Weekly Justice Highlights

National Migration Week in the United States is from January 5-11.  Resources including a prayer card can be found here.      

National Human Trafficking Awareness Day is January 11 in the United States.  What will you do to make yourself more aware and create greater awareness among those with whom you minister with?  The Polaris Project has released a landmark report that analyzes human trafficking information titled, Human Trafficking Trends in the United States.  This is the most extensive data sets of human trafficking in the U.S.  With regard to advocacy, individuals are invited to examine the January issue of Stop Trafficking that will soon be available as well as resources for the month.  

In the Spirit of St. Vincent, we continue to seek out those in need around us.  U.S. citizens are invited to urge Senators and Representatives urging them to renew federal unemployment insurance and make it retroactive to undo the harm inflicted on 1.3 million jobless long-term jobless workers as soon as they return to session.

Challenging Unjust Structures: Urge U.S. legislators to support legislation for responsible lending and borrowing at the IMF that would benefit the world's poorest and most vulnerable.  

Promoting Peace: Urge the United Nations Security Council to bring world leaders to the table to develop real plans to eliminate all Weapons of Mass Destruction. (International action is available)

Care of Earth:  The Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office has updated their climate resources for teachers.   "Links to other climate sites" is on the UU-UNO Climate Portal page. 

Urge President Obama, Members of Congress and U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman to stop the secret trade deal that would eliminate the ability of countries around the world to label Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs).  

Immigration resource:  A video, titled "Apple Forecast: Immigration Reform," is available with testimonies of two women impatient for change.  The video is meant to be a conversation tool to better understand the crisis that current policies have created for everyone by the stories of this small farmer and her valued workers.  The video is located here.    

Prayers are needed for the ongoing situation in Syria and all in the Middle East.  Currently, orders from extremist groups who do not like the presence of non-Muslims in their emirate make it difficult for Christians to be in Northern Syria.