The quarterly meeting of the North Georgia Social Justice Cluster Meeting was held on May 7, 2016 at the Georgia Mountains Unitarian Universalist Church in Dahlonega. The meeting discussed a proposed resolution anticipated to be presented at the 2016 UUA General Assembly regarding divestment of funds of US corporations deemed complicit in the violation of Palestinian human rights in the West Bank.
The proposal calls upon “. . . the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) to act in accord with its principles and avoid owning any securities of five major corporations that are directly involved in the maintenance of the occupation and its abuses of Palestinian human rights.” The proposal continues and calls on the UUA to divest and/or refrain from the purchase of stock in these specific US corporations.
Given that this proposal is only in draft mode, the five US corporations are not listed in this news story.
Two speakers provided their personal experiences that they witnessed regarding the challenges faced by Palestinians in the West Bank.
Rev. Dr. Fahed Abu Akel, Presbyterian Elder & Moderator of the Presbyterian Middle East Caucus spoke of his life experience when he and his family were forced to leave their village of Kuffer-Yassif in Galilee following the initial incorporation of his village into the state of Israel.
Dr. Steven Bell, Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Berry College, spoke of his transformation that made him more attuned and sympathetic to the day-to-day indignities faced by Palestinians under Israeli military control. He shared how a young Palestinian woman with a complicated pregnancy died en route to Jerusalem due to delays imposed by the many checkpoints on Palestinians in the West Bank.
David Stewart, member of Northwest and the Chair of the UUA Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) Committee, provided insight on the process followed by the UUA in the investment of more than $180M in endowment funds.
David spoke about the SRI investment guidelines that state, in part, to “. . . exclude securities issued by tobacco manufacturers and companies for which the manufacture of weapons represents at least 5% of annual revenue. We also favor investments in companies that demonstrate positive environmental practices; respect for human rights, labor rights, and other legal and ethical standards; and good relationships with stakeholders including employees, customers, and communities.”
The next North Georgia Social Justice Cluster meeting will be held in August at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta (UUCA). That meeting will focus on topics including the fusion of social justice actions by David Zenner of Northwest and a discussion on gun violence by Frank Casper of UUCA.
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