Upholding Truth, Democracy, and Environmental Justice
“Loving your enemy is manifest in putting your arms not around the person but around the social situation, to take power from those who misuse it— at which point they can become human, too.” – Bayard Rustin
We see that truth, democracy, equality, and civility continue to be under unprecedented attack by authoritarian movements in our society. These extremist movements, many anchored in the tenets of white supremacy, are aggressively pursuing an agenda that counters equality, integrity, community, peace and justice. Their actions include racist attacks on people and communities of color, restricting voter access to the ballot, denying health care choices for women and LGBTQI+ people, and refusing to address the scourge of gun violence. Meanwhile, the existential threats of the climate crisis are growing dramatically, requiring urgent action to transition rapidly from an economy based almost entirely on fossil fuels to one based totally on clean energy.
We believe Friends are called to persevere in seeking and speaking truth, followed by right action.
Suellen Lowry
2024 is a key year for choosing the people who are going to help us decide the rules we live by. To have the power to help the world to be a better place, we need 3 things:
- We need to be informed
- We need ethics
- We need effective strategy
We live in a world of misinformation and, as Quakers, we must tap into Truth. Trust, along with quick decisions, have helped us survive through the millennium. However, our brains interpret fluency as a signal for something being true. Our trust and recognition means that as things are repeated over and over and over again, our brain starts to tell us, “that’s true.” However, we can counter this. In this election cycle, we need to seek out relationships, understanding, and credible news sources.
Some of the Fact-Checking Sites Most Recommended as Reputable:
These websites are exciting to read! Knowing the facts and how our media is covering them can help increase our understanding, leading to stronger connections. News sources help us become better informed, but we also need ethics & strategy: voting.
Gathering Information About Your Ballot’s Candidates and Issues:
Sample ballot lookup tools allow you to put in your address and you are able to find out your local, state, and national candidates, as well as ballot measures.
- Votesmart.org
- Ballotpedia.org
- State-specific voter drafted by trusted groups, like the League of Women Voters or the Sierra Club
Cesanne Berry
As we approach an election wherein so much for people and planet is at stake, we at QEW would like to take a moment to uplift folks doing great work in this arena – such as the Environmental Voter Project.
The Environmental Voter Project identifies millions of non-voting environmentalists and turns them into consistent voters. There are opportunities for phone banking, postcard writing, and canvassing. The goal is to turn these seldom-voters into reliable “super voters.” Doing so builds a huge block of voters that politicians cannot ignore. We build political power when the people who recognize the Climate and Environment as their #1 priority go to the polls and vote!
