During the virtual UUA General Assembly in June 2020, Investment Committee member Ken Redd delivered the following statement on behalf of the Investment and Socially Responsible Investing Committees to open our workshop on Mobilizing Investments to Advance UU Values. Slides from the workshop are available here and linked below along with other key resources. The UUA was also among nearly 130 initial endorsers of the Investor Statement of Solidarity and Call to Action to Address Systemic Racism.
On behalf of the members of the Investment Committee and the Socially Responsible Investing Committee, we would like to express our collective outrage over the senseless and brutal killings of Rayshard Books, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and countless other black people who have been murdered by police forces throughout the country.
These and other acts of violence against African Americans are not isolated incidents. Instead, they are byproducts of a criminal justice and economic system that historically and continually subjugate many black individuals to harassment, poverty, and degradation.
America is a racist nation, built for white settlers on land stolen from Native Peoples, and built by enslaved labor stolen from Africa. Despite the progress we have made toward racial justice since our founding, none of our current day problems can be resolved unless and until white Americans fully acknowledge our nation’s historic roots.
As saddened and horrified as we are about these events, they have also strengthened our resolve to do all we can to dismantle white supremacy culture. In fact, as you’ll hear in a moment, we are greatly increasing our financial investments in community organizations that are providing direct support to marginalized groups. We are also collaborating—and pursuing greater collaboration—with Black Lives UU and other UU social justice groups to ensure our actions are consistent with UU values. We are also gratified that the Embodying Human Rights in Our Investment Decisions Business Resolution sponsored by Black Lives of UU (BLUU), UUs for Justice in the Middle East (UUJME), UU Ministry for Earth (UUMFE), UU Peace Ministry Network (UUPMN), and UU Refugee and Immigrant Services and Education (UURISE) received 95% of support at General Assembly.
Now more than ever, Black Lives Matter.
Key Resources:
- Mobilizing Investments to Advance UU Values—workshop slides (June 2020)
- UUCEF Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines (approved January 2020)
- UUCEF Community Investment Guidelines and Policy (approved January 2020)
- Decolonizing Wealth book by Edgar Villanueva
- Request Memo Guidance for UUCEF Community Investments
- UUA Community Development Match Program Form (updated June 2020)
- Explained | Racial Wealth Gap – 16-minute Netflix Episode