Canadian Unitarians for Social Justice
A national faith-based organization that supports Unitarian values through action
Important: The CUSJ, Canadian Unitarians for Social Justice, will continue. At the Special General Meeting for members on Saturday November 26, 2022, a motion for dissolving the CUSJ was defeated. The new board will continue CUSJ as is, whilst exploring options to change and renew. Stand by for more details later this week.
Faith Tested: Deep Throat and Zombie Credits in Glasgow. by Ahti Tolvanen, CUSJ Delegate to COP26 It began on Halloween. I was pleased to be the sole representative, of Canadian Unitarians and CUSJ on site- as well as at meetings on the COP Interfaith Liason Committee. I was also honored to accept an invitation to … Read more
Bob Van Alstyne First President of CUSJ Photo of Bob Van Alstyne and his life partner, Bert McBain, also a CUSJ activist. We are sad to report the recent death of the first official president of CUSJ, Bob Van Alstyne, Nov. 22, 2020. Born in Wetaskwin, Alberta, in 1932 Bob ended life with both a … Read more
CUSJ Outraged at Brutal Murder of George Floyd. 2020 06 04 For Immediate Release As Canadian Unitarians we are touched profoundly by the events in the U.S., arising out of the murder of George Floyd by police. The massive uprising of anguish and rage that has gripped the U.S. has moved people around the world. … Read more
CUSJ is a member of the Climate Action Network and signed on to this long but informative letter detailing what is needed in a government oriented to acting on the climate emergency. Dear Prime Minister Trudeau, Congratulations on your re-election to lead Canada’s government at this pivotal time in history. The next few years are … Read more
The CUSJ Board welcomes a new Board member and Webmaster, Terri Palmer, who happened to be sitting right beside Cym at our 2019 AGM. This was her first time attending a CUSJ AGM! I consider this to be marvellously serendipitous, and hope that she will enjoy the chance to connect with and serve UU social-justice … Read more
On March 14 2018, the Québec Chapter of the CUSJ attended Myron Frankman’s talk on Basic Income, which was hosted by Citizens in Action. Frankman’s talk was wide-ranging, and included an appeal for true global community as a panacea to climate change and catastrophe. Basic income can be seen as one step in the journey … Read more
Top photo: CUSJ Québec Chapter members Susan Czarnocki, Cym Gomery, Genevieve Patterson and Christina Duvander with the speaker, Elisabeth Patterson. On February 11, 2018, I made my way through the icy streets of Montréal to the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, to attend Elisabeth Patterson’s talk on the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of … Read more
(above: Hosts Steven Staples and Anne-Marie Grondin) On December 7, 2017, politicians, peace organizations and others gathered in Center Block on Parliament Hill in Ottawa to celebrate Setsuko Thurow and ICAN, days before the latter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. CUSJ’s Québec chapter was invited in its capacity as an International Peace Bureau member, and Board … Read more
About 50 people from the First Unitarian Congregation of Ottawa attended the Ottawa Pride parade on August 27th 2017, and this number included CUSJ members Gary Campbell (our national treasurer), Rev Len De Roche, Alec Campbell, Maryon O’Hagan and Bob Stevenson. Our banner was also on display last Wednesday on Parliament Hill during the event organized … Read more
The International Day of Peace is an annual holiday on September 21st, dedicated to ending war and violence. CUSJ’s partner, Canadian Voice of Women for Peace (VOW) organized Peace Circles in different towns and cities, to celebrate a much needed spirit of love and peace and spread it all over the world. CUSJ accepted the invitation of Canadian … Read more
Left to right: Rachel Garber, John Mackley, Adele Ernstrom, Sheila Laursen, Phyllis Baxter, Nancy Graham, Patricia Phillip, Rev. Carole Martignacco, Christina Duvander, Cym Gomery On July 2nd 2017, the CUSJ Québec Chapter met in a bucolic setting–at the home of Uma Nigam in Canton de Hatley, the site of the UU Estrie summer picnic. The picnic … Read more
CUSJ’s AGM has come and gone, but our theme of looking back and moving forward with love and justice carries on. From an organizational perspective, I am grateful to have a mix of long-serving and dedicated Board members as well as four newly elected members, (three of whom were instrumental in forming brand new regional … Read more
Photo: President Margaret Rao thanks our keynote speaker Tim McSorley of the ICLMG, and Rev. Lynn Harrison, who provided the Invocation. On Friday, May 12th 2017, CUSJ members from across Canada gathered in Toronto for our AGM, an occasion to look back on our activities and successes in the past year, to take stock of the … Read more
CUSJ is pleased to announce that a new regional CUSJ chapter has been formed in Québec. The new chapter brings together social activists from the Eastern Townships (UU Estrie community; Montréal (the Unitarian Church of Montreal); and the West Island (Lakeshore Unitarian Universalist Congregation). The CUSJ-Québec letter of intent, submitted to the Board, stated that the chapter wishes to work on: … Read more
CUSJ is pleased to announce that a new local CUSJ chapter has been formed in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The three founders–Bob Manson, Susan J. Woods, and Sally Palmer Woods–all members of Lakehead Unitarian Fellowship–stated that the CUSJ Thunder Bay Chapter intends to work towards social justice locally, provincially, and nationally, because they feel that this multi-level approach … Read more
Under current laws, Canadian UU congregational chapters are prohibited, since the CUSJ is not a charity, and this would constitute a derogation from the neutrality required in order for congregations to maintain their charitable status. See “Engaging in Allowable Activities” on the CRA website. Note, however, that the CUC encourages individual UUers to join the CUSJ, and to … Read more
Early Winter Greetings CUSJ Members All! I know most of the country, even our members in Victoria, have been hit with unseasonably cold temperatures in November. Colder than normal temperatures are predicted across the country for the month of December too, according to Environment Canada. At least the feds haven’t cut funding to the weather … Read more
CUSJ held a special general meeting at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ottawa’s new home (400 McArthur) to approve new bylaws in order to comply with the updated Canada Corporations Act.
February is CUC Resolutions Month There are many resolutions coming before this year’s annual meeting at the May Conference and AGM. Some relate to governance, active democracy, CUC voice, and 3 are related to social action. One relates to climate change, one to the Enbridge pipeline, and one calls for the repeal of C-31 – … Read more