Did you know that "liberal" California Senator Barbara Boxer and "conservative" Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas have something in common? United Methodist Women, as part of the 2002 Washington Legislative Briefing, visited both of their offices. Twenty-eight Social Action Coordinators, representing 27 Conferences, convened in Washington, DC between September 20-23, 2002 to learn, share ideas, and seek justice for "All the World’s Children." Co-planned by Susie Johnson, Executive Secretary for Public Policy, and Julie Taylor, Executive Secretary for Children, Youth and Families, we examined the lives of children through the prism of global trade, poverty, health, labor, trafficking and U.S. aid to Africa.

Workshops were facilitated by Ray Almeida from Bread for the World, Danielle Ewen from Children’s Defense Fund, Linda Golodner from National Consumer’s League, Linda Walling from the Universal Healthcare Action Network and Ritu Sharma and Beth Meyers from Women’s EDGE.

Workshop reporters were: Anna Biggins (East Ohio Conference); Cynthia Cooper (Florida Conference); Jane Goodspeed (Central Texas Conference); Mabel Unser (Missouri East Conference); and Barbara Ford Young (Southwest Texas Conference).

Social Action Coordinators carried messages from the Senate to the House of Representatives saying:

Jim Winkler, General Secretary of the General Board of Church and Society, gave words of welcome and updated the group on Church and Society’s efforts on behalf of peaceful engagement with Iraq.

Contact your Conference Social Action Coordinators to get copies of materials to learn more about key legislative issues impacting "All the World’s Children."

Action for Racial Justice

Judy Dirks, Social Action Coordinator for the Pacific Northwest Conference proposed content to the Charter for Racial Justice: Tools for Local Units Implementation. She has asked district coordinators to add several of the Hate Crimes Action Alerts to the document — she has distributed copies of the Action Alerts to all her district counterparts.

Joanne Hayden, UMW President in the Alaska Missionary Conference, participated in the development of the Governor’s Commission on Tolerance 2001 Community Action Guide, Ten Ways to a More Tolerant Alaska That Celebrates Our Diversity of People and Cultures. Her testimony before the commission is included in the 8^th way: "Look Long Range." Here is the text from the guide:

In the fall of each year, the conference also presents an Annual Racial Justice Award.

"I attended the United States Conference on AIDS (USCA) in Anaheim, California, September 19-22, 2002. Over 3,500 members of the community fighting HIV/AIDS participated in workshops, institutes, and sessions making this the largest conference to date. The meeting left me so encouraged and motivated, I came back to South Carolina and participated in the Wateree AIDS Task Force "Dining with Friends" fund raising program. I sponsored a dinner at my local church on Saturday, October 5, 2002, at 7:00 pm and raised over $3,000.00. These funds came from people attending the dinner and also community leaders, attorneys, doctors, and friends.

The Task Force helps HIV and AIDS patients pay for their medications, which can cost as much as $600.00 for one prescription. The Task Force also helps patients buy groceries, pay their overdue rent and utility bills. Not everyone with the illnesses qualifies for public assistance and for those who qualify for assistance it takes time.

HIV/AIDS continues to be one of the #1 killer(s) of our young people. South Carolina ranks 7^th in the nation for the number of reported cases of HIV infection and 9^th for those living with HIV/AIDS. Policy challenges are prevention. People Living with AIDS (PLWAS) should be the key players in policy making. To win the fight against AIDS we must create meaningful policy changes that identify and overcome the challenges.

Feeling loved by family, friends, and community is very important to someone who is suffering form HIV/AIDS. They want to know who the heroes are. Our heroes are the ones out there willing to get involved, not afraid to speak out whether you lose you job or your peers. Every community needs to promote prevention. If it was not for prevention his country would be worst off than we are today. Education is the key. All workshops and institutes were designed for you to return home and get involved and treat everyone like they are special. Fannie Lou Hammer said, "We are just sick and tired of being sick and tired."

Fight the virus and not the people who have it. I have gained a greater understanding of the need for a national HIV/AIDS policy agenda to be implemented at all levels of government, local state and federal."

We are the world’s children.

United Methodist Women were present in every facet of this event. Even before the event began, United Methodist Women were asked at Schools of Mission and online to participate in the "Say Yes to Children" Campaign which brought in 95 million pledges and set a Guinness World Record as the largest international pledge campaign ever. Education was the concern voiced by the majority who responded. Melba Smith, Julie Taylor and Liz Calvin were participants in Preparatory meetings before the Special Session. Melba also met with the Child Rights Caucus preceding each meeting in order to offer suggestions for the Plan of Action governments might adopt. United Methodist Women cosponsored a March & Rally for Children’s Rights at the opening of the Special Session. More than 400 came to show support for children, including Diane Fielder, Julie Taylor and Melba Smith, who were the NGO representatives for the Women’s Division to the Special Session. At the end of this historic meeting, specific goals and strategies were adopted that focused on four major areas: 1) promoting healthy lives, 2) providing quality education, 3) protecting against abuse, exploitation and violence, and 4) combating HIV/AIDS. The UMW Children’s Campaign addresses all of these, especially education.

…We are the children of the world,

on Children and delivered in a speech by two children at the opening meeting.