Advocacy

Give-Me-A-Hand The terms “Social Justice” and “Advocacy” both imply an OCEAN of issues.

It was difficult to decide how and where to start.

What we’ve put together is an approach that explores ONE issue at a time, and explores it in a variety of ways.

Our hope is that by taking one issue at a time, we will develop awareness… but ultimately, our desire goes beyond awareness. We want to move forward as a Church in a unified struggle toward the alleviation of injustice, jumping into the messy grime of this OCEAN, and create real and lasting change.

The strategy we’ve created focuses on both awareness and action.

Topic: Human Trafficking

1.Local connections

What is currently happening in the surrounding communities? What programs are already established in our area? How can we help support them?

2.Articles and books

What books (secular and Christian) shed light on this issue?

Half The Sky by Nicholas Kristof
Girls Like Us by Rachel Lloyd
The Slave Next Door by Kevin Bales
Sold by Patricia McCormick
(a book discussion group will be hosted at Highlands in August--details to follow)

Recent articles:

Contractors Abuse Foreigners Who Staff U.S. Wars (NPR)
Sex Trafficking of Americans: The Girls Next Door (Vanity Fair)
Barry Estabrook’s ‘Tomatoland,’ an indictment of modern agriculture (Washington Post)

3.International connections

What does this issue look like in other parts of the world? What is being done to address this issue in other countries? What support can we offer?

www.dalitnetwork.org

4.Films

What documentaries or other films have tackled this issue?
Very Young Girls (watch a trailer here)
Call and Response (www.callandresponse.com)
Some great short clips:
CNN Freedom Project
Mercy Project Colorado
Trade

5.Legislation

What is currently being done in this area in terms of legislation? How can we help move our legislators by communicating effectively about issues that are important to us?

6. Additional Websites and Resources

7.Events and Action

What can do to help address this injustice?

As a culmination of this theme, on September 18, Highlands will be hosting a musical event called "Let My People Go" that will explore the history of slavery and the urgency of helping those victimized by modern day slavery. All proceeds will benefit local and international efforts.

Also, if you’re interested in pursuing some other volunteer opportunities, check out http://www.vneht.org/page/2

Some creative ideas:

Help your children run an awareness lemonade stand- advertise future events and donate the funds- have many families do this on the same weekend!
Play on the word "traffic" and promote awareness at major intersections throughout Denver during rush hour
Encourage families to host film & wine evenings, showing a film related to the topic and inviting discussion afterwards
Coordinate the writing of letters to area strip joints, places that sell pornography, etc. (all of these industries are closely connected to trafficking
Victims are most often identified by the general public. Check out the list of what to look for at www.humantrafficking.org and call the National Human Trafficking Hotline if you think you’ve come into contact with a victim: 1.888.373.7888
Buy fairly traded goods and products to ensure workers have been treated fairly. Go to www.transfairusa.org.
Write your local state representatives and senators to request improved legislation around human trafficking in your state.
Donate your time or money to anti-trafficking organizations.

8.Bible

What does the Bible say about this issue? How does Jesus direct us to move in this area?

end faq

Topic: Poverty

In the U.S.:

$43,300 The US median family income
$16,900 The US poverty level (family of four)
12.5% (35.9 million) of Americans live in poverty

In the World:

Today, 1.3 billion neighbors live in desperate poverty
30,000 children die every day of hunger and preventable diseases
Thirteen million people die every year from diseases we know how to prevent
2.8 billion live on less than two dollars a day

Causes of Poverty:

In some instances poverty is a result of poor life choices such as addiction, sexual promiscuity and laziness; however as Stark points out, we never make choices in a vacuum. Factors like a lack of education, unemployment, racism, and neglect in childhood will all influence the choices one makes. Also, poor life choices are but a fraction of the causes of poverty. Unbiblical worldviews, disasters caused by nature or humanity, lack of technology, unequal distribution of resources, and unequal power are other causes.

Book possibilities:

1.Under the overpass: A Journey of Faith on the Streets – Mike Yankoski

From Publishers Weekly

Yankoski's parents were right: It was crazy to live as a homeless person in six American cities for five months; fortunately, this crazy idea makes for quite a story. Yankoski, a Christian college student, challenges the reader to learn about faith, identify with the poor and find "more forgotten, ruined, beautiful people than we ever imagined existed, and more reason to hope in their redemption." The journey begins at a Denver rescue mission and ends on a California beach. Along the way, Yankoski and a friend learn the perils of poor hygiene and the secrets of panhandling. They meet unfortunates like Andrew, who squanders his musical talent to feed his drug habit, and hustlers like Jake, who gives the pair tips about how to look and sound more pitiful to get more money.

2. Walking with the Poor

Theology, spirituality, and social science are synthesized in the definitive book on how Christian mission can contribute to overcoming poverty and dismantling systematic social evil. Myers explores Christian views of poverty, its causes, and how it is experience differently in different cultures.

3. With Justice For All – John Perkins

“I am persuaded that the Church, as the steward of this gospel, holds the key to justice in our society. Either justice will come through us or it will not come at all.” John Perkins’s optimistic view of justice becoming a reality starts and ends with the Church. With Justice for All is Perkins’s invitation to live out the gospel in a way that brings good news to the poor and liberty to the oppressed (from Luke 4:18). This invitation is extended to every racial and ethnic group to be reconciled to one another, to work together to make our land all God wants it to be. And it is a blueprint—a practical strategy for the work of biblical justice in our time. In an age of changing demographics where the need to break the cycle of poverty is staring many of us in the face, Perkins offers hope through practical ministry principles—that work. This outstanding resource includes “Reflection” questions for personal or group study as well as “Interaction” sessions for groups to participate in activities together.

4. Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger – Ronald J. Sider

Rich Christians In An Age Of Hunger is written for our times, when every day more than 34,000 children die of starvation and preventable diseases, and 1. 3 billion human beings live in relentless, unrelieved poverty worldwide. Why is there still so much poverty in the world? Conservatives blame sinful individual choices and laziness. Liberals condemn economic and social structures. Who is right? Who is wrong? Both, according to Ronald Sider in this newly revised, expanded and updated edition of Rich Christians In An Age Of Hunger. Sider explains that poverty is the result of complex causes, and then he presents practical, workable proposes for change, proposals that should be taken up by every man and every woman who seeks to deserve the title "Christian" and to apply and to follow the teaches of Jesus of Nazareth in the modern world. -- Midwest Book Review

5. Evangelicalism and Social Responsibility – Vernon Grounds

Short and powerful handbook – you can download it for free by following this link

6. Neither Riches Nor Poverty – Craig Blomberg

Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. (Proverbs 30:8) One of the most difficult questions facing Christians today is that of the proper attitude toward possessions. In wealthy nations such as Britain and the USA, individuals accumulate much and yet are daily exposed to the plight of the poor, whether the homeless on their own city streets or starving children on their TV screens. What action should we take on behalf of the poor? What should we do with our own possessions? In Neither Poverty nor Riches Craig Blomberg asks what the Bible has to say about these issues. Avoiding easy answers, he instead seeks a comprehensive biblical theology of possessions. And so he begins with the groundwork laid by the Old Testament and the ideas developed in the intertestamental period, then draws out what the whole New Testament has to say on the subject, and finally offers conclusions and applications relevant to our contemporary world. Neither Poverty Nor Riches is one book that all should read who are concerned with issues of poverty and wealth.

7. Where There Are No Jobs – David Befus

http://www.wheretherearenojobs.com/

People are expected to work to be able to earn their daily bread. But in a world with increasing levels of unemployment, it gets harder every day to find work. This book presents a variety of methodologies to respond to this need, and explains how the promotion of productive economic activity contributes to the health of communities. It is an important service methodology for transformational development through:

Service Enterprises
Public Good Support
Business Incubators
Micro Credit & Revolving Loans
Business as Mission

Governments and international agencies need to recognize that productive economic activity is one of many tools for social transformation. Economic development should be added to the "community toolbox," along with health, education, and other traditional social promotion disciplines.

8. Nickel and Dimed—Barbara Ehrenreich

Acclaimed as an instant classic upon publication, Nickel and Dimed has sold more than 1.5 million copies and become a staple of classroom reading. Chosen for “one book” initiatives across the country, it has fueled nationwide campaigns for a living wage. Funny, poignant, and passionate, this revelatory firsthand account of life in low-wage America—the story of Barbara Ehrenreich’s attempts to eke out a living while working as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing-home aide, and Wal-Mart associate—has become an essential part of the nation’s political discourse.

Now, in a new afterword, Ehrenreich shows that the plight of the underpaid has in no way eased: with fewer jobs available, deteriorating work conditions, and no pay increase in sight, Nickel and Dimed is more relevant than ever.

You can check out World Bank’s publications online here.

Movie possibilities:

Precious, City of Joy, Constant Gardener

Biblical themes:

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25: 35-36, 40

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? ?To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humblywith your God.” (Micah 6:8)

This sacrificial giving that God desires for us is demonstrated beautifully through the gift of the widow’s mites as seen in Mark 12:41-44. While others around the woman were giving large sums of money out of their wealth she gave only a fraction of a penny, but she gave sacrificially out of what she had. Jesus said, “They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on” (Mark 12:44). As Blomberg says, “This demonstrates that it is the percentage or amount of sacrifice, not the net giving, that counts in God’s eyes.”

“He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?" declares the LORD.” (Jeremiah 22:16)

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39)

Local connection:

Homelessness in Denver

Recent studies estimate that the people of Denver give more than $4 million a year to panhandlers. And the truth is many panhandlers aren’t homeless and most of the homeless don’t panhandle. If you want to help, there’s a better way to give.
60% of the homeless are people in families with children
42% of the homeless people in Denver are women.
40% of the homeless people are working
Most commonly reported reason for homelessness in Denver are loss of job (35%), housing costs (31%), and the breakup of a family (20%).

Poverty Resources

Websites:

World Bank Group - http://www.worldbank.org/ (Working for a World Free of Poverty) – crazy amounts of info
Economy of Love – Shane Claiborne http://economyoflove.org/
CCDA - http://www.ccda.org/
Denver’s Road Home – 10 year plan to end homelessness
http://www.urbanministry.org/johnperkins (sermons/talks available)

Action steps:

Specific: “Back-Lot” is a project (Mile High Ministries) which would create safe and stable housing for 6 more families at Joshua Station. They need funding and help to make this happen.

They are also asking for churches to sponsor a “room” and equip it with furniture, decorations, etc. while mentoring the family that will come to live there. They are very relational- so connecting, supporting, praying and developing a relationship with a family for the time they are in the program would be wonderful as well.

*We are signed up to serve a meal to about 75 homeless people at Joshua Station on February 24! We will need about 10-15 people to bring food, help serve, and stay to clean up and babysit after dinner. Let Kim know if you want to be a part of this: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Stay tuned for additional information.<

General:

The problem and causes of poverty are vast and complex so the solution is not simple. However, it is important that we not become overwhelmed and realize we can take small, practical steps to make a difference.

Do Something. “When we threw the question up at God, ‘God why don’t you do something about the masses of our population that are living in poverty?’ We heard God respond, ‘I did do something, I created you.” (Shane Claiborne)

Take Small Steps. “Small steps to a better world…that is all that Christ calls us to do. Many believers who have come to know Christ live not in fear, but rather put their faith into action by expressing the love of Jesus, sharing the truth of the gospel and pursuing the justice of God.” (John Perkins)

Root Our Actions Firmly in God’s Truth. We should ask, “Are we faithfully obeying God’s will as it has been disclosed in God’s Word?” (Grounds, 1)

Educate Yourself and Spread the Word.

Live Simply. Become a conscious consumer. Use less – give more.

Invest Wisely. Invest in ministries and programs that are equipping people toward future economic sufficiency (this is community development). God wills justice for the poor, not occasional charity – investing your resources (money, time, talent) takes more time but is a worthwhile endeavor.