Solidarity Summits are regional interfaith justice training and practice gatherings designed to strengthen the connections, skills, and capacities needed for this moment. These gatherings bring together Unitarian Universalists, people of faith across traditions, lay leaders, organizers, advocates, and community partners to strengthen local and regional networks, deepen relationships, and practice the kind of solidarity this moment demands. They are designed to help people gather across faith communities and organizing spaces to build the tools, trust, and strategy needed for the long work ahead.
The focus is on creating actions with a moral center and broad support where people with different backgrounds, experiences, and identities work together to address local issues. This moment calls us to build — and rebuild — our understanding of what it means spiritually to be neighbors and to engage in many forms of sacred community defense.
Civil rights, LBGTQ+ rights, clean water, clean air, and anti-war efforts succeeded because they had a broad base of support. The civil rights movement in the 1960’s was composed of many local actions. It wasn’t the result of top-down organizing, although the Southern Christian Leadership Center (SCLC) and Martin Luther King Jr. provided a national face to the movement.
The training for solidarity summit organizers mimics a solidarity summit. Not only do summit organizers learn how to organize a solidarity summit, but they also experience a solidarity summit.
Solidarity Summits are one-or two-day workshops that can be organized in 8 weeks if the organizing team has its act together. A Solidarity Summit must have at least two partner organizations, including a faith organization and a community partner. The UU We are Builders training is mandatory. There must be one or more training courses by a community partner and a hands-on practice based upon the community partner training courses. The summit must have a safety plan based upon an assessment of risks. The UU provided trainings focus is safety and skills that complement the community partner(s) trainings. Additional information is in the Solidarity Summit Toolkit. NOTE: DO NOT ORGANIZE A SOLIDARITY SUMMIT WITHOUT BEING TRAINED ON HOW TO ORGANIZE ONE.
Primary goals include:
• Building interfaith capacity for justice-centered organizing, advocacy, and public action
• Grounding participants in a deep legacy of creative and prophetic faith-rooted organizing
• Strengthening regional interfaith and community networks committed to sustained justice work
• Developing a shared moral narrative and practical toolkit across traditions
• Seeding concrete post-gathering actions, campaigns, and collaborations
If you are interested in holding a Solidarity Summit, contact John Prohodsky at treasurer@oruuvoices.org.
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