Social Justice

food distribution for immigrants

St John’s participates in Social Justice through a number of channels.

Racial Justice

In response to systemic violence against black lives and an official call for action from the national UUA, the St John’s Congregation, after serious study and reflection, passed a Commitment to Racial Justice at the annual Congregational meeting in June 2016. With this resolution, we make a long term-commitment to a journey toward multicultural understanding and action.

Social Justice Outreach
In addition to direct action, St John’s provides awards and project grants of $500 – $2000 to area non-profits involved in community action.

Found House (formerly Interfaith Hospitality Network)
We’re among several congregations that support FH/IHN, which provides hospitality to some of the 2,500 families that are homeless each year in Greater Cincinnati. We became a host congregation in fall 2023. Our 2024 hosting dates are July 7-14 & Nov. 17-27. Please see this SignUp Genius page for opportunities to help, and see our list of FAQs.

Found House has a home placement success rate of over 90%. Wanda Crawford coordinates St John’s volunteers, and also works at the organizational level for our pod of churches. St. John’s regular volunteers include children as well as adults.

Here is a blog about last fall’s hosting activities, https://stjohnsuu.org/foundhouse-sjuu-2023/. 

Hosting volunteers are asked to review our Found House volunteer manual.

Green Sanctuary

Join with those guiding our church “lifestyle” toward more sustainable, earth-friendly choices. We earned Green Sanctuary status through the UUA.

St. John’s Sanctuary and Immigration Team 

The St. John’s UU’s Sanctuary and Immigration Team (SIT) is active and affiliated with immigration, refugee, action and activist groups in Cincinnati, Northern Ky., Butler County, Ohio, and the State of Ohio.

In Dec. 2019, we hosted St. John’s Guest at Our Table, welcoming immigrant neighbors to dine with us.
Dining hall with people.
More than 200 people attended Global Stews, a multi-org. celebration welcoming immigrants, Feb. 2023.

Our church is a member of the Immigrant Dignity Coalition (IDC) through the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center (IJPC), of which St. John’s is a sponsor. 

Our team assists the Sanctuary at the Clifton United Methodist Church as a part of our Solidarity Congregation commitment. We also assist with a weekly food distribution for Hispanic immigrants in northern Hamilton County via The Willows Project.

Our monthly meeting takes place online on the 3rd Monday of the month at 7 p.m.  If you would like to be on the e-mail list or to join the SIT, please send your e-mail address to Sarah Loar Seibert (see member log-in page) and you will be added to this list.

Partner Church
These Friends of Szentlaszlo keep us connected to our Partner Church in Transylvania, Romania.

Peacemaking Initiative
In April 2008, our congregation voted to “make a primary church-wide, long-term commitment to Peace and Justice … that goes beyond Social Action and inspires all congregational activities.”

Welcoming Congregation
We extend a warm welcome to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals and their families.

Through UU, interfaith, and secular organizations, St. John’s members and friends have recently advocated for:
  • protecting voting rights; fair redistricting
  • reproductive rights and abortion access
  • an end to the death penalty, end to police brutality, prison reform, and returning citizens’ rights 
  • humane treatment of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers 
  • the movement for Black lives
  • LGBTQIA+ dignity and rights; opposing anti-trans and “don’t say gay” legislation in Ohio and Kentucky