities consistent with the committee’s mission to educate the First Church community about opportunities for advocacy and action on social and civic issues such as peace, justice, equity, and environmental stewardship.
On January 30, we partnered with the Seattle-King County Coalition on Homelessness to present a Zoom panel discussion that included both providers and formerly unhoused clients. Using our committee’s budget we donated to the Seattle-King County Coalition on Homelessness and paid small honoraria to the former client speakers in the form of gift cards.
On April 23, in celebration of Earth Day, Meaningful Movies at First Church (which we sponsor) presented the documentary 2040. The focus of the film was on creative solutions to climate change. Participants were invited to watch the Australian film in advance so they were prepared for the one-hour panel discussion, featuring King County Executive Dow Constantine.
On May 1, we collaborated with the First Church Climate Justice Working Group to host a discussion of Climate Solutions 101, a video series by Project Drawdown. Speakers included a representative of the United Methodist Church (UMC) Global Ministries Earth Keepers and the Deputy Director of 350Seattle.
On October 16, we sponsored a Zoom discussion on gun violence about the documentary Making a Killing: Guns, Greed and the NRA. Grandmothers Against Gun Violence (GAGV), a local activist organization, arranged for the program and speakers which included Washington State Senator David Frockt, Seattle’s 46th legislative district. To thank GAGV for presenting this event, we donated to their organization as well as to Meaningful Movies Project (MMP) that provided technical support, advice on access to films, and publicity to the broader community.
After each Meaningful Movies at First Church event, we write a follow-up article for the church newsletter that provides additional resources for action.
Our committee has also co-sponsored MMP events led by other MMP venues which further the goals of our committee. Co-sponsorship involves publicizing the events as well as providing other support as requested. (Similarly, many of our Meaningful Movies at First Church events have been co-sponsored by other MMP venues.) In April, we co-sponsored an online discussion about the Emmy-winning film The Story of Plastic which exposes how we got to our current global plastic pollution crisis. A panel of speakers shared strategies to reduce plastic use and advocate for solutions. On July 7, we co-sponsored an event about the film Suppressed & Sabotaged led by Fix Democracy First and MMP. On August 5, we co-sponsored an event led by the MMP High School Interns group about Inhabitants, a climate justice documentary. We not only publicized the event, but also paid half the honorarium for the speaker.
We continue to partner with other organizations that support our goals. We have a close relationship with Faith Action Network (FAN), a multi-faith, nonprofit organization which advocates for a more just, peaceful, and sustainable world, and helps connect its members with Washington State legislators to encourage legislation on a variety of social justice issues. In addition to several committee members attending FAN’s annual meeting in November, our committee donated funds from our budget to support FAN activities. We also collaborate with Earth Ministry, Fix Democracy First, and other organizations. Throughout the year, committee members have written church newsletter articles about our partners and how the First Church community can take action on the social justice issues advocated by our partners.
Finally the C&S/SJ committee sponsored the postcard writing effort that so many church and community members have participated in. Working with Reclaim Our Vote, an African American lead organization based in Virginia, we wrote postcards to citizens from underrepresented communities in states that have been experiencing voter suppression, urging them to register to vote and to get out to vote. In 2022 including the primaries and national elections, we sent postcards through Reclaim Our Vote. The increased numbers of early voters in these states may partially be attributed to our efforts!