Peace and Social Justice Committee: Review of 2012

In their meeting of December 9, the Multiracial Development and Peace and Social Justice committees decided to merge into a single committee, Peace and Social Justice (PSJ), a move that was prompted by the overlap in membership and shared interests of the two committees. The PSJ is one of several committees of the Faith in Action Commission, which also includes the Green Committee, the Hunger Task Force, and Interweave.

During 2012, the activities of the two committees that now compose the Peace and Social Justice committee were focused on four areas: 

Peace, including opposition to the war in Afghanistan and support for various initiatives on behalf of peace and alternatives to war. Among other activities, the PSJ holds bi-monthly peace vigils between 6 and 7 p.m. on the first and third Fridays of each month at the corner of Barrington and National. Members of PSJ also participated in the May Day Westside Caravan from Santa Monica, one of four caravans that paraded into downtown Los Angeles.

Anti-racism and promotion of racial and ethnic diversity. These themes have informed various activities, including the commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the annual Seder, and the program of the Thanksgiving feast. During the spring the committee sponsored a book discussion based on Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow.” Members also participated in monthly meetings of the Santa Monica Committee for Racial Justice (initially formed in the aftermath of a racist event at Santa Monica High School), which has expanded its scope to oppose racism in various institutions.

Economic justice, with a particular emphasis on labor issues. The committee (as well as other members of UUCCSM) has supported various campaigns on behalf of workers’ efforts to organize and obtain fair wages and benefits. During 2012, PSJ continued its collaboration with Los Angeles Clergy and Laity United (CLUE) and other groups in the Clean Carwash Campaign in an effort to organize carwash facilities in the Los Angeles area, including Santa Monica. Members of UUCCSM have participated  in demonstrations, pickets, prayer vigils, and meetings with various carwash owners on behalf of car washers. In 2011, Bonus Carwash on Lincoln in
Santa Monica became the first U.S. carwash facility to recognize a union; subsequent activities have been
focused on the Santa Monica Carwash on Pico and 25th and the Millennium Carwash in Venice. Members
of the UUCCSM also spoke at a Santa Monica City Council meeting to urge the City to stop contracting with carwashes that violate labor laws. The Council agreed to strictly adhere to policies requiring those contracting with the city to respect the law, and stated that the City Attorney would investigate practices at carwashes in Santa Monica. 

PSJ has also supported organizing efforts of hotel workers. On March 20, members of the PSJ committee attended another Santa Monica City Council meeting with hotel workers regarding a living wage
and benefits provision in the Development Agency for a new hotel at 710 Wilshire Boulevard. While the
Council did not adopt the proposals as part of the Development Agency, pressures on the developers
resulted in their signing a card check agreement with UNITE-HERE for that hotel.

Immigration, particularly issues related to immigrant detention. PSJ members have protested “Secure Communities,” an initiative of Immigration Control and Enforcement (ICE) which requests that police officials send the fingerprints of those they pick up to ICE, which may then request that anyone suspected of being undocumented be held an additional 48 hours to enable ICE to check their status.

In September, three PSJ members joined five others in a visit sponsored by the Detention Watch Network (DWN) to the Theo Lacey prison in Orange County, a maximum security prison that in 2010 contracted with ICE to house approximately 430 immigrant detainees. The visit included a briefing by officials of the facility and ICE, a tour of the area where immigrant detainees are held, and interviews with some 130 detainees to assess their treatment. Detainees had numerous complaints, ranging from monotonous food to cases of verbal and even physical abuse. Many of the detainees are confronting indefinite stays, due to delays in hearings or lack of legal assistance. In its final report, the DWN listed Theo Lacey as one of twelve detention centers that should be closed down. The PSJ is currently looking into setting up a program of regular visits to immigrants in detention in collaboration with CIVIC, the Community Initiative for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement.

PSJ also worked with the UU Legislative Ministry to support the TRUST Act, a California legislative initiative that would require that police officials issue ICE detainers only for immigrants accused of serious or violent crimes. The initiative was passed by the California Assembly and Senate but was vetoed by Governor Jerry Brown, who said that he would revisit the initiative in order to correct some flaws.

In the meantime, Attorney General Kamala Harris issued a statement to the effect that ICE detainers are not mandatory; subsequently Sheriff Lee Baca concurred with this position, which L.A. Police Chief Charlie Beck has already agreed to. The California legislature is working on a revised version of the TRUST Act in the hope that it will meet Governor Brown’s requirements.

PSJ Events in 2012

January 8. UUCCSM program on U.S.- sponsored torture and solitary confinement (recognized as a form of torture by NRCAT), including a video, “Ending U.S.- Sponsored Torture Forever”; a speaker on the three-strikes law; and a report by a mother whose son was in solitary confinement at Pelican Bay.

January 15. The annual Martin Luther King service featured a presentation by Victoria Gray, the mother of a student who was the victim of a racist event at Santa Monica High School. We learned about the failure of the school authorities to report or even recognize the seriousness of the event. Victoria Gray is a leader of the Santa Monica Committee for Racial Justice which grew out of these events and meets monthly at the Church in Ocean Park.

January 16. The Multiracial Development Committee had a table at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Westside Coalition Community Celebration. Will Coley videotaped interviews with participants, which are posted on our
UUCCSM website.

April 14. We sponsored our second Seder this year, with a celebration of the deliverance of the Children of Israel from slavery and an emphasis on eliminating modern slavery.

April 18. UUA Pacific Southwest District Assembly, held at First Unitarian Church and attended by several members of PSJ, included an update on legislative initiatives and action; information on the Esperanza
Project, an initiative to provide legal assistance to detained immigrants; and information on the bail fund, which raises funds for detained immigrants eligible for bonding out.

June 20 to 24. Several members of the PSJ/MRDC as well as other members of UUCCSM, including four YRUU teenagers, participated in the UUA General Assembly in Arizona. The Assembly focused on immigration
issues, including the Arizona anti-immigrant law (SB 1070), and featured several workshops on how to combat
anti-immigrant legislation. Rick Rhoads of FIA participated in a panel “Partnering Congregations and Community Organizations” where he spoke of UUCCSM support for grocery workers during their strike in 2011 and ongoing collaboration with CLUE in organizing carwash workers. On Saturday night of GA, UUCCSM members participated with others in a demonstration in front of Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s Tent City, where undocumented immigrants are being held in horrendous conditions.

July. FIA sponsored the monthly art wall, “Put your faith in action,” which featured photographs and brief descriptions of events and activities sponsored by member committees.

September 29. In conjunction with efforts to organize carwash workers, the PSJ committee screened the film “Salt of the Earth,” which focuses on a 1951 miners’ strike in New Mexico; a discussion followed. Forty people attended, including six carwash workers.

October 13. A visit to the Great Wall of Los Angeles, a half-mile mural that documents the cultural and ethnic diversity of Los Angeles, was sponsored by the MRDC as a Dining for Dollars event for the third year in a row.

November 17. The PSJ presented the annual Thanksgiving Feast program, based on a service by the Rev. John F. Hayward. The program recognizes the efforts of those who have suffered persecution and oppression and have sought to find a place in American society, and gives thanks for the contributions of the diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural groups that have helped to build the country.

December 1. Presentation of the film “He Who Must Die,” based on a book by Nikos Kazantzakis, which focuses on plans of a Greek village for their annual Passion Play; their faith and humanity is tested when refugees from a neighboring village that has been destroyed solicit their help. 

The PSJ has collaborated with the UU  legislative Ministry of California (UULMCA) on various issues, including support for the TRUST Act, the Sustainable Communities campaign, and the Assembly Bill promoting the Human Right to Water. In 2012 the UULMCA organized its activities into a series of clusters; UUCCSM is a member of the cluster which also includes First Church and Pacific Unitarian Church. The PSJ has also supported other initiatives, such as efforts of the California Nurses’ Association to obtain Medicare for All for the State of California (formerly passed by the California legislature but vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger); the anti-death penalty ballot initiative (Proposition 34); and efforts of NRCAT to end torture and solitary confinement, which are currently focused on efforts to close Guantanamo, eliminate indefinite detention, and ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture.

Upcoming PSJ Events

January 6, 13; February 3, 10. Book discussion of Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow,” the UUA Common Read for 2012-13.

January 19. Martin Luther King, Jr. Westside Coalition Celebration. PSJ will again have a table at the event.

January 20. Commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr., at Sunday service.

February 10 (tentative date). FIA crafts fair fundraising event. The next meeting of the Peace and Social Justice committee will take place on Sunday, January 20, at 12:30 p.m. Please join us.

— Nora Hamilton