Social Justice in Our Community

The Justice Project

The Justice Project (formally known as social justice committee) will be meeting in the Parlor soon after the service ends on the second Sunday of each month.

Our North Chapel Social Justice Committee has held a series of films, discussions, and other events related to social justice issues for the North Chapel and wider community.

Our goal is to support one another as we raise our awareness and deepen our understanding of the complex and compelling issues of our times, in the hope that both together and separately, we can take effective and meaningful action.

To join us contact chair of The Justice Project, Joelle Seavey .

A Third Act Action We Can All Take!

Bill McKibben came to speak to us in mid-March and since then a group of us have been thinking about a small way that we could be involved in this important organization. We have decided to focus our energy on getting people to sign-up with an eco-friendly credit card company. Most of us have cards held by one of the 4 major credit card holders: JP Morgan Chase, Citibank, Wells Fargo, Bank of America. These companies are major financiers of oil and gas exploration and infrastructure and are among the top 15 fossil fuel financiers in the world. Barklays, TD Bank, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are also in the top 15.

Look at your card carefully. 
Even if it is not provided directly by one of these banks, look at the names on the back of the card to make sure your bank's credit card is not issued by one of these major fossil fuel lending institutions. For example, the Amazon/ Whole Foods credit cards are issued by Chase and LLBean by Citibank.

Here is a website that will show you if your bank is a fossil fuel funder. https://bank.green If it is a small local bank, like Bar Harbor, it probably won’t be listed. Mascoma Bank gets a positive review. 

The following two websites will give you information about the most sustainable and eco-friendly cards. The applications online are easy to complete. I have gotten both a Sunrise Banks Visa Platinum card and an Amalgamated Bank Maximum Rewards World Mastercard.

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/credit-cards/best/eco-friendly/

https://www.sustainablejungle.com/sustainable-finance/ethical-credit-cards/

Check out the Third Act website - https://thirdact.org

If you sign up to move your money, they have informational webinars that you can watch. - https://thirdact.org/act/move-your-money/ Once you have gotten an eco-friendly credit card, we are encouraged to write to one of the big 4 credit card holders and let them know why we have gotten rid of their card. We may do this as a group. 

Good luck! Please email Mary Blanton if you have any questions and feel free to pass this information on to friends and family members.

Bill McKibben on Climate Change

Is there anything you can do about it? The answer is yes!

For those who did not get the opportunity to attend Bill McKibben's talk at North Chapel on Sunday, March 17th, you can see it here!

Bill gives us effective things that we can DO to slow the onslaught of climate chaos.

Please watch the half-hour talk, even if you would rather not! And finally, please send the link to your family, friends, acquaintances and to your social media.

Thank you!

Anne Macksoud

Vermonters Together - Building A Better Future

In an increasingly divided world, there is a need for Vermonters to come together across issues, for the people and the planet, calling on our decision-makers to work with us for a better future.

We will rally in the streets of Montpelier to call on the Vermont legislature and the Governor to prioritize the needs of the people and our collective future.

Together we will stretch beyond what is comfortable and embrace the imagination, courage and boldness required of all of us at this time.

Join Us! https://www.350vermont.org/

From Joelle Seavey - Social Justice Committee Chair

Social Justice Notices

SPREADING THE WORD

On Sunday, March 3rd , North Chapel's Justice Committee sponsored a screening of the 56 minute film SEEING THROUGH THE WALL: Meeting Ourselves in Israel and Palestine. About 25 people attended the screening. Rabbi Dov Taylor introduced the film and he (and Anne Macksoud)  moderated a discussion after the film.

During the discussion, several people asked that we send a link to the film to the entire North Chapel Congregation. They felt that one thing we could actually DO about the ongoing situation in Gaza 

would be to spread the  message of the film.

The North Chapel Justice Committee invites you to view the film yourself and then invite your family and friends to watch it. We believe it is essential that people understand the REASONS for the conflict that is going on in Gaza and the West Bank. If more and more citizens understand why this is happening,they will let their government know that it must STOP.

THANK YOU

Here's the link: https://vimeo.com/392241829 and here's a link to some information about the film

https://www.olddogdocumentaries.org/product/seeing-through-the-wall/

The Radical Flower - Outgrowing Our Social Division

Here is Leon's TEDx Talk on YouTube!

"The Radical Flower - Outgrowing Our Social Division"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkieN3oZJ-8

From YouTube:

Talking about joy and racial justice at the same time is almost impossible. It’s very hard work but it can be done. Our conversations about race and racism become so volatile because they are not yet as beautiful as they need to be. Our conversations do not yet enable us. Flower gets us closer. Through disciplined, graphic analysis of the of the stories that we hear (and the stories that we tell), Flower helps us to better understand this persistent, American challenge… and helps us to overcome it.

For the inaugural year of TEDxHartlandHill in Woodstock, VT, we compiled an amazing group of speakers to dive into the question, "What is Community?" Each speaker taking on all aspects of being our best, kind and open, to create a truly healthy environment.

Rev. Dr. Leon Dunkley leads us through an exercise towards more compassion using an innovative approach that is a wonder to see. The Rev. Dr. Leon Dunkley ministers to the North Universalist Chapel Society in Woodstock, VT. He is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist. The church of his childhood was the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Monmouth County in Lincroft, New Jersey. From this church (and from its minister, Reverend Harold Dean), Leon learned about the sweetness of life. He learned about compassion, peace, and possibility.

Leon received his undergraduate degree from Tufts University and his Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Pittsburgh. He studied the traditional drumming of Ghana and the Republic of Zaire, the Kora tradition of Senegal, the Gamelan traditions of Java and Bali in Indonesia, the African American Blues and Jazz tradition(s) throughout the Americas. Most recently, he has taken an interest in Bluegrass and Country Blues.

The joy of life is the best within us becoming possible. So then, how do we best foster the joy of life? A poet writes,

Reaching to the past, we find ourselves less distantly,

trying to remember our tale

Asking of tomorrow just the simple gift of peace,

oceans over ourselves

And, here, to give oneself upon an altar high,

trying to remember our tale

To see and hear within the stillness, to touch and taste the sky,

trying to remember our tale

As if the golden light was in our hands,

As if Silence had whispered my name…

Beholden and here I am

Silent and singing away

How do we commit ourselves to our highest hopes and aspirations? How do we challenge the barriers, the impediments that hold us back?

Leon is currently writing a book entitled The Flower of Impossible Soul. It explores the meaning of spiritual growth and radical forgiveness in the presence of violence and racial strife. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Actions you can take today:

Please send any petitions or other news to be posted here to office@northchapelvt.org.

From Helen Hong of COVER:

Upper Valley Strong is a local resource that is helping to bring volunteers and financial contributions together. https://uvstrong.org/ This is a resource in addition to Sustainable Woodstock and the Hub, both of which are providing essential services to residents of Woodstock and nearby areas. 

For anyone interested in learning more about COVER and our upcoming volunteer projects, our website is https://coverhomerepair.org/.

Help Change the World Kids to GROW SOME TO FEED MANY!

Are you a gardener or farmer with a few extra carrots, beets, potatoes or other root cellar storage vegetables that you’d be willing to donate, so we can deliver locally grown vegetables to local Food Shelves and families throughout the cold months? Please help us to fill all of our root cellar bins and shelves! No amount is too small or too big.

Which veggies? Carrots, beets, potatoes, onions, leeks, cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, turnips, rutabagas, parsnips, apples, and pears for the root cellar, and winter squash, garlic, and dried shell beans for our dry, cold storage area.

If you have questions, or if you want to schedule a drop-off time at our root cellar behind the Woodstock Elementary School or a pick-up time at your farm or home, please contact us: changetheworldkids@gmail.com.

Reduce hunger. Promote health. Build community. Thank you!

Change the World Kids

www.changetheworldkids.org

“No one can do everything, but everybody can do something.”

Other Ways North Chapel Community Can Help Support Change the World Kids

• We are in need of clean grass clippings for mulch for our Food Justice Gardens.

• You can donate herb plants for our new “cook with fresh herbs garden”

• Get involved with the town energy plan and advocate for Net Zero infrastructure for all future improvements

• Donate wood to our Free Firewood project

• Make a financial contribution. Truly, we can’t do this work without the support from the community

If you are interested in helping with any of this, please reach out by emailing us at changetheworldkids@gmail.com. It may take a couple days for us to respond by email so if you need a faster turn around, please call. Thank you!

Sustainable Woodstock and the Widow Dressers Project

Volunteers in the Social Hall at North Chapel

photos by Jenevra Wetmore

Thanks to all involved, we built 235 window inserts for 26 families in 2023. We are scheduled to build again September 12-19. Keep an eye out for the opportunity to sign up.

-we had over 80 volunteers join us to help

-Window Dressers estimated that on average, 10 inserts will save 105 gallons of heating fuel — which at around $5.50/gallon, amounts to more than $550 in savings per year. That means we're saving ~2,467 gallons of fuel, or $13,571.