On the Road to General Conference:

Women's Division Submits Resolutions

by Dana E. Jones

Women’s Division directors are seeking denomination-wide action on seven issues including public education, hate crimes, child soldiers, responsible travel, world peace, biblical language and adoption.

The directors approved resolutions calling for United Methodist policy, advocacy and action in these areas during their fall meeting. The resolutions are being submitted to the denomination’s top policy-making body, the General Conference, which will meet May 2-12 in Cleveland, Ohio.

The resolutions grew out of the division’s ongoing mission with women, youth and children across the United States and around the world. Here’s a look at what each resolution calls for:

Public education

The resolution titled "Public Education and the Church in the USA" addresses inequities in the quality of public education asking United Methodists to become involved in supporting public education, teachers and students.

"Education is a right of all children," the resolution says. "We have a moral responsibility to support, strengthen and reform public schools."

The resolution calls on local churches, annual conferences and general agencies of the church to:

• Establish partnerships with local public schools such as providing after-school, vacation, enrichment, adopt-a-school, literacy and reading programs;
• Learn about public-school issues;
• Encourage thoughtful public-school reform and innovation and monitor reform efforts;
• Advocate for adequate public-school funding and equitable distribution of state funds to eliminate disparities between rich and poor communities;
• Honor teachers and push for better teacher training and professional development;
• Provide parenting classes;
• Reject racial- and gender-biased curricula and testing;
• Advocate for quality early preschool education for all children;
• Call upon Congress to fully fund legislation to repair and modernize schools and to build new schools;
• Encourage development of smaller schools;
• Advocate for public education as a basic human right; and
• Reject funding of schools solely from fund raising and state alternative revenues such as gambling revenues.

Hate crimes

Responding to increasing numbers of hate crimes against people of color, gay men and lesbians, U.S. religious minorities, and women, the Women’s Division’s resolution "Hate Crimes in the United States" calls on United Methodists to speak out.

"When church member do nothing about hate language or horrifying atrocities such as the murders of James Byrd Jr. and Matthew Shepard and have not actively taught tolerance, we participate in the social support of hate," the resolution says.

It calls upon the church through general boards, agencies and appropriate structures to:

• Provide biblically-based resources that address hate crimes and intolerance for adults and youth;
• Create resources to help United Methodist analyze the language of intolerance among groups that use religious language and emotionally-charged images;
• Advocate for federal and state hate-crime legislation;
• Push for congressional hearings on hate crimes and ask governors to appoint task forces to investigate hate crimes at a state level;
• Provide support of victims of hate crimes;
• Track hate crimes through news media and other sources;
• Engage in a media campaign to promote tolerance and to report hate crimes; and
• Educate church members that silence equals complicity with hate.

Child soldiers

The division’s resolution titled "Banning the Use of the Child Soldier" recognizes that "from generation to generation, violence begets violence, as the abused grow up to become abusers." The resolution decries recruiting and training of children as soldiers and the targeting of children, especially girls, for sexual abuse and gender-based violence.

"In all, an estimated 2 million children have been killed in situations of armed conflict since 1987, while three times that number have been seriously injured or permanently disabled," the resolution says. "In zones of conflict, international advocacy and intercession are essential to ensure that parties to conflict commit themselves to the protection of children from exploitation, abuse and brutalization."

The resolution directs the United Methodist General Boards of Global Ministries and Church and Society and the Bishops’ Initiative on Children and Poverty to work with local churches to implement recommendations of the World Council of Churches, including:

• An immediate moratorium on recruitment and participation of children as soldiers;
• Demobilization of existing child soldiers;
• Working to prevent compulsory or voluntary recruitment or re-recruitment of former soldiers, particularly girl soldiers; and
• Promote increasing the minimum age for recruitment and participation in hostilities from 15 to 18 as called for in an optional protocol to the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The resolution also urges United Methodists to demand that the U.S. Senate ratify the convention. Only the United States and Somalia have not ratified it.

Responsible travel

Noting that the travel and tourism industry is one of the fastest growing and largest sectors of the global economy, the Women’s Division "Responsible Travel" resolution asks United Methodists to examine the industry’s impact on local economies, disadvantaged communities, women and children, indigenous peoples, and the environment.

"To travel is not to take a vacation from our faith," the resolution says. "Just as we are called to express hospitality by welcoming the stranger, we are also called to abide in love and justice with our neighbors when we visit them."

The resolution calls on United Methodists to practice sustainable tourism including:

• Supporting indigenous and community involvement in planning, implementing and monitoring tourism development;
• Creation of travel/tourism programs that combat poverty;
• Respect of cultural norms and traditions; and
• Developing forms of tourism that do not harm the environment.

The resolution also urges United Methodists to:

• Learn and respect codes of conduct and cultural practices of places visited;
• Raise awareness of and impact policies on sex tourism and trafficking of women and children;
• Purchase locally-produced souvenirs when traveling;
• Patronize cruise ships that do not pollute the environment or exploit workers;
• Support tour packages that do minimal damage to the environment;
• Take action against companies that exploit workers, the environment and local economies;
• Support ratification of U.N. conventions that impact travel and tourism including those on the rights of the child, elimination of discrimination against women and elimination of racial discrimination; and
• Monitor travel practices of United Methodist bodies.

World peace

"Pillars of Peace for the 21st Century: A New Policy Statement on the United Nations" reaffirms United Methodist support of the United Nations. The resolution begins:

"The world needs a new vision, a vision of peace rooted in justice, a vision of a world bound together in intentional community dedicated to the well-being of all people and all creation. The United Nations, however limited, represents the best efforts made so far by governments and peoples of the world toward such a vision."

The resolution calls for the denomination to adopt seven "pillars of peace" including:

1. Political accountability among regional bodies, governments, local authorities, peoples’ organizations and global economic structures.
2. Economic accountability from governments, financial institutions, multilateral organizations, transnational corporations and other economic sectors.
3. Legal accountability, which requires an international legal system capable of preventing and resolving conflicts, protecting human rights and enforcing international law.
4. Liberation and empowerment of all peoples including marginalized groups.
5. Peace and conflict resolution including nurturing of a culture of peace; use of non-violent conflict-resolution techniques; common security; and an end to unrestrained production, sale and use of weapons.
6. Human dignity and rights extended to all communities and individuals.
7. Preservation of the environment.

Biblical language

The resolution titled "Biblical Language" affirms and strengthens United Methodists’ commitment to inclusiveness by calling for:

• Clergy and laity to use diverse metaphorical biblical images,
• The United Methodist Publishing House to update guidelines for using inclusive language to reflect issues of gender, race, age and ability,
• Updating of "Words That Hurt, Words That Heal," a denominational guide to inclusive language usage,
• Denomination-wide study of "Words That Hurt, Words That Heal" from 2004-2008,
• Development of guidelines for use of inclusive language to be included in the next edition of The United Methodist Book of Worship.

Adoption

Recognizing an increase in international adoptions, the Women’s Division is asking the denomination to set guidelines for members to follow when considering adoption in its resolution "Adoption in a Global Context." The resolution says:

"In a time when parents are seeking to adopt children, and when many children are needing a loving, caring family, The United Methodist Church affirms adoption as a means to create and strengthen families."

The resolution addresses challenges of adoption including separation of children from their cultures of origin, the desire to adopt babies rather than older children who are in foster care, and debates over the "correctness" of cross-racial adoption. It calls upon United Methodists to:

• Encourage adoptive parents to respect and affirm the cultural and racial background of adopted children;
• Make adoption more affordable;
• Promote alternatives to adoption that improve opportunities for children to remain in their communities and countries of origin;
• Provide adoptive parents access to counseling;
• Where desirable, assist contact between adoptive and birth families; and
• Encourage use of licensed adoption agencies only.

Dana E. Jones is editor of Response.

• Response
• Responsively Yours
• United Methodist Women
• Women's Division