The 8th UU Principle: Thoughts from a White Cisgender Male

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The 8th Unitarian Universalist Principle: “We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, covenant to affirm and promote: journeying toward spiritual wholeness by working to build a diverse multicultural Beloved Community by our actions that accountably dismantle racism and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.”

First: White folks are responsible for white racism.

Second: A good place to start understanding the implications of structural racism is looking at white privilege. We have it, so we know about it, if only we look.

A long journey. If you want to go quickly, travel alone. If you want to go far, travel with company. Allies.

Charles Buckman-Ellis loved Kate Olson. She was a member of Groveland, as was he. He got his UU credentials in 1996 after 15 years as a Presbyterian clergy.

She and he lived in Minnesota for forty plus years. In that time she got her medical degree and practiced as a pediatrician. He got his M. Div. at United Seminary, worked for the Presbyterian church, mostly on justice issues, then retired at 43 to write.

Kate and Charlie left Minnesota on the Winter Solstice of 2014, moving into our house on Shadow Mountain in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. They became closer with their grandkids (primary motivation for the move) and loved coming home to the mountains.

Kate died this year in April. Charlie continues to live on Shadow Mountain.