As detailed on the Commission for Social Witness website.

In response to the President's Report we express our appreciation of President Sinkford's attention to global issues, including his anticipated trip to Africa this fall. We also recall the admonitions of Patrick O'Neill at the Service of the Living Tradition. Alarmed that our global woods are...

Be it resolved: To further the connection between our investment strategies and UU values, the Unitarian Universalist Association affirms ethical corporate governance principles which include (a) performance-based executive compensation that considers a company's impact on all stakeholders, and (...

In solidarity with people struggling against oppression everywhere, Unitarian Universalist member congregations are urged to participate with the National Farm Worker Ministry, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, in support of a boycott of E. & J. Gallo wines that began on June 14, 2005....

On September 12-13, 2005, the leaders of more than 190 nations will convene at the United Nations to determine the course of the Millennium Development initiative. Over 154 countries support the Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000....

WHEREAS the government of Sudan, allied with Janjaweed militias, continues to inflict systematic violence on innocent civilians in Darfur, Sudan, including murder, rape, torture, and destruction of villages; WHEREAS these forces systematically rape the women of Darfur, and those who survive are...

Open and diverse broadcasting is essential to a functioning democracy. In early June 2005, the United States Supreme Court allowed a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to stand that found proposed deregulation of ownership rules by the Federal Communications...

The systematic use of torture as a policy of governmental control is a crime against humanity. The right to be free of torture is a fundamental human right recognized in both constitutional and international law and in our social and community values. All government-sponsored acts of torture,...

WHEREAS, the United States government has harassed Dr....

Background: This Statement of Conscience of the Unitarian Universalist Association builds upon more than a dozen social witness statements on criminal justice adopted by the Unitarian Universalist Association between 1961 and 2002. In June 2003, the General Assembly of the UUA selected “Criminal...

The delegates of the 2004 General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations hereby condemn the use of torture by any individual, any group, any organization, or any nation and call on all people of conscience to take action (1) to expose and halt the use of torture whene...

The 1994 Assault Weapons Ban Law expires on September 13, 2004. This law outlaws nineteen specific semi-automatic and other weapons. Some of these weapons can fire over 120 bullets per minute. These weapons can be spray-fired from the hip. They have high-capacity ammunition magazines and shooters...

WHEREAS the Unitarian Universalist Association has made strong public announcements that “Civil Marriage is a Civil Right” ; WHEREAS several prominent national political leaders have proposed an amendment to the United States Constitution that would deny the rights and privileges of civil...

WHEREAS Unitarian Universalists have long supported human rights, the United Nations, and international law; WHEREAS the Unitarian Universalist Association has worked within interfaith groups to urge the United States government not to invade Iraq without the concurrence of the Security Council o...

The Alien Tort Claims Act is the only United States law permitting multinational corporations with significant assets in the United States to be held accountable for their unethical behavior elsewhere in the world. Passed in 1789 by the First Congress of the United States, it enables victims of...

WHEREAS the Unitarian Universalist Association’s fifth Principle affirms the use of the democratic process in society at large; WHEREAS democracy depends on fairly counted votes and public confidence that votes have been fairly counted; WHEREAS an estimated thirty percent of those voting in...

Preamble Liberty is at the core of our Unitarian Universalist faith. Civil liberties are at the heart of our American experiment in democracy....

WHEREAS our Unitarian Universalist Principles call upon us to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person and to seek justice, equity, and compassion in human relations; and WHEREAS in the past four decades the Unitarian Universalist Association and its member congregations...

WHEREAS the Bush administration has presented distorted and incomplete evidence to the American people, Congress, and the United Nations regarding the national security threat posed by Iraq; WHEREAS this evidence included forged documents alleging an attempt by Iraq to purchase uranium in Niger a...

WHEREAS our Unitarian Universalist Principles call us to affirm the inherent worth and dignity of every person and to promote justice, equity, and compassion in human relations; WHEREAS HIV/AIDS is one of the most devastating crises in the history of public health, causing 25 million deaths and n...

WHEREAS depleted Uranium (DU) is radioactive and toxic and may cause cancer and genetic damage; WHEREAS DU is a by-product of uranium enrichment for nuclear weapons and energy production and is used militarily in armor-piercing munitions, bombs, and missiles because its density gives it great arm...

Congress created AmeriCorps ten years ago. Since then, it has provided America’s youth with numerous opportunities for public service. Through a unique combination of federal monies and nearly $1 billion in matching private dollars, over 900 programs -- ranging from Teach for America to City Year...

Summary of the Statement of Conscience While economic globalization has helped some people attain higher standards of living, it has marginalized and impoverished many others and has resulted in environmental degradation and the depletion of natural resources....

Mindful of the connection between Beacon Press book sales and Beacon Press deficits and heeding the admonitions of the UUA Finance Committee and our President that the publication of unsold books is neither useful to our mission or supportive of our finances; We, the representatives of the member...

Because Unitarian Universalists affirm and promote the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; and Because our Unitarian Universalist Principles affirm "respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part"; and Whereas many biologists predict that ...

Whereas on July 11, 2001, Congressman Dennis Kucinich introduced H.R. 2459, a bill to create a cabinet-level Department of Peace, which would embody a broad-based approach to peaceful, non-violent conflict resolution at both domestic and international levels; Whereas the bill would establish a...

Because for the past three decades Unitarian Universalist congregations in Canada and in the United States have spoken out in favor of the rights of bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender persons and against homophobia and all forms of discrimination against such persons on the basis of their...

Because Unitarian Universalists affirm and promote the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all and challenge the powers and structures of evil with justice, compassion, and love; and Whereas the International Criminal Court, as the first permanent international institutio...

Background: This final draft Statement of Conscience of the Unitarian Universalist Association builds upon four social witness statements on drug policy adopted by the Unitarian Universalist Association between 1965 and 1991. In June 2000, the General Assembly of the UUA selected "Alternatives to...

In response to the moderator's report, moved that this General Assembly direct the Unitarian Universalist Association's Board of Trustees and administration to establish formal relationships with the National Coalition on Racism in Sports and Media as models for local Unitarian Universalist...

Preface Material comforts that we enjoy in the United States and Canada come at a greater cost than we often realize. Our two countries, together with other industrial nations, consume a disproportionately large share of the natural resource base that sustains life on earth....

Whereas our Unitarian Universalist Principles call us to affirm and promote “justice, equity, and compassion in human relations” and “the goal of world community”; Whereas a 1997 Unitarian Universalist General Assembly resolution stated that, “because of the impact of racism on all people,...

Guided by our commitment to justice and by the findings and recommendations of The Tulsa Race Riot, A Report by the Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921; and Because our Tulsan Unitarian Universalist forebears witnessed an atrocity of ethnic cleansing for which we are responsi...

For decades, the federal government has awarded grants and contracts to religious groups to provide social services. However, to protect their integrity and the interests of taxpayers, religious groups until now have created separate, secular entities to receive the public funds....

Whereas the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) make loans to developing nations to help stabilize their currencies and to develop their resources such as transportation, hydroelectricity, and water supply; Whereas many projects did not increase productive capacity enough to repay th...

Because we value the inherent dignity of every person and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and within our Association; and In response to the report of the President delivered on June 23, 2000 in which deficiencies and inequities in the process of the nomination and...

Resolved that this General Assembly urge the Planning Committee and the Board of Trustees to consult and cooperate with the United Church of Christ's ongoing efforts to support the Cleveland Native American community in their struggle against the Cleveland Indians baseball team and the racism...

Scope: Continental On April 26, 2000, the exiled Tibetan government issued a report on Environment and Development Issues since the invasion of Tibet by China in 1949, documenting widespread environmental damage from mining, deforestation, colonization, development, permanent military and nuclear...

Scope: US Whereas the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization formed by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. to aid in the fight against legal segregation, has proposed a "Redeem the Dream" rally to oppose racial profiling; Whereas racial profiling, harassing, arresting, and...

Scope: Continental Because we as Unitarian Universalists strongly affirm the high ideal of a peaceful world community, recognizing the crucial interdependence of all peoples as well as of all creation; Whereas the U.S....

Scope: US Because Unitarian Universalists believe in the worth and dignity of everyone and have respect for all life; Whereas General Assemblies of the Unitarian Universalist Association have proposed national handgun legislation in past years (1972, 1976, 1991); Whereas handguns are too easily...

Scope: US As the 39th Annual General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association held its Opening Ceremony the evening of June 22, 2000, Gary Graham was executed by lethal injection in Huntsville, Texas, the 222nd person to be executed in Texas since that state reinstated the death penalty...

Scope: US The health and integrity of the American democracy at the national, state, and local levels depends, in large measure, on fair and open elections that command public confidence and encourage full citizen participation....

We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, hereby rededicate ourselves to the pursuit of economic justice, an end to racism, and an end to poverty. We recognize that racism is a major contributor toward economic injustice....

WHEREAS Unitarian Universalists affirm the inherent worth and dignity of every person and a free and responsible search for truth and meaning; WHEREAS Unitarian Universalists have consistently affirmed the rights of bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender persons; WHEREAS anti-gay violence has be...

On April 20, 1999, at about 11:21 a.m., two students, heavily armed with firearms and pipe bombs, entered Columbine High School in Jefferson County, Colorado....

In the early morning hours of Friday, June 18, 1999, three synagogues in Sacramento, California, were set on fire. The three synagogues—Congregation B'nai Israel, Congregation Beth Shalom, and Knesset Israel Torah Center—suffered over $1,000,000 worth of damage, including a library with a...

We live in a global village that brings people of diverse economic, cultural, and religious backgrounds into close and interdependent contact. The resulting challenges are immense. They defy traditional efforts to ensure socio-economic fairness....

WHEREAS the year 1998 marks the 150th anniversary of the women's rights convention in the United States, held at Seneca Falls and Rochester, New York; and WHEREAS the year 2000 will mark the 150th anniversary of the much larger convention at Worcester, Massachusetts, and both conventions and thei...