UUSC at GA, Salt Lake City!

June and over 3,000 UUs were on the move? It must have been that time again — UUA General Assembly!

This year, UUSC offered an exciting line-up of workshops and educational programs, connecting UUs to the power of partnership and the solidarity that comes with human rights activism.

Partnership is the primary way that UUSC works and organizes. So, out of appreciation for all that we gain through partnership, UUSC shined a light at G.A. on our eye-to-eye partnership model and all 63 of our amazing partners in the United States and around the world.

Join hands with UUSC at our booth

Walking into the UUSC booth (#718) in the G.A. Exhibit Hall, visitors met our friendly UUSC staffers and explored a world of beautiful color and design. They found baskets woven by women in Darfur, rugs and pillows handmade by Afghan refugees, pecans produced by women in Georgia.

What did these goods have in common? They were all made by UUSC partners, and during GA, they were on sale at our booth. Purchases benefited UUSC programs — and connected visitors in a tangible way to some of the people around the world whose lives have been touched by UUSC.

Also on sale — to help people show off their human-rights colors — were UUSC's new stainless-steel water bottles. These bottles are not only eco- and labor-friendly, they also say in bold letters, Water is a Human Right. They announce to the world that you are a defender of the human right to water! At $15 apiece, they also support UUSC and our work to advance water justice!

Other happenings at our booth

• A short film about UUSC-UUA efforts to ensure a just recovery on the Gulf Coast. See the trailer here.
• A petition calling for an independent commission of inquiry on U.S. torture.
• La Gotita, the giant bright-blue mascot of our partner FENTAP.

Saturday Was UUSC's Big Day at GA

UUSC events at G.A. kicked off on Saturday morning with a 9:40 plenary speech by UUSC President Charlie Clements. Next, Clements led our first workshop, Stories of Joy and Inspiration, giving UUs a closer look at some of our global partners around the world — people who inspire and motivate us in our work every day.

Environmental activists caught Environmental Work Is Justice Work, with UUSC's Patricia Jones, the UUA's Kat Liu, and the UU Ministry for Earth's Claudia Kern. UUs gained tools for strengthening environmental advocacy and spiritual practice in their communities.

Then, Unitarian Universalism's own human-rights luminary, Rev. Dr. William F. Schulz, gave a special talk, Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Its Legacy and Next Sixty Years. Schulz explained how the UDHR has had a greater impact on modern history than any other single written document. Click here to catch a glimpse of what this workshop might have looked like.