October: Stop Ravi's Deportation! Plus Resources for Justice GA & DREAM Sabbath!

Dear Immigration Justice Leaders,

This month’s issue features resources to help your congregation prepare for Justice General Assembly 2012 and beyond.  Read on to learn more about Cooking Together, an ‘open-source’ project with resources and a blog, our Immigration as a Moral Issue curriculum, and our recent webinar on immigration for congregational leaders.  We have an inspiring story from a congregation in Duluth, MN, too.

We’re also asking everyone to take action to halt Ravi Ragbir's deportation.  Ravi is an organizer with the New York New Sanctuary Movement who has worked with our congregations in New York in fighting ICE's inhumane immigration policies.  Now he's in danger of being ripped from his family and deported from the US.  Please sign the petition to keep Ravi in the US -- and spread the word.  Thank you!

As always, we hope you’ll get in touch and share what is happening in your congregation and community.

In faith,

Audra, Kat, Dan, Meredith, Susan, and Craig
UUA Witness Ministries staff

Congregational Best Practice: Immigrant Rights in Duluth, MN

In March of this year, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth, MN, as part of the Duluth Immigration Rights Coalition, drafted an Immigrant Rights Resolution for the city that publicly opposes Arizona’s SB1070 and a similar legislation in Minnesota called MN House File 3830. Organizing the community and putting pressure on Duluth City Council members, UUCD and the Duluth Immigration Rights Coalition attended the City Council meeting where they spoke in support of the resolution.

UUCD congregant Susana Pellayo-Woodward testified before elected officials.  A native of Mexico, Pellayo-Woodward said: “This country has taught me that I have a voice, and I have the power to engage in public discourse so all people are treated with dignity, justice and respect.” The resolution passed by a 5-3 vote.

On Sunday Oct 23, there will be a Recognition Celebration to honor the Duluth City Council's passage of the Immigrant Rights Resolution.

Cooking Together: Recipes for Immigration Justice Work

“Cooking Together” is an open source project that includes the UUA's Immigration website which houses a growing library of resources and a blog, where people of all ages who are passionate about engagement with immigration justice work are invited to share, create and adapt faith development materials to help congregations faithfully consider and respond to the call for immigration justice. Have materials or ideas to share or resources you are seeking? Contact Gail Forsyth-Vail, Adult Programs Director (adultprograms@uua.org)

Immigration as a Moral Issue - Six Week Introductory Curriculum

Getting ready for Justice GA? Many UU congregations are using the Immigration as a Moral Issue curriculum which covers topics such as Understanding the Causes of Migration, History of Immigration in the U.S., Economics of (Im)migration, Security, Enforcement, and Human Rights. Find it at http://www.uua.org/immigration/moral/guide/index.shtml and let us know you’re using it! Email Kat Liu at kliu@uua.org.

Webinar on Immigration for Congregational Leaders

Strengthen your immigrant justice ministry, connect with other UUs and partners, and help prepare your congregation for Justice GA 2012!

UU Statewide Advocacy Networks, Standing on the Side of Love and our partners, New Sanctuary Movement and No More Deaths, discussed:

• Immigration Policy Update (New Sanctuary Movement)
• Actions We Can Take to Curb Human Rights Abuses of Migrants (No More Deaths)
• Best Practices for Engaging Congregations (UU Statewide Advocacy Networks)
• Q & A Discussion

Download the webinar presentation and audio file here.

DREAM Sabbath in October

This October, more than 50 Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations are participating in Dream Sabbath, organized by the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (of which the UUA is a member) and Sen. Dick Durbin, lead sponsor of the DREAM Act. On October 6, Rev. Craig Roshaven participated in an Interfaith Dream Sabbath on Capitol Hill. Learn more and see the list of fifty participating congregations.

ICE: Keep Ravi Ragbir in the US with his family and community!

Longtime resident, community activist, father, and husband Ravi Ragbir faces permanent exile from his life in the U.S. A 15-year green card holder, Ravi has worked as an organizer to protect the rights of all immigrants, including through the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City. But he is now at risk of deportation to Trinidad—without a single meaningful hearing in immigration court—because of a single, decade-old conviction.

Ravi experienced the worst of the deportation system. An immigration judge ordered him to be deported without considering any of the evidence of his character and strong community ties. Ravi was detained for years throughout his immigration case and was transferred to an immigration jail in Alabama, far away from his family and community.

Sign the petition to keep Ravi in the United States!