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Dear Justice-Seeker,

This issue of MFSAVoices is jam-packed with resources and information. So much so that it won't all fit in your email message so be sure to click view entire message at the bottom of this email to view the entire issue. Our newsletters are designed to be used all month long. So take a quick glance and take note of important dates to add to your calendar but also come back in the following weeks to work your way through the action items. 

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We continue to see the urgency of our work to make broad systemic change. Change that honors the dignity and worth of all people, puts people over money, and honors the earth and all her inhabitants. Since 1907, MFSA has been shining a light on injustice and organizing to change it. 

You make our collective work possible by your witness for justice every day in your church, community, and Annual Conference. MFSA does not receive any financial support from the United Methodist Church's giving channels. 100% of our budget is funded through your membership dues and your generosity in giving.

Introducing Carol Ngwenyama

MFSA is so excited to welcome our newest intern Carol! 

Carol Ngwenyama (she/her/hers) is the Organizing Associate Intern at MFSA. Carol works in collaboration with Executive Director Bridget Cabrera in support of the Program Council helping with any administrative tasks and follow-up, building relationships with Regional Communities, and working on organizing and advocacy campaigns of MFSA.

Racial Audit Update

The end is nearly here, and the hard work of the team continues in this process. This is not the end of course because it is the beginning of awareness and action. MFSA is an organization that does not rest on its past accomplishments but looks forward. I am encouraged by the willingness to embrace change that I feel from the board and program council. The survey illuminated areas where change is needed the most. It also highlighted the strengths from the past.  My involvement with this organization reinforces my belief in justice and fairness.  I look forward to sharing the completed report with you. 

Grace and Peace, 
Pat Stewart
Co-convener Racial Audit Team

“If we do not give up:" 
Reflections on disability and LGBTQ+ advocacy

This post was originally published at the blog of Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) and is republished here with permission from RMN.

When I was younger, I went over to my neighbor’s house where he had friends over. Little did I know that they were whispering to each other about how they thought I was “retarded.” The girl who was sitting next to me heard them and informed me of what they said. Since I was so young and did not know what the word “retarded” meant, I went home to ask my mom. She did not answer me at first; instead, she wanted to know who had called me that.

The events of that day were hurtful for both my mom and me since I am not “retarded” after all. But, from that moment on, whenever I’m getting dressed, I make sure that I always look good – that my hair is always combed and not messy, and that the buttons on my shirt are buttoned correctly so there is no reason for someone to say anything unkind. Even so, I do not believe that being called a slur should be acceptable in our society. By working to develop good character, we can learn to accept and support one another, even when we may walk, talk, look, or love differently. I even wrote a song about this experience called “It’s Okay to Be You,” which describes my journey with accepting my disability and how it affects my physical coordination and fluency of speech. I also feel comforted by one of my favorite songs: “Rainbow” by Kacey Musgraves, which I recently played and sang on the piano.

Ever since then, I’ve been committed to advancing the cause of disability pride at my school, Bucks County Community College. For the past two years, I was fortunate to run the school’s Disability Pride Club, where disabled students and their allies can meet on Zoom to socialize, talk about how their disabilities impact their lives, and become good friends. Most importantly, we were able to honor a former student and Disability Pride Club member of ours named Steven who unexpectedly passed away last year. One of the things that we did in Steven’s honor was host a virtual memorial so we could all share our many memories of him. While it was a sad day indeed, it gave us the opportunity to develop a strong bond with one another, just as Steven would want.

At Disability Pride, we strive to live out Steven’s legacy by safely living life to the fullest. Steven was involved in so many other clubs, including our school’s LGBTQIA+ club, to the point where his dad said: “Steven used to get up at 6 am to ride the SEPTA bus to school, and then he would arrive home at 9 pm. I was not even aware of all the great things he did!” I remember attending meetings for the Student Government Association’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee that we were both a part of, and Steven played a reserved, yet supportive role. He advocated to fix broken handicap buttons on campus. He wanted to make the College more inclusive and accessible for all. My favorite memory is when he sat with one of our friends at lunch and then helped walk him to class afterward.

As a shy child who stuttered, I did not even imagine that I would befriend Steven or join a Disability Pride Club in college. In elementary school, I was content with walking slowly and standing in the back of the line and elsewhere to follow others around since my disability tightens my leg muscles and impairs my coordination.

Because of the challenges I’ve had and continue to experience, my desire to be still and listen to others’ stories in Disability Pride Club may be what led me to enjoy studying theology as I continually strive to become a stronger advocate for the disability and LGBTQIA+ communities. Last year, I attended a homiletics lecture given by Dr. Kathy Black, who is a disability theologian and Chair of Homiletics and Liturgics at Claremont School of Theology. I learned that some Christians in Church history believed that having a disability was a sin and that disabled people should not show themselves in public. This could be because of the passage from Leviticus 21:16-24 in which God said that people with deformities were not permitted in His Temple. Yet, in response to a question from His disciples about the spiritual state of a disabled man, Jesus said that the man’s disability was not a sin (John 9:3) and that God affirms people with disabilities just as they are as part of the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:22-26). I believe Jesus feels the same about eunuchs (Matthew 19), a possible reference to LGBTQIA+ people as well.

Instead of telling people to change, suppress, or hide who God created them to be, I believe it would be best to embrace the new knowledge we have learned from the field of biblical scholarship and advocate for the full affirmation of LGBTQIA+ people, including those in the disability community. By doing so, we can base our theology on a correct interpretation of Scripture that properly bears good fruit and reflects the love of God. I am so excited about a new, informative documentary coming out this year called 1946, which encourages us to move forward in this way!

When LGBTQIA+ people are fully affirmed in the Church and elsewhere, they bear witness to God’s creativity and the variety of ways in which fruits of the Spirit like love, joy, and kindness can be expressed to others. Similarly, people with disabilities may experience gender, sexuality, and life differently because of their diverse bodies and minds. I think the intersectionality of the disabled and LGBTQIA+ experience is something we should celebrate! 

In conclusion, my hope and prayer is that we would seek to foster the kind of love and pride for others that Steven exemplified in his daily life, and that in turn, we would continue to advocate for a more inclusive, accessible, and unified Church where all people, especially those part of the disability and LGBTQIA+ communities, are affirmed and celebrated for who they are. I know we can do it with God’s help. As Scripture says in the book of Galatians: “So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.”

The Press & Palestine: The Bad, The Ugly...and a Shift?

For decades, we have seen an extreme Israeli/Zionist bias in press coverage of Israel/Palestine. Israeli hasbara (propaganda) has been the nearly universal message in mainstream media. How has that been accomplished so effectively? In what ways does the press present a dishonest and unjust depiction of Israeli oppression and Palestinian resistance?

In recent years, we are beginning to see occasional positive changes, where Palestinian perspectives and voices are heard and Israel's crimes are more honestly reported. Where are we seeing these shifting norms and how widespread are they? What factors may have contributed to changes in coverage of Israel/Palestine?

What can we do, as individuals and as a movement, to achieve more honest and justice-oriented media coverage of Israeli colonialism and apartheid and the Palestinian people's liberation struggle?

Join MFSA, United Methodists for Kairos Response (UMKR), and our speakers on Wed Sept 14th at 1pm ET/ 10am PT for a webinar titled,"The Press & Palestine: The Bad, The Ugly...and a Shift?"

Speakers:

MARIAM BARGHOUTI is a Palestinian writer, journalist, commentator, and policy analyst based in Ramallah, Palestine. She is the Senior Palestine Correspondent at Mondoweiss. Her reporting has been featured in the New York Times, the Guardian, Newsweek, The Intercept, CNN, amongst others. Barghouti is also a policy analyst for the Palestinian think-tank, Al-Shabaka and has contributed to various books and anthologies including I found Myself in Palestine.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Barghouti obtained a BA in English Literature and Language at Birzeit University in Palestine and an MSc in Sociology and Global Change at the University of Edinburgh. She has consulted in the public and private sectors in monitoring and evaluation as well as context analysis and risk mitigation for humanitarian and development aid missions in countries such as Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, as well as in Palestine. Her research focuses on historical relationships with social structures and hierarchies. Her political analysis focuses on the interplay between social, economic, political, and health dynamics.

LAURA ALBAST is a Palestinian-American journalist, media analyst and activist. She is currently the Senior Editor of Digital Strategy and Communications at the Institute for Palestine Studies-USA in Washington DC. Her publications and appearances include The Washington Post, The New Arab, Aljazeera, Doha News, TRT World, KPFA, and other outlets. She is an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement, and a coordinator with the Palestine Writes Literature Festival.

Albast is an accomplished researcher focused on public diplomacy and media governance in the Middle East and Northern Africa. A skilled Arabic/English translator, she has contributed to dozens of projects in video, audio, and print including Bloomberg and The Nation. She obtained a BA in Political Studies and Communications from the American University of Beirut and an MA in International Affairs and Journalism from Boston University.

Reject U.S. Support of the Marcos Dynasty:
An educational series on the 50th anniversary of martial law

International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines-US (ICHRP-US) is hosting an educational series this August-September to prepare for protesting U.S. support of the Marcos Dynasty this upcoming September.

September 21, 2022 will mark the 50th anniversary of Ferdinand Marcos' Declaration of Martial Law. "Martial Law ushered in an era during the Marcos I Regime that resulted in killings, arrests, torture and disappearances. The United States knowingly and directly supported it. Now, the son of the infamous dictator sits as the acting President of the Philippines.

Activists expect the human rights situation to only further deteriorate under Marcos Jr., with Sara Duterte at his side as Vice President. Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Martial Law in September, Sara Duterte is confirmed to visit the UN General Assembly in September, and Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is expected to also join."

Participate in ICHRP-US's educational series this September to learn more about this important issue and learn how you can take action this month!  

A New Heaven & New Earth:
A Call to Reckoning, Healing, Reimagining

The U.S. chapter of the World Student Christian Federation is calling Christian students, young adults, chaplains, and ecumenical leaders to "join together across campuses, denominations and national boundaries for a time of worship, prayer, Bible study, social analysis, conversation, and strategic planning to reckon with the moral injustices of our time, including poverty, white supremacy, empire, and ecological devastation; to build community for the journey together toward healing; and to reimagine a new world, a new heaven and earth, and explore our role in bringing about that vision."

Their conference "A New Heaven and New Earth" will be from September 15-18, 2022 at Princeton University. "The theme comes from Revelation 21:1,  'Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.' Indian author Arundhati Roy has suggested that this time of intersecting global pandemics might be a portal, a gateway between one world and the next, if we are ready to fight for it." September 1st is the last day to register!  

The World Student Christian Federation-US, "part of a global network of over 100 student movements around the world, is organizing a movement of Christian students in the US who will live out their faith in this pivotal moment, this Kairos time, through a community that is radically inclusive, globally engaged, and grounded in prophetic Biblical and theological traditions." 

Access the conference schedule here. Register for the conference here. 

Harvest of Justice 2022: Child Labor in Agriculture

As Labor Day approaches, we invite you to join MFSA and National Farm Worker Ministry (NFWM) in the Harvest of Justice.  Falling between Labor Day and World Food Day, this year's Harvest of Justice focuses on Child Labor in Agriculture.  

Take this Harvest of Justice season to educate yourself and your community on farm worker's rights and take action to reduce child labor in agriculture. "We urge people of faith and conscience to help reduce child labor in agriculture. This Harvest of Justice, stand in solidarity with farm workers and help make a difference in the living and working conditions of farm workers and their families."

Access weekly resources that include multiple videos and informative flyers in English and Spanish as well as a social media toolkit here. You can also now sign up for the Child Labor in Agriculture webinar on September 27th at 7 pm EST. 

Now's the Time for Action

Here are a few ways you can seek justice and work for broad systemic change:

1. Tell Congress to protect children in agriculture through co-sponsoring the Children's Act for Responsible Employment and Farm Safety (CARE Act). 
2. Tell your Senator to pass the Equality Act so that all people have comprehensive, nationwide protection against discrimination.
3. Contact your Senators and demand they vote yes on the Women's Health Protection Act. 
4. Donate to local abortion funds and providers
5. Send a message to your legislators in Congress to speak out publicly and also urge the Biden administration to press Israel not to fulfill its plan for ethnic cleansing and destruction in Masafer Yatta. 
6. Take action to support gun safety legislation that will help end gun violence. 
7. #Standwithblackgirls and encourage your legislators to pass the Pushout Act H.R. 5325 (IH) – Ending Punitive, Unfair, School-based Harm that is Overt and Unresponsive to Trauma Act of 2019
8. Call on Congress to pass an Afghan Adjustment Act which will help keep families together and ensure lasting protection for at-risk Afghans. 
9. Join a National Nonviolent Moral Direct Action Call-In in calling the offices of Senator Manchin, Senator Sinema, Senator McConnell, and Senator Schumer. 
10. Write your Representative to join Representative Susan Wild and urge the Administration to hold officials responsible for grave human rights violations in the Philippines accountable through targeted sanctions.

In Case You Missed It

1. Access the latest recording and resources from MFSA and UMKR's webinar, "Influencing our Elected Leaders and Holding them Accountable: Power of the People." 
2. Access all five sessions in the Stealing the Earth webinar series, and explore the Dismantling the Doctrine resource list. 
3. Read the 2021 MFSA Annual Report