6.2.26 Action Center Update
Welcome to the Action Center Weekly Update. Each week, we’ll share:
A brief analysis of critical issues in this political moment
Immediate actions you can take
Resources to deepen knowledge and strengthen our collective work to side with love
Nothing is inevitable. Justice movements are built by ordinary people who come together to defeat oppression and nurture a loving world. You are not alone. We have power. Together, we can create a just and thriving future.
Movements are strongest when we act together. Organize with your teams and networks, and take these actions in community. For practical tools, see our Organizing School and Skill Up resources.
Bodily Autonomy
Core Principle: Every body is sacred. We affirm that trans people are divine, abortion is a blessing, and no one is disposable. Attacks on identity are designed to divide us—solidarity is our moral and strategic mandate.
The Update:
The terrifying logical conclusion of "fetal personhood" legislation was put on paper in North Carolina with the introduction of House Bill 1232. Referred to committee on May 14, 2026, this proposed constitutional amendment seeks to define human life as beginning at the exact moment of fertilization. Under this extreme measure, any attempt to willfully terminate a pregnancy at any stage would be legally classified as attempted murder or first-degree murder. Most alarmingly, the bill explicitly codifies a person’s right to use deadly force to defend an "unborn person" from destruction. Reproductive justice advocates warn that this dangerous language acts as a statutory green light for vigilante violence against pregnant individuals, health providers, and anyone supporting abortion access, while threatening to criminalize common forms of contraception and IVF treatments. The backlash has already forced co-sponsor Rep. Ben Moss to publicly withdraw his support due to community outrage, revealing a critical crack in the opposition's front.
Take Action:
Organize Cross-Movement Constitutional Defense: Educate communities on how to identify and defeat "personhood" amendments at the ballot box before they can rewrite state constitutions.
Resources:
Read:
“NC Bill Would Define Life at Fertilization in State Constitution” – An analysis of the legislative text of HB 1232, its broad criminal liabilities, and the fracturing of political support following immediate public pushback.
Watch/Listen:
North Carolina Lawmaker Introduces Bill Authorizing Deadly Force – A national news broadcast breaking down the exact phrasing of HB 1232 and detailing why advocacy groups are sounding the alarm over its severe real-world implications.
Decriminalization & Immigration
Core Principle: Criminalization and dehumanization deny the dignity of our communities. Safety cannot come at the expense of others. As people of faith, we proclaim a future of care, abundance, and mutuality—not domination.
The Update:
Nearly 1,000 people held captive by ICE are on hunger strike in at least 7 facilities around the country in protest of cruelty and retaliation, including assault, unsafe food & water, illegal detention, medical neglect and abuse, forced labor, and more. Unitarian Universalists are part of the broad coalitions demanding release of these captives and closing of the camps because we believe in care over cages.
Take Action:
Read this letter in worship Sunday from hunger striking detainees at Delaney Hall in New Jersey. This ask comes from organizers in New Jersey as part of an effort to keep the media narrative on the detainees and their experiences.
Resources:
Join:
UU Solidarity Initiative Session, Friday, June 5th: Updates from Delaney to Dilley
The UU Solidarity Initiative is a nationally coordinated effort of UU and UU-adjacent organizations to provide resources and opportunities to build strong communities of solidarity with immigrant communities who are under attack. Solidarity Sessions are an opportunity for folks working for immigrant justice to connect with one another and learn about the most recent changes in immigration laws. This week, we’ll have an update, asks, and learnings from on the ground at Delaney Hall in New Jersey.
Climate Justice
Core Principle: A just and loving world is also a flourishing one. A fossil-free future is possible, where clean energy is a human right and all beings thrive. To get there, we must create new systems, norms, and practices.
The Update:
An oil pipeline threatens the Great Lakes - one of the largest supplies of surface freshwater in the world. Enbridge’s Line 5 transports 22 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas over 645 miles through Wisconsin, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, under the Straits of Mackinac, to refineries in Ontario. This aging pipeline has significantly deteriorated and poses significant risk to the ecosystems and tribal lands it cuts through. In the last 50 years, the pipeline has spilled 1.1 million gallons of oil in 29 spills that were mostly undetected by the systems Enbridge says make the pipeline safe. Worse, parts of the pipeline are outdated, decaying, and vulnerable.
If not stopped, this dangerous pipeline will continue pumping oil through the Great Lakes for another century, locking us into continued dependence on fossil fuel dependence when we urgently need a Just Transition to a renewable energy future.
Line 5 threatens the Great Lakes, surrounding communities, Tribal sovereignty, drinking water for 40+ million people, and all life that depends on this essential ecosystem.
Join us in saying NO to the Line 5 oil tunnel project. Submit a public comment today to oppose Enbridge’s draft permit to discharge treated wastewater from the proposed Line 5 tunnel project under the Straits of Mackinac. Public comments are accepted now through June 30.
Submit your public comment today! Every comment matters, and every comment submitted increases pressure to reject this dangerous project. Call on Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) to protect the Great Lakes, side with Tribal Nations, and reject all permits for the Line 5 tunnel once and for all. Shut down Line 5!
Take Action:
Submit comments directly to EGLE on the Earthjustice action page: https://bit.ly/4uvlneK. Earthjustice has provided a draft comment that you can edit or submit as is.
Or submit comments through EGLE’s MiEnviro database (click on "Public Notice Search" then search under permit MI0060278).
Attend EGLE’s virtual public hearing and provide public comment on June 18. This hearing will include a short informational session followed by the public hearing where statements will be entered into the public record. Register here: https://bit.ly/4uCtx4X
Resources:
Read:
Learn:
Join:
Monthly Conversations on Abolition: "Abolitionist Visions of Climate Justice"
Tuesday, June 2, 8–9:30 PM EDT
Join us for “Abolitionist Visions of Climate Justice”, the next conversation in the CLF's Monthly Conversations on Abolition CSAI series.
How would our climate justice work change if we embraced an abolitionist perspective? The modern prison abolitionist movement imagines a world where punishment is not woven into the fabric of our society. They do not simply imagine a future without imprisonment, policing, and surveillance, they are creating new models for living where all people are safely housed, fed, educated, nourished, and supported through self-governance and community care.
What is the parallel vision for climate justice? If we imagine not just the eradication of fossil fuels but the end of all extractive systems of harm and a future where all beings thrive? This work must be grounded in the realities and injustices of our times and emboldened by radical hope and commitments for collective liberation. If we can imagine collapse, can we imagine renewal?
Green Sanctuary 2030 Office Hours
Wednesday, June 3, 6–7:00 PM CT (Please note the Time Zone!)
Did you know that the completely revitalized Green Sanctuary 2030: Mobilizing for Climate Justice has just one requirement for annual Recognition? Monthly Office Hours are here to anyone with questions on how Green Sanctuary 2030 can support UUs to transform our congregations through climate justice. Review the short Orientation Video then come to the office hours to get all your questions answered. Current Green Sanctuary 2030 Teams, this time is for you, too!
Together, we practice the world we long for. Together, we win.
