Social Action
Bridges Program
What is Social Action?
Social action is when we join with others to actively work on solving problems in our community. Social action can be direct, such as feeding hungry people or cleaning up a polluted beach, or it can be indirect, such as organizing a demonstration to protest the war or lobbying your city government to fund after-school programs. You don’t have to be an activist, or event an experienced leader, to engage in social action. Many people get involved in social action activities because they see or directly experience a problem that they want to see changed. Children and youth have been very involved in social action around the world, particularly on issues such as child labor, human rights, poverty, religious freedom, education, and diversity.
What do I need to do?
You have seven goals to complete in this milestone. You will complete at least X learning experiences for this milestone. If you complete a learning experience for one goal, it counts for that goal only (so, no double counting!).
Everyone who achieves this milestone needs to complete one core learning experiences:.
Take a look at the list of learning experiences and mark the ones you might be interested in.
6.1 Know how to organize and lead a social action project. Experiment with the skills needed to build and sustain a social action movement.
☐ Social Action Leader (required)
6.2 Be familiar with the different types of social action activities and organizations in our local area and the larger world. (Complete at least one. For learning experiences marked with an asterisk: you must choose activities that relate to social action & social action groups/organizations if completing for this goal)
☐ Alternative Energy
☐ Atheism*
☐ Breaking Borders
☐ Community Issues*
☐ Community Organizing
☐ Community Groups*
☐ Congregational Topics *
☐ Creating Peace
☐ Differently Abled
☐ Disaster Preparedness *
☐ Divestment
☐ Fighting Able-ism
☐ Fighting Homophobia
☐ Fighting Poverty
☐ Fighting Racism
☐ Fighting Sexism
☐ Fighting Xenophobia
☐ General Assembly *
☐ Healthy Schools *
☐ Human Rights
☐ Human Sexuality *
☐ International Organizations *
☐ Labor Leaders
☐ Labor Movement
☐ Land of Israel *
☐ Latino/Chicano Community *
☐ Native-American Community *
☐ Organizing Organizations *
☐ Physical Abilities *
☐ Refugees: On the Move *
☐ Save the Earth
☐ Suffrage
☐ UUs in Detroit *
☐ UUs in Michigan *
☐ UU’s in Politics *
☐ UU’s in Science *
☐ UU’s in the Arts *
☐ UU’s in the News *
☐ UU’s in the Social Sciences *
☐ UUs in the US *
☐ Walking Softly *
☐ Water Conservation *
☐ Women in Community *
☐ Women’s Rights
☐ Youth and the Law *
☐ Youth in Community
☐ Youth in the Military *
☐ Youth Rights
6.3 Participate in at least 5 social action projects including serving people who are different religion from oneself, those who are differently-abled, socially oppressed or marginalized, of a different age group, and who are economically disadvantaged. (complete at least one)
☐ Fighting Able-ism
☐ Fighting Homophobia
☐ Fighting Poverty
☐ Fighting Racism
☐ Fighting Sexism
☐ Fighting Xenophobia
☐ Human Rights
☐ Labor Movement
☐ Refugees: On the Move
☐ US-Mexico Relations
☐ Women’s Rights
☐ Youth and the Law
☐ Youth in Community
☐ Youth in the Military
☐ Youth Rights
6.4 Be able to think critically about important social issues in our church, local community, state, nation and world. (complete at least one)
☐ Community Issues
☐ Congregational Topics (must choose activity related to social action)
☐ Conscious Consumer
☐ Critical Thinking (overview)
☐ Critical Thinking about the World
☐ Critical Thinking about Religion
☐ Critical Thinking about Life
☐ Divestment
☐ Ecology
☐ Fighting Able-ism
☐ Fighting Homophobia
☐ Fighting Poverty
☐ Fighting Racism
☐ Fighting Sexism
☐ Fighting Xenophobia
☐ Human Rights
☐ International Organizations
☐ It’s all relative!
☐ Labor Movement
☐ Legal Matters
☐ Men in Community
☐ Native-American Community
☐ Public Health
☐ Ready for the Future
☐ Refugees: On the Move
☐ Representative Democracy
☐ Save the Earth
☐ Social Work
☐ Soul Search (must choose activity related to social action)
☐ UU’s in Politics
☐ US-Mexico Relations
☐ Water Conservation
☐ Women in Community
☐ Women’s Rights
☐ World Community (must choose activity related to social action)
☐ Youth and the Law
☐ Youth in Community
☐ Youth in the Military
☐ Youth Rights
6.5 Learn a variety of advocacy tools (eg letter writing campaigns) and how to apply them in different domains of practice (eg, local policy advocacy). (complete at least two; for learning experiences marked with an asterisk, you must choose activities that relate to advocacy, if completing for this goal)
☐ Advocacy
☐ Art of Communication*
☐ Citizenship
☐ Community Organizing
☐ Conscious Consumer
☐ Drama *
☐ Divestment
☐ Fun with Computers*
☐ General Assembly*
☐ Labor Music
☐ Legal Matters *
☐ Letter writing *
☐ Protest Music
☐ Public Speaking *
☐ Video Production *
6.6 Learn about and participate in UU social action on a local, regional, national or international level. (complete at least one)
☐ UUs in Detroit
☐ UUs in Michigan
☐ UU’s in Politics
☐ UU’s in Science
☐ UU’s in the Arts
☐ UU’s in the News
☐ UU’s in the Social Sciences
☐ UUs in the US
☐ Other learning experiences may be considered for this goal, if they involve UU social actions.
6.7 Be able to articulate the relationship between social action and UU principles. Be familiar with UU’s who have made major contributions through social action. (choose one, but it must activities must relate to social action if completed for this goal)
☐ Suffrage
☐ UUs in Detroit
☐ UU’s in History
☐ UU’s in Literature
☐ UUs in Michigan
☐ UU’s in Politics
☐ UU’s in Science
☐ UU’s in the Arts
☐ UU’s in the News
☐ UU’s in the Social Sciences
☐ UUs in the US
☐ UUs through the Ages
☐ US-Mexico Relations