British Unitarians have given their support to the “Robin Hood Tax” campaign to establish a tax levy on international bank transactions to create a fund to combat international poverty and fight climate change. It will also raise funds to stop cuts in vital public services.
The Robin Hood Tax is based on an original idea by the economist James Tobin. A tax of 0.05% on the billions of pounds sloshing around the global finance system every day through transactions such as foreign exchange, derivative trading and share deals can raise hundreds of billions of pounds a year.
The British General Assembly is one of dozens of voluntary sector, trade union and faith organisations who are supporting the campaign.
Ideally the campaign would like to see an international system of transaction taxes, but there is no need to wait. Individual countries – and the European Union – can easily get started now. Rather than wait for international agreement, it is hoped to build the Robin Hood Tax country by country.
The Robin Hood Tax campaign is in touch with similar campaigns in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and in particular the USA, and with groups operating at EU and global level. All are at different stages of development, and it would be especially good to see more campaigning in the global south.
It would be valuable to know if other members of ICUU are currently involved in this campaign or are interested in working with us on it. This could help stimulate and better co-ordinate campaigning and show solidarity within our global Movement
If you wish further information on the Robin Hood Tax http://robinhoodtax.org.uk/
Please do feel free to get in touch.
Derek McAuley
Chief Officer
General Assembly Unitarian and Free Christian Churches
Dmcauley@unitarian.org.uk
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Wednesday, 24 March 2010
New ICUU Information Resource
The International Council of Unitarians and Universalists (ICUU) has launched a new email mailing list for the circulation of announcements about ICUU as well as news about developments in Unitarianism and Unitarian Universalism in other countries.
It is not a discussion list and emails will only be posted by ICUU staff.
Subscribing to the list is a great way to keep up with international liberal religion and ICUU programs and activities.
Anyone is welcome to be a subscriber.
To get this information delivered directly to your email inbox, sign up at:
http://www.icuu.net/events/mailing_list.html.
It is not a discussion list and emails will only be posted by ICUU staff.
Subscribing to the list is a great way to keep up with international liberal religion and ICUU programs and activities.
Anyone is welcome to be a subscriber.
To get this information delivered directly to your email inbox, sign up at:
http://www.icuu.net/events/mailing_list.html.
Monday, 22 March 2010
ICUU Presence at UUA GA in Minneapolis
ICUU Executive Secretary Steve Dick and Program Coordinator Jill McAllister will represent ICUU at the 2010 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association from June 23 to 28 at the Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
Attendees can meet Jill and Steve at the ICUU booth in the UU International Organizations Village (Booth #227) in the exhibit area at the Assembly.
ICUU will host a number of special events in the Village including a live quiz show on International U*U ABCs (win a t-shirt), Face to Faith Encounters and a challenging session on How Not to Be A U*U Tourist. Special guests from U*U groups in other countries will also make an appearance.
The schedule of events and other announcements can be found on a special website set up at www.UUinternational.org.
ICUU will share the International Village at the UUA General Assembly with the International Convocation of UU Women, Project Harvest Hope, UU Global Aids Coalition, UU Partner Churches Council, UU United Nations Office and the International Resources Office of the UUA.
Attendees can meet Jill and Steve at the ICUU booth in the UU International Organizations Village (Booth #227) in the exhibit area at the Assembly.
ICUU will host a number of special events in the Village including a live quiz show on International U*U ABCs (win a t-shirt), Face to Faith Encounters and a challenging session on How Not to Be A U*U Tourist. Special guests from U*U groups in other countries will also make an appearance.
The schedule of events and other announcements can be found on a special website set up at www.UUinternational.org.
ICUU will share the International Village at the UUA General Assembly with the International Convocation of UU Women, Project Harvest Hope, UU Global Aids Coalition, UU Partner Churches Council, UU United Nations Office and the International Resources Office of the UUA.
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
President to give John Relly Beard Lecture in UK
ICUU President Brian Kiely will deliver the John Relly Beard lecture on the 8th of April as part of the Annual Meetings of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom.
The lecture is sponsored by the professional body of Unitarian ministers in Great Britain and is in memory of the Rev John Relly Beard, a famous forebear responsible for many accomplishments including the establishment of Unitarian College Manchester.
Beard had an early interest in liberal religion abroad and he edited a book of essays on international Unitarianism in 1846 titled "Unitarianism Exhibited in its Actual Condition". (Available on line at http://www.archive.org/details/unitarianismexhi00bear)
Kiely’s subject for this year’s address will be “The Center and the Circle: The Challenge of International Ministry” and it is the first time the lecture will be delivered by someone from outside the United Kingdom.
When asked to describe his subject, he remarked: "Unitarianism is not really a global faith. Rather it is a collection of indigenous expressions of the liberal religious spirit. That truth combined with economic and varying educational conditions around the globe make international Unitarian ministry challenging indeed."
The ICUU President will be a guest of the British Unitarians at their meetings and he welcome the opportunity to learn more about how they see their role in the international liberal religious community. The British General Assembly is a founding member of ICUU. More information about Unitarians in the UK can be found at www.unitarian.org.uk.
The lecture is sponsored by the professional body of Unitarian ministers in Great Britain and is in memory of the Rev John Relly Beard, a famous forebear responsible for many accomplishments including the establishment of Unitarian College Manchester.
Beard had an early interest in liberal religion abroad and he edited a book of essays on international Unitarianism in 1846 titled "Unitarianism Exhibited in its Actual Condition". (Available on line at http://www.archive.org/details/unitarianismexhi00bear)
Kiely’s subject for this year’s address will be “The Center and the Circle: The Challenge of International Ministry” and it is the first time the lecture will be delivered by someone from outside the United Kingdom.
When asked to describe his subject, he remarked: "Unitarianism is not really a global faith. Rather it is a collection of indigenous expressions of the liberal religious spirit. That truth combined with economic and varying educational conditions around the globe make international Unitarian ministry challenging indeed."
The ICUU President will be a guest of the British Unitarians at their meetings and he welcome the opportunity to learn more about how they see their role in the international liberal religious community. The British General Assembly is a founding member of ICUU. More information about Unitarians in the UK can be found at www.unitarian.org.uk.
Monday, 22 February 2010
Ugandan BGLT Rights Advocates Organize at Valentine's Day Conference
On Valentine's Day 2010, more than two-hundred Ugandans who are bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender (BGLT) gathered in Kampala for the “Standing on the Side of Love: Reimagining Valentine’s Day” conference. The conference served to organize a response to the anti-gay bill that will soon be voted on by the Ugandan Parliament and to provide support for Ugandans who are facing persecution. Ugandan Unitarian Universalist (UU) minister Rev. Mark Kiyimba convened the conference in conjunction with Spectrum Uganda and other grassroots BGLT community organizations.
Many of the conference participants were young adults. Risking arrest and imprisonment, the courageous activists at this conference engaged in hours of discussion. One organizer described it as a “Pride Parade in a closet.” But the subject matter was serious.
Conference participants called for the complete decriminalization of homosexuality and full access to services, human rights, and protection by the state. Sessions included talks by religious and human rights activists. The keynote speaker was Anglican Bishop and Integrity Uganda President Christopher Ssenyojo, a champion ally of BGLT rights who spoke on the theme of love and justice. Bishop Christopher was formerly exiled from Uganda and continues to offer Christian sanctuary to the BGLT community.
The conference culminated in a petition for equality that will be presented to the speaker of the house or a local member of parliament and the conference has promised to bring legal action against the state if the bill is passed. Organizers stated that a procession had been planned to deliver the petition on foot, but as one organizer put it, “If we walk through the streets we will surely be stoned.”
Pastor Kiyimba, whose congregation includes many BGLT people, offered this statement about the conference:
I cannot stand by and watch as my community is exterminated. If the bill finally passes into law, our church will go to court and sue the government, because some provisions of the bill contravene the Ugandan constitution.
What this work means to me is that my church can take a leading role in liberating the sexual minorities in Uganda. This work will benefit almost everyone, but we wanted our people to have freedom. The wider view is that the bill can put people in danger, lying about them. People should have freedom of worship and of relationship. The fact remains that BGLT people exist. They are in Uganda.
BGLT people are all ages and types of people. My dream for Uganda is a Uganda that would look like any other country where all people are equal on all sides of the law: black, white, gay, straight, rich, poor. Mandela identified South Africa as a vulnerable nation because there are so many different people, and all of them live side by side. That is what I would like to see in Uganda. It will take a while but I believe it will come.
Many of the conference participants were young adults. Risking arrest and imprisonment, the courageous activists at this conference engaged in hours of discussion. One organizer described it as a “Pride Parade in a closet.” But the subject matter was serious.
Conference participants called for the complete decriminalization of homosexuality and full access to services, human rights, and protection by the state. Sessions included talks by religious and human rights activists. The keynote speaker was Anglican Bishop and Integrity Uganda President Christopher Ssenyojo, a champion ally of BGLT rights who spoke on the theme of love and justice. Bishop Christopher was formerly exiled from Uganda and continues to offer Christian sanctuary to the BGLT community.
The conference culminated in a petition for equality that will be presented to the speaker of the house or a local member of parliament and the conference has promised to bring legal action against the state if the bill is passed. Organizers stated that a procession had been planned to deliver the petition on foot, but as one organizer put it, “If we walk through the streets we will surely be stoned.”
Pastor Kiyimba, whose congregation includes many BGLT people, offered this statement about the conference:
I cannot stand by and watch as my community is exterminated. If the bill finally passes into law, our church will go to court and sue the government, because some provisions of the bill contravene the Ugandan constitution.
What this work means to me is that my church can take a leading role in liberating the sexual minorities in Uganda. This work will benefit almost everyone, but we wanted our people to have freedom. The wider view is that the bill can put people in danger, lying about them. People should have freedom of worship and of relationship. The fact remains that BGLT people exist. They are in Uganda.
BGLT people are all ages and types of people. My dream for Uganda is a Uganda that would look like any other country where all people are equal on all sides of the law: black, white, gay, straight, rich, poor. Mandela identified South Africa as a vulnerable nation because there are so many different people, and all of them live side by side. That is what I would like to see in Uganda. It will take a while but I believe it will come.
Tuesday, 9 February 2010
Fighting the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Uganda is preparing to take a strong and courageous stand against the "Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009." This hate-filled legislation proposed in the Ugandan Parliament would criminalize homosexuality and enforce penalties of life imprisonment and capital punishment against gays and lesbians. BGLT allies would also face drastic punishments.
The UU congregation in Kampala is one of the few religious organizations in Uganda that is welcoming and supportive of the BGLT community. During a visit with the congregation in 2008 UUA representatives met with both gay and straight Ugandans who witnessed to the terror that the Ugandan BGLT community faces, and the importance of the congregation's support. This visit occurred many months before the current legislation was proposed.
Ugandan UUs plan to hold a conference on February 14, 2010 - with the following goals:
• To achieve permanent, fundamental, real equality for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people through affecting fundamental changes in the attitudes of society,
• To defeat discriminatory legislation and exclusionary policies and practices,
• To build a strong social movement of lesbian, gay and bisexual people with a fully representative and activist Base.
The conference will include programs about Promoting Equality, Access to Justice, Research, and Lobbying/Advocacy. More than 200 Ugandans from various faith traditions are expected to attend.
Unitarians and Unitarian Universalists have been invited by the leaders of the UU Church of Uganda to spread the word about this important event. And, we are also asked to remember the courageous steps that our Ugandan brothers and sisters in faith are taking. Your generosity will make the goals of the conference a reality, and provide for the follow-up work in the weeks and months after it. Will you or your congregation "Stand on the Side of Love" - Globally - by supporting this front-line battle against Hate? The International Council of Unitarian Universalists is handling donations for this important work.
To make a donation, please use the links on the homepage of the ICUU Web Site at www.icuu.net
The UU congregation in Kampala is one of the few religious organizations in Uganda that is welcoming and supportive of the BGLT community. During a visit with the congregation in 2008 UUA representatives met with both gay and straight Ugandans who witnessed to the terror that the Ugandan BGLT community faces, and the importance of the congregation's support. This visit occurred many months before the current legislation was proposed.
Ugandan UUs plan to hold a conference on February 14, 2010 - with the following goals:
• To achieve permanent, fundamental, real equality for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people through affecting fundamental changes in the attitudes of society,
• To defeat discriminatory legislation and exclusionary policies and practices,
• To build a strong social movement of lesbian, gay and bisexual people with a fully representative and activist Base.
The conference will include programs about Promoting Equality, Access to Justice, Research, and Lobbying/Advocacy. More than 200 Ugandans from various faith traditions are expected to attend.
Unitarians and Unitarian Universalists have been invited by the leaders of the UU Church of Uganda to spread the word about this important event. And, we are also asked to remember the courageous steps that our Ugandan brothers and sisters in faith are taking. Your generosity will make the goals of the conference a reality, and provide for the follow-up work in the weeks and months after it. Will you or your congregation "Stand on the Side of Love" - Globally - by supporting this front-line battle against Hate? The International Council of Unitarian Universalists is handling donations for this important work.
To make a donation, please use the links on the homepage of the ICUU Web Site at www.icuu.net
Monday, 25 January 2010
Prayer for the People of Haiti from Nigeria
Matimoju Femi 24 January at 19:00
Lord, I just want to say THANK YOU, because this morning I woke up and knew where my children were. Because this morning my home was still standing, because this morning I am not crying because my husband, my child, my brother or sister needs to be buried out from underneath a pile of concrete, because this morning I was able to drink a glass of water, because this morning I was able to turn on the light, because this morning I was able to take a shower, because this morning I was not planning a funeral, but most of all I thank you this morning because I still have life and a voice to cry out for the people of Haiti. Lord I cry out to you, the one that makes the impossible, possible, the one that turns darkness in to light, I cry out that you give those mothers strength, that you give them peace that surpasses all understanding, that you may open the streets so that help can come, that you may provide doctors, nurses, food, water, and all that they need in a blink of an eye. For all those that have lost family members, give them peace, give them hope, give them courage to continue to go on! Protect the children and shield them with your power.. I pray all this in the name of Jesus!!! To all my friends please continue to forward this so that we can pray together for the people in Haiti. We here are truly blessed!!!!!. Matimoju Femi...First Unitarian, Lagos Nigeria.
Lord, I just want to say THANK YOU, because this morning I woke up and knew where my children were. Because this morning my home was still standing, because this morning I am not crying because my husband, my child, my brother or sister needs to be buried out from underneath a pile of concrete, because this morning I was able to drink a glass of water, because this morning I was able to turn on the light, because this morning I was able to take a shower, because this morning I was not planning a funeral, but most of all I thank you this morning because I still have life and a voice to cry out for the people of Haiti. Lord I cry out to you, the one that makes the impossible, possible, the one that turns darkness in to light, I cry out that you give those mothers strength, that you give them peace that surpasses all understanding, that you may open the streets so that help can come, that you may provide doctors, nurses, food, water, and all that they need in a blink of an eye. For all those that have lost family members, give them peace, give them hope, give them courage to continue to go on! Protect the children and shield them with your power.. I pray all this in the name of Jesus!!! To all my friends please continue to forward this so that we can pray together for the people in Haiti. We here are truly blessed!!!!!. Matimoju Femi...First Unitarian, Lagos Nigeria.
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