Legislation to enact the first increase in nearly 10 years in the federal minimum wage passed the House of Representatives overwhelmingly this week as the new Congress got down to business. But the celebration over this major victory for human rights advocates may be short-lived. Now, the action turns to the Senate, where there already is a movement afoot to offer amendments that would have the effect of killing the long-overdue hike in the minimum wage.

By the end of the week, Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, reportedly was ready to amend the measure to provide tax cuts for small businesses. This is what President Bush said he would need for him to approve the increase. Last year, a federal minimum wage increase died in Congress because it was linked in the same bill with unrelated tax cuts for the wealthy.

The president’s latest tax-cutting scheme comes in the wake of the clear Election Day messages delivered in six states where voters overwhelmingly approved minimum wage increases. A broad-based coalition of labor, faith, and community organizations – with support from business interests – carried the day with persuasive analysis that a modest minimum wage increase would not harm small businesses. In Colorado, a Unitarian Universalist minister coauthored an op-ed in the Denver Post that argued forcefully that a minimum wage increase was the right thing to do, economically as well as morally.

With a Senate vote possible as early as next week, let your senators know that you expect them to approve a “clean” minimum wage increase. Keep the momentum for progressive change alive!

Innocent until proven guilty. It has a nice ring to it. But it’s a hollow ring for those at Guantanamo Bay. For five years, innocent until proven guilty has been a battle cry of human rights defenders against Guantanamo – and an ironic statement for those within its walls.

Last night, in protests around the world, people joined together in calling for the close of Guantanamo. UUSC staff members joined with Amnesty International to hold a vigil in front of Cambridge City Hall in Cambridge, Mass.

Today, more than 400 detainees, none of whom have been tried, are captives of Guantanamo. They are the lost victims of a war with unclear goals and even less clear means.

And, these aren’t ordinary prisoners. Unlike citizens on trial in this country, these prisoners are not innocent until proven guilty. Last year, Congress stripped the right of habeas corpus, or the ability to challenge the legality of detention in a court of law, from those detainees at Guantanamo. What that means is, essentially, those prisoners are guilty until proven innocent.

The legislation went one step further – it eliminated the right to habeas corpus for all non-citizens whom the executive branch declared to be “unlawful enemy combatants.” In the United States alone, that could be any one of the 11 million non-citizens who live on our shores.

Supporters of the bill claim that this is the price we pay to win the “War on Terror.” But at what cost? Stripped of their rights, charged with nothing, forced to exist for five years within the walls of Guantanamo . . . would our administration still be convinced of the merits of this price?

It’s only the price they are willing for others to pay.

The prisoners of Guantanamo have been languishing for over five years. They have missed the births of children and the deaths of loved ones. They have been stripped of their right to recourse, and treated as “The Enemy.” They are the price we are paying.

Some say that winning the “War on Terror” is worth any cost. The cost in this case is lost innocence.

Well, the worst-kept secret of the new year is officially out: George Bush is convinced that more troops and more money can pull a victory out of the fire in Iraq.

It isn't hard to understand. If there is one chance in 20 that this will work, then it is a simple choice for him. That 1 in 20 bet certainly looks a lot better than withdrawing in defeat. In any event, an escalation of the war will probably mean that the next president will be the one to evacuate the Green Zone.

At least some of the U.S. trainers working with the Iraqi army doubt that 20,000 new troops will make a difference where it most matters: In the ability of the Iraqi army to take over this war and stabilize their own country. While I don't agree with army trainers on everything, it is hard to argue with them on this one.

The Democratic leadership in Congress seems ready to fight Bush on this escalation, and some on the Republican side are interested enough in getting re-elected to join them. Bravo! The larger question is whether or not they are ready to push for a plan to end this war. The signals are less clear on that one.

Regardless of the haze in D.C., people around the country seem ready to speak more clearly. The Win Without War coalition is using new and old media to organize a campaign to answer the Bush plan with an immediate and resounding NO! The coalition is not just demanding that no more troops go to Iraq . . . it also insists on a plan for a safe, secure withdrawal of U.S. troops by the end of 2007.

If you agree, go to the website put together for the No More Troops! campaign and enter your zip code. You'll be shown a list of events happening Thursday in your area. If there isn't one happening near you, organize one! There are more events listed in my area each time I go to the site. I note proudly that many Unitarian Universalist and other progressive congregations are hosting events.

Juicy Fruit. Altoids. Doublemint. Lifesavers. Countless numbers of these sweets are produced, packaged, and sold by workers all around the world, following a path from mint farmers in Idaho to the stalls of street vendors in Indonesia and Brazil.

Wrigley’s, the well-known corporation that makes them, recently agreed to develop a new “supplier code of conduct,” as well as begin to audit their ingredient and packaging supply chain, and become transparent on progress related to overseas vendors.

These steps were stimulated by a recent shareholder resolution co-filed by Walden Asset Management and UUSC, and reflect a corporate advocacy strategy that strengthens human rights by moving companies to new levels of social responsibility.

To grasp the potential impact that accountable, responsible corporations could have in ensuring human and environmental rights, consider Wrigley’s “footprint,” which includes production facilities in 14 countries and offices in 36 countries. Wrigley’s brands -- including licorice candy in Sweden and Pim Pom lollipops in China and India -- are available in more than 180 countries, representing 97 percent of the global population. In 2005 alone, Wrigley’s netted $517 million in annual earnings, with over $4 billion in net sales. And they’re just one multinational corporation among thousands.

Wrigley’s recent strategic decision to close U.S.-based production facilities in Illinois and New Jersey and open a new factory in Silao, Mexico, also reflects the push-pull of an increasingly globalized economy. Wrigley’s represents both the scale, scope, and production trends of today’s multinational corporation. Their sign-on to a supplier code of conduct is an important step forward and reflects a growing trend by large corporations to invest new attention into how raw materials are derived, and how resulting product is produced and delivered.

It also demonstrates the kind of impact that consumers and shareholders can have in strengthening human and environmental rights through corporate advocacy. One of UUSC’s partners in this effort is the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility.

Jim Gunning, a chief architect of UUSC’s shareholder advocacy program and a leader at ICCR says, “This agreement by Wrigley to our demands is a win-win situation, and the full chain of Wrigley suppliers will become more socially accountable in the process.”

Now that’s something to chew on!

The gavel has been passed. We have Nancy Pelosi, our first woman Speaker of the House! At her invitation, I attended a worship service this morning for the incoming 110th Congress.

While the new leadership of the House read passages from the gospels and the Hebrew bible, Keith Ellison, the first (and only) Muslim member of Congress shared a passage from the Qur'an. Adam Putnam, a conservative Republican member, read a Maya Angelou poem while others shared prayers by Cesar Chavez and Thomas Jefferson.

It was a good way to start -- interfaith and bipartisan. That's what it is going to take to repair the damage of the last dozen years. We can take our first important steps in the first 100 hours (which starts next Tuesday). One way you can help is by responding to this UUSC action alert on minimum wage.

Let's live out our best values by winning big votes to increase the minimum wage, make prescription drugs and college tuition more affordable and fund alternative energy. Let's make some more history!

The beginning of the new year is, of course, a time to reflect on the one that has come before it, and inevitably with the turn of the calendar comes an avalanche of top ten lists. Movies, songs, news events — it’s in our nature to organize life so that we can make better sense of it.

Instead of compiling a list of year-in-review entertainment, Dahlia Lithwick at Slate has compiled a list of last year’s ten most outrageous civil liberties violations. The article, entitled “The Bill of Wrongs” is a sobering one — from the abuses at Guantanamo Bay to the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping to the Military Commissions Act of 2006 — they’re all here.

And perhaps it’s when you see an entire list of civil liberties abuses compiled in one place that you realize how dangerous it is to relinquish these rights one by one over time.

Over 200,000 lives were lost and over a million more were forever changed in the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 26, 2004. Two years later, recovery is far from complete, but survivors continue to rebuild their lives and find hope in the wake of tragedy.

The widespread destruction caused by the tsunami and the unprecedented, generous response of the world community has changed the face of global giving. Of the $13.5 billion raised, a large portion came from the general public. And those donations came in with extraordinary speed, enabling international agencies to respond quickly. UUSC, with the generous support of the Unitarian Universalist Association and so many people across the country and around the world, raised over $2 million to aid tsunami survivors.

In the immediate aftermath of the tsunami, however, it was local capacity that saved lives. Wherever we work, UUSC partners with local organizations that know best what is needed and how to respond. With our partners, we have focused our work specifically to help those people who are often excluded--in times of crises and in normal times--including Dalits, widows, and migrants. Helping the excluded rebuild their lives and claim their right to inclusion builds hope for a better future. Read more about our work.

Did you know that before lunchtime on the first work day of 2007, the CEOs of the top corporations have already made more money than a full-time minimum wage worker will make all year?!

A report released today by Americans United for Change documents this disturbing wage gap. The current Federal minimum wage is $5.15 per hour or $10,712 per year for a 40 hour work week. CEOs of the Fortune 100 corporations make approximately $17 million per year.

That's about $8,400 per hour. Do the math and you will see that the average Fortune 100 CEO makes $10,712 in less than two hours! To make it worse, the salaries for these CEOs increased by 25 percent in 2005 while the wages of minimum wage workers have been stagnant since 1997. In fact, the real value of the minimum wage is lower now than it has been since 1951!

Luckily, a new Congress will be sworn in this week. Soon-to-be-Speaker Nancy Pelosi is committed to calling a House vote to increase the minimum wage during her first 100 hours. It may happen as early as January 10. We're working with the Change America Now (CAN) campaign and Let Justice Roll to change the equation for working families. Happy New Year!