Saliency

Praying the News

How do we get to you, O God?  There are so many competing voices trying to tell us what is true or what is right. They

muddy the deep,

pollute and uproot,

sully plain truth.

Until—

We don’t know how to get to you. 

In deep waters give us profound wisdom and courage to risk.

On shaky ground give us clarity and long relationships,

Through tough times give us renewed discernment and show us ancient paths.

We yearn for more than just poetically lyrical and the stylistically hip.  We yearn for the deep, the rooted, and the truth.  If we cannot find our way to you.  Find your way to us.  We do.  We do.  We long for you.  Amen. 

Soundtrack for Saliency

I am in a position right now to look back on all my teaching and care and ministry and think about historic decisions I have made, mistakes of emphasis I made in my teaching and preaching, and even wonder if my call to ordained ministry has run its course.  I am not sad about that or angry.  It is just the time.  And in believing that we are in “an extraordinary moment,” wonder what Creator calls me to do.

One of the historical decisions I made came after I was three weeks into a sermon series.  To that date, I rarely had preached a sermon series but thought it was necessary to go deeper and provide links over the course of several weeks.  A parishioner approached me about my sermon and said, “I really enjoyed today’s sermon, but I felt like you should have brought us all up to date with the journey we have taken thus far.”  I took that advice to heart and tried to become much more repetitive and develop a sense of constancy (an ancient spiritual word I believe becomes more deeply defined each time I reflect on it). 

I remember reflections on Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech where people in his cohort  related they had heard versions of this same speech/sermon/call to a people and a nation.  I read Andrew Zolli’s reflections on capacity where he referenced repetition and duplication as necessary parts of resiliency.  Yes, greater duplication and repetition in my work might provide even greater levels of boredom (my kids might find “greater levels of boredom” hard to believe) and lack of interest.  Finally, as my understanding of spiritual practice began to flower, I recognized that repetition was necessary to create new habits and a potential new vision for who we all might be.  As humans, we need mantras, repetitive movement work, and anchors so that we begin by imagining the new reality, describing the new reality, and then working and living in the new reality, and, all the way along, celebrating the new reality.  Repeat.  Repeat.  Repeat and listen closely as the way emerges.

If I didn’t strike a better balance, however, what would it matter if my great creativity entertained folk but never transparently invited people to see what I believed Creator was seeking to curate within me?  I think there are quite a few progressive mainline faith communities like that.  They like to sample at the progressive buffet with “a little of this” and “a little of that” but keep people guessing at what the focus or central message is.  Everyone remains safe, entertained, and nodding their heads in tacit agreement. 

Yes, I think we must be creative in stating our values and our movement in different ways.  I like to define it as describing each facet of the diamond.  We try to relate the reflection and refraction, the glint and the color but we are still describing the diamond as a whole.  We show constancy to our values and faithfulness to our demands along with a willingness to grow and change when the data tells us that is demanded of us.

My brother recently returned from a Black Lives Matter march in Denver.  He related his disappointment that the media interviewed a well-meaning white person who spoke of the movement in a passive, conciliatory, and reform-oriented (rather than transformation) manner.  He also said that the speakers did not pass along values, demands, or calls for what should happen next.  Inspirational?  Maybe.  But for what?

We need repetition and duplication to provide saliency and meaning.  There is so much garbage or b.s. floating out there that if we don’t repeat, we lose everyone.  If we are honest there may be, there may be some intention in all of that.   Safety is found in creative vagueness and diverse sampling. 

I want to focus in on two movements (Honor the Earth and The Poor People’s Campaign)  I think are doing a wonderful job of leading out.  They have stated values and demands and I will list some of those below.   

Elder Winona LaDuke and Rev. Dr. William J. Barber can sound like broken records.  But that’s the point.  They stay on message and repeat with every appearance they have in the larger message.  Their message has saliency.  It gets through.  And we would be wise to follow their example, not only by repeating what they repeat, but by developing that habit in our own message and movement building. 

Honor the Earth’s Ways of a Just Transition with an Indigenous Green New Deal

1.       Respect Indigenous Knowledge

From the Amazon to California and Australia, carbon is sequestered much better by Native people than by governments. Since we represent 4% of the world’s population, yet steward 75% of the world’s biodiversity, it’s time to support Indigenous land, treaty and human rights.

2.       Waste Less

We presently waste about 60% of the energy produced, in inefficient systems, long distance transmission (economies of scale), and poor energy conversions.

3.       Respect Energy

Consume less, produce less, and produce more locally

Energy Justice: The Department of Energy estimates that wind power from tribal lands could satisfy 32 percent of the total U.S. electricity demand. Solar production from Indian lands could generate enough energy to power the country two times over. The next economy must be owned by the people who produce it, and be on the terms of those people. That’s what a just transition looks like.  

Make infrastructure for people, not for oil companies. 

4.      Solutionary Rail:  The Backbone of Infrastructure. 

Worldwide, electricity serves nearly a quarter of railroad track miles and supplies over one-third of the energy that powers trains. China has 41% of the country’ lines electrified; Italy, 68%. But in the U.S., under 1 percent of tracks are electrified. There’s a national plan called Solutionary Rail.   www.thebackbonecampaign.org

Solutionary Rail proposes to not only electrify the rail lines, but also to put renewable energy transmission access along these same powerlines.

5.      Grow Food

Eat Local food, grow diverse varieties, use as much energy as possible from this era, not the Jurassic era. Go organic.  Organic agriculture sequesters carbon, and getting fossil fuels and glyphosate out of your meal plan means a healthier life. Indigenous, heritage, and non GMO seeds are pre and post petroleum reaffirmations of love and reverence.  Rematriate seeds and give them love.  Support local farmers and turn your lawn into a garden and bee sanctuary.  Restore health.

6.      De-Militarize and Make it Beautiful

The US Military is the largest polluter in the world, and also the largest user of both fossil fuels and renewable energy. It’s time to not only cut wasteful military spending, but actually deploy the military in the homeland security  during climate change. That means infrastructure, firefighting, flood and disaster prevention and solving problems, not making them.  There are a lot of people in the military who want to be heroes.

7.      The Future Is Here

$25-billion has been invested in Canada's clean-energy sector in the past five years, and employment is up 37 per cent. The 23,700 people who work in green energy outnumber the 22,340 whose work relates to the oil sands. Renewable energy is the fastest growing sector in energy worldwide. Fossil fuel divestment has reached over $5 trillion. The Time is now to invest in an Indigenous Just Transition.

The Poor People’s Campaign Demands

I. Declaration of Fundamental Rights and Poor People’s Moral Agenda

Systemic Racism

Did you know that there are fewer voting rights in 2018 than there were 50 years ago when the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act were passed?

•     We demand the immediate full restoration and expansion of the Voting Rights Act, an end to racist gerrymandering and redistricting, early registration of 17 year olds, automatic voting registration at the age of 18, early voting in every state, same-day registration, the enactment of Election Day as a holiday, and a verifiable paper record. We demand the right to vote for the currently and formerly incarcerated.
•      We demand adequate funding for polling places to accommodate the full participation of the electorate.
•     We demand an end to placing persons on the federal bench who have a record of standing against voting rights.
•     We demand statehood, voting rights and representation for the more than 700,000 people in Washington D.C.
•      We demand the reversal of state laws preempting local governments from passing minimum wage increases, and the removal of Emergency Financial Management positions that are unaccountable to the democratic process.
•    We demand a clear and just immigration system that strengthens our democracy through the broad participation of everyone in this country. This includes providing a timely citizenship process that guarantees the right to vote. It also requires protecting immigrants’ abilities to organize for their rights in the workplace and in their communities without fear of retribution, detention and deportation.
•     We demand that First Nations, Native Americans and Alaskan Native people retain their tribal recognition as nations, not races, to make substantive claims to their sovereignty.

Poverty and Inequality

Did you know that while the U.S. economy has grown 18-fold in the past 50 years, wealth inequality has expanded, the costs of living have increased, and social programs have been restructured and cut dramatically?

•          We demand the immediate implementation of federal and state living wage laws that are commensurate for the 21st century economy, guaranteed annual incomes, full employment and the right for all workers to form and join unions.
•     We demand an end to anti-union and anti-workers’ rights laws in the states.
•     We demand equal pay for equal work.
•        We demand fully-funded social welfare programs that provide cash and in-kind assistance directly to the poor, including poor families. We demand an end to the attacks on SNAP, CHIP, HEAP, and other vital programs for the poor.
•     We demand equity in education, ensuring every child receives a high-quality, well-funded, diverse public education. We demand an end to the re-segregation of schools. We demand free tuition at public colleges and universities and an end to profiteering on student debt. We demand equitable funding for historically black colleges and universities and for Native, Tribal and Indigenous educational institutions, whose missions have not outlived their purpose.
•      We demand the expansion of Medicaid in every state and the protection of Medicare and single-payer universal health care for all.
•      We demand fully funded public resources and access to mental health professionals and addiction and recovery programs.
•     We demand reinvestment in and the expansion of public housing, ensuring that all have a decent house to live in.
•      We demand equal treatment and accessible housing, health care, public transportation, adequate income and services for people with disabilities.
•      We demand public infrastructure projects and sustainable, community-based and controlled economic initiatives that target poor urban and rural communities.
•      We demand fair and decent housing for all and the end to the rolling back of fair housing protections at HUD.
•      We demand relief from crushing household, student, and consumer debt. We declare Jubilee.
•      We demand relief from wealth inequality.
•      We demand that the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share of our country’s urgent needs around decent and affordable housing, free public education, a robust social safety net and social security. We demand the repeal of the 2017 tax breaks for the wealthy and big corporations and the reinvestment of those funds into public programs for housing, health care, education, jobs, infrastructure and welfare for the poor.
•      We demand that the nation and our lawmakers turn their immediate attention to passing policies and budget allocations that would end child poverty. This includes a public hearing on the federal and state institutions charged with child safety and protection, including on how their resources are used to take children away rather than strengthening families.

Did you know there are 140 million people who are poor or low-income in the United States today?

• We demand a change in the current poverty standards. We demand an accurate assessment of who is poor — based on access to decent and adequate housing, education, health care, water, sanitation and public utilities, childcare, as well as income, savings and debt, and social welfare — and that is made widely available to all.
• We demand particular attention be paid to data concerning First Nations, Native Americans, Alaskan Native, LGBTQIA and disabled people regarding poverty. This means working with these communities to ensure the safekeeping of sensitive information and that all data is collected with respect, dignity and security.

Did you know that we imprison and detain more people, especially poor people, than any country in the world?

•      We demand an end to mass incarceration and the continuing inequalities for black, brown and poor white people within the criminal justice system.
•         We demand equality and the safety of all persons regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Ecological Devastation

Did you know 13.8 million U.S. households cannot afford water?

•      We demand 100 percent clean, renewable energy and a public jobs program to transition to a green economy that will put millions of people in sustainable living wage jobs.
•      We demand a fully funded public water and sanitation infrastructure that keeps these utilities and services under public control and prioritize poor, rural and Native communities that have been harmed by polluting and extractive industries. This infrastructure must provide consistent, safe, reliable and affordable access to water and sanitation services such as refuse collection, containment and sewage systems, so as to prevent any leaks or leaching of lead or other toxins. This includes ending water shut offs.
•      We demand a ban on fracking, mountaintop removal coal mining, coal ash ponds, and offshore drilling. We demand a ban on all new pipelines, refineries, and coal, oil, and gas export terminals. We demand that extractive industries be held accountable for the air, water and land they have polluted and poisoned and financially responsible for clean-up processes.
•      We demand the protection of public lands and the immediate cessation of opening up public lands for polluting and extractive industries

War Economy and Militarism

Did you know that currently 53 cents of every federal discretionary dollar goes to military spending and only 15 cents is spent on anti-poverty programs?

•      We demand an end to military aggression and war-mongering.
•     We demand a stop to the privatization of the military budget and any increase in military spending. We demand a reallocation of resources from the military budget towards our human security, including towards education, health care, jobs and green infrastructure needs, and strengthening a Veterans Administration system that must remain public.
•      We demand a ban on assault rifles and a ban on the easy access to firearms that has led to the increased militarization and weaponization of our communities.
•      We demand the demilitarization of our communities on the border and the interior. This includes ending federal programs that send military equipment into local and state communities and ceasing the call to build a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border.
•      We demand an immigration system that, instead of criminalizing people for trying to raise their families, prioritizes family reunification, keeps families together and allows us all to build thriving communities in the country we call home.

National Morality

Did you know that thousands of people die every year from anti-poor policies, while an extremist religious and Christian nationalist agenda deliberately diverts attention from the key issues and challenges facing the majority of Americans?

• We demand that all policies and budgets are based on the five key principles of the U.S. Constitution: Establishing Justice, Ensuring Domestic Tranquility, Providing for the Common Defense, Promoting the General Welfare and Securing the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.