Advocacy

More than a year ago, the Washington Post reported the acceleration of Lebanon’s “financial collapse” due to corruption, financial mismanagement, and overspending. Since then global news agencies have identified the crisis as one of the worst economic catastrophes of the modern era.

Soon, (if they haven’t already) canvassers will be coming to your front door to discuss their candidate with you.  These interactions are a great opportunity to seek justice and speak hope in the public sphere.  

This episode two guests--Leah Gazan, Member of Parliament for Winnipeg Centre and Steve Heinrichs, Director of Indigenous-Settler Relations of Mennonite Church Canada-- join host Chris Orme. Leah and Steve share the story of how they connected, where their work both overlaps and is unique to their respective identities as indigenous and white settler, and ways folks can participate in enacting the resolutions established in the passing of United Nation Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada.

Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, executive director of Churches for Middle East Peace, joins our host Chris Orme for the first episode of Season 3. Mae and Chris discuss different forms of advocacy, as well the spiritual formation that takes place through advocacy. 

Karolyn is the newest member of the Office of Social Justice team. She joins our team this week as the Justice Mobilizing and Advocacy Fellow, a one year position with our office. Karolyn comes to us with a background in Sociology after attending Calvin College. We are thrilled to welcome Karolyn to the team!

I grew up in a faith-based family with an aunt and uncle who spent most of their career as missionaries overseas. They spent many years in Japan and the Philippines establishing Christian churches. I heard enough stories from them when they visited on furlough to know that I was not equipped for their somewhat nomadic lifestyle. I love to set up roots in a community and have a large network of family and friends close by. Listening to their conversations about distant lands always brought me back to the question of how I can invest in my own community. 

June 20 is World Refugee Day, a day to honour the resilience and courage of refugees around the world and stand with them to show our support. This year, as we celebrate the contributions that people who were refugees have made to our communities, let us also acknowledge the barriers that the COVID-19 pandemic places on those seeking safety and protection. The pandemic has brought challenges to all of us and in particular to refugees abroad whose vulnerabilities have been exacerbated.

On May 20th, the Climate Witness Project had the privilege of hosting a book talk with professor and author Finis Dunaway. His new book, Defending the Arctic Refuge: A Photographer, an Indigenous Nation, and a Fight for Environmental Justice, takes a look at how photographer Lenny Kohm’s grassroots advocacy alongside the Gwich’in people helped protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

As Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Heritage month came to a close, a passage from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. sermon, “When Peace Becomes Obnoxious”, kept ringing in my ears:

[...] and if peace means this, I don’t want peace.

1) If peace means accepting second-class citizenship, I don’t want it.

2) If peace means keeping my mouth shut in the midst of injustice and evil, I don’t want it.

This is an excerpt from a sermon I recently preached at the CRC’s Campus Ministry at the University of Toronto (my alma mater!).

Words spoken by the wise bring them favor, 

    but the lips of fools consume them.

The words of their mouths begin in foolishness,

    and their talk ends in wicked madness;

yet fools talk on and on.