Commit2Respond
is a coalition of Unitarian Universalists and other people of faith
and conscience working for climate justice. Launched at the People's
Climate March in New York City on September 21, 2014, (where A2U2 was
represented by 8 of our members) Commit2Respond seeks to unite our
many diverse efforts for climate justice so that we can expand our
partnerships and deepen our impact.
Climate
justice
means we recognize the central role inequality plays in the current
crisis. Marginalized communities—low-income, people of color,
Native, and/or non-industrialized—are often the first to experience
the effects of climate change and environmental degradation.
Commit2Respond envisions a future where the most vulnerable are
protected from these dire consequences.
From
World Water Day on March 22 through Earth Day on April 22,
Commit2Respond is sponsoring a Climate
Justice Month.
Individuals,
families, households, groups, congregations, and organizations are
invited to participate in a
monthlong period of reflection, education, and commitment. You can
sign up online as an individual or family to get mailings and
information. I hope we can feel connected to these larger efforts that
resonate with the important work happening in our own church, and
continue with our efforts.
Climate
justice in our state makes me think about the lawsuit currently
pending between the Penobscot Nation and the State of Maine
concerning whether or not the Penobscot Nation has jurisdiction over
their part of the Penobscot River. The state is trying to say that
their reservation of many islands on the Penobscot River only
includes the land, not the river in that area. This despite the fact
that the Land Claims Settlement of 1980 specifically includes their
right to fish. As one Penobscot remarked, you can't get many fish on
dry land. They are a river people, and along with fish find many
herbs and medicinal plants in the river.
It
is heartbreaking to me that white society continues to steal from
Indigenous peoples day after day, year after year. Towns and
corporations upriver from Indian Island have joined the state in the
legal action, for fear that they might have to stop discharging
pollutants into the river. As we seek to foster a beneficial
relationship with the earth, one of the best ways to go forward is to
partner with Indigenous peoples and be allies to them in their
efforts to protect their land and water.
The
good news of this week—President
Obama vetoed the Keystone XL pipeline bill. More bad local news—the
city of South Portland is being sued by Portland Pipeline Corporation
because of the Clean Skies ordinance they passed. The issue of
climate change and our relationship to the environment is perhaps the
most critical issue we face today. It is big, and can seem
overwhelming. So we need to stay connected to others who care and
who act, to keep our spirits energized.
Climate
change issues are also one of the three focus areas of the Maine UU
State Advocacy Network, which will be our share the plate recipient
starting March 8 for four weeks.
Another way to stay connected and act on our values.
