On the second day of the conference, Rob Hardies, the Senior Minister of All Souls Church, gave a talk that was about voting rights and some history of why All Souls is so committed to this issue. A former Associate Minister, James Reeb (pictured above), was killed in Selma Alabama in 1965. He was demonstrating for voting rights for African Americans. After eating at an integrated restaurant, he was killed by four white men. Reeb was one of many who have died or were injured fighting for voting rights and yet, today, many (especially minorities) are still denied the right to vote. We have work to do so that everyone has a vote.
Another highlight of the day was hearing Linda Sansour whose talk was titled "No Time for Bystanders." If you don't know who she is, she is credited as the co-founder of the 2017 Women's March the day after Trump's inauguration. The title of her talk was apt--she presented reasons to act for love-driven justice. She gave several concrete suggestions of what we can do now:
- Write notes to neighbors, saying I am here for you and what can I do to help?
- Volunteer at a food bank or help in deliveries
- Insist on quality health care for all that is not connected to employment
- Insist that essential workers get personal protective equipment and a living wage, including hazard pay
- Support the US postal service because small business depends on it, we need the option to vote by mail and many of us just need it. One way is to buy stamps and send letters.
- Tell your representative that the next stimulus package needs accountability, must get money to marginalized populations
That's enough for this post. I have more about the second day, but will post it separately. I just can't possibly cover it all.
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