I have participated in and helped organize many lobby days, and they have always been severely demanding. The logistics are complicated: renting the bus, preparing the materials, coordinating schedules, etc., and of course, convincing the community leaders you serve that getting on a bus before dawn, driving to Austin, and not coming home until after the sun goes down is totally worth it. But, actually, the hardest part for me as a community organizer is preparing my folks to know and embody the full breadth of their power as they speak to the elected officials who are deciding the realities for them and their neighbors. In my past experience, I believed I had to provide a ton of political analysis before my leaders were willing to believe in themselves and their power. This meant a lot of teaching––teaching the nuances of each piece of legislation so our leaders could speak eloquently to the details of each bill; teaching the talking points; teaching about the various committees and hearings; teaching why we need to meet with which representative. For example, I would try to paint a picture illustrating how our presence at the Capitol fits with vote margins in past elections, campaign finance breakdowns, the personalities of elected officials, the legislative process, and on and on and on. And while that is all relevant and useful information, I found it was not paramount for the faith leaders we led to Austin on March 7th. What came to be most impactful was teaching our leaders why they should believe that their voice will make a difference. This is the most significant difference between my past lobby days and a lobby day with Faith in Texas. When I boarded the bus and looked at our team of leaders, I saw 50 faces of people who were there not because of any mathematical calculation or strategic power map, but because of their deep faith convictions. Through their faiths, the group already knew they had power whether it be through their God, Gods, or another complex mosaic of faith principles. Seeing that confidence radiate from our leaders at 6:30 AM in the City Temple SDA Church parking lot gave me reverential pause. The calculations and logic sets usually occupying my mind were silenced. I was reminded of a faith reflection offered by my colleague, Darnell Fennell, from his faith tradition. He said: “Be still and know that God is God. Be still and know God. Be still and know. Be still.” As the bus headed south on I-35, and my colleagues and I started training our leaders for what was coming, I felt a stillness in my soul knowing that we had succeeded the second we stepped on the bus because we were a group who decided to put the power of faith into action. Reflections by Faith in Texas Lead Organizer Joe Swanson.
#InvestInLove Week of Action
This week, the #InvestInLove campaign launched with a week of action, and organizers Maria Robles and Robin Murray represented by traveling to Austin, TX, and Washington, D.C. to urge lawmakers to make moral choices and invest our tax dollars in priorities such as education, housing, healthcare, and gun violence prevention, and divest from immigration enforcement, mass incarceration, and agencies that violently separate our families. Maria “prayed with her feet” by joining the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops for a day of Faithful Citizenship at the Texas Capitol, advocating to improve state laws on issues relating to Catholic moral and social teaching. Meanwhile, Robin took leaders to Capitol Hill with our national affiliate, Faith in Action, to demand funding cuts for immigration enforcement agencies and investment in fostering strong, safe, and vibrant families and communities. “Our government’s budget is a moral document and reflects our values and priorities as a people,” said Robin. “We ask that they take bold positions on welcoming immigrants and center the reduction of immigrant detention and deportation as a key position of their immigration platform.” Learn more about the #InvestInLove campaign here.
Faith in Texas Condemns Attacks at New Zealand Mosques
We are beyond devastated to hear about the most recent terrorist attack in New Zealand and mourn with our Muslim brothers and sisters worldwide, especially the loved ones of the people killed and injured in the two Christchurch mosques. This senseless act of violent racism and Islamophobia is yet another manifestation of what has become a global movement of hate and white supremacy. We must, now more than ever, lean into our collective strength and stand against the unprecedented rise in attacks against immigrants, Muslims, and other minority groups. As an organization of many faiths united in our desire to see a just world, we stand in solidarity and repudiate the horrible violence that has taken place. However, it is not enough to just repudiate the violence of guns and bullets and bombs. Physical violence is born of the seeds of racism, bigotry, and hatred. So, we must stand in the face of violence in any form––words, stereotypes, and fear mongering. We issue a call to action for all people to confront hate in every form and in every place it lurks, including within ourselves. Confront it not with more violence but with our great and overpowering love. We must see in each person––no matter how different from ourselves––the image of God and the human dignity that we all bear. Just as Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury Abraham in the Hebrew Bible, so are we all called to treat one another as kindred and to join together in grief and in commitment to building a more loving world. In doing so, we can help create healing that goes beyond just offering our thoughts and prayers, and actually change our community to make a place where people can truly feel and be safe.
