Thank you so much to all of the congregations that have donated to TRUUsT this year! Your generosity allows us to continue to support trans religious professionals across Unitarian Universalism, and offer some space of sanctuary in an often hostile political climate.
Thank you so much to:
Vashon Island UU
First UU Portland, OR
First Parish Brewster
Arlington St Church
1st UU SF
We hope that your summer is going well, whether you’re yet deep into various ministries, taking a much needed vacation, or entering a sabbatical period. Regardless of where you are, we all know how important it is to prioritize REST, and yet even in the most progressive spaces, this is counter-cultural.
For this reason, we are proposing not only centering the concept of “sacred rest” at our retreat this year, but we are also proposing a shared exploration of the book Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. We hope this book helps us all enter into the spirit of interconnectedness and community that grows over time.
Image Description: Image of the book Braiding Sweetgrass on a green background. Book cover has image of a horizontal sweetgrass braid. Text on the cover reads, “‘A hymn of love to the world’ – Elizabeth Gilbert,” “Braiding Sweetgrass,” “Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants,” “Robin Wall Kimmerer.”
We are SO EXCITED FOR THE TRUUST RETREAT!!!
After several long years of waiting, we are gathering in person again.
Image Description: Kermit the frog flailing happily on office desk GIF
…and we need it so much.
TRUUsT members gather at retreats for mutual support, community, networking, care, and uplift. This year we are especially focused on these things. The world has been an extra hard place to be; for many of us, our professional lives have been extra stressful. This is a time to be together in the spirit of rest and connection.
TRUUsT Members – you can now register for the retreat! For more information, check your email or contact Sky Williams-Tao at admin@transuu.org.
As an organization, TRUUsT is moving to a leadership model with a very-part-time paid Director (Rev. Leela Sinha as Interim), a very-part-time paid Administrator (Rev. Sky Williams-Tao) and three volunteer leaders. We have recently elected our new team of three leaders.
CONGRATULATIONS TO: Eli, roddy, and Shana!! Thank you so much for your leadership and dedication to supporting trans and nonbinary UU religious professionals, and in shaping our path forward together. We’re so excited to be onboarding these new leaders and planning for the future of TRUUsT.
Thank you also to everyone who participated in the election, and who offered your discernment and care to the electoral process.
Finally, thank you to the outgoing leaders. We have had a team of incredible leaders that held TRUUsT during the years of the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. We celebrate these leaders. We are so grateful for their energy and time and effort. And we wish them lots of space and time for rest after this leadership transition.
Shout out to everyone helping to protect transgender and non-binary people! In the midst of the rise of transphobic hate-filled legislation, we are here.
Special shout out to TRUUsT members Rev. Ali KC Bell for xer presence in Maryland (https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/governor-moore-proclaims-today-international-transgender-day-of-visibility-in-maryland) and Rev. Jami Yandle for their witness in Texas.
TRUUsT has begun holding twice monthly social Zoom calls on the first Friday and Second Wednesday of every month. These calls are informal spaces for members to connect with one another and be together. So needed right now.
Zoom information for these calls can be found in emails to membership and the TRUUsT Facebook group.
Image text reads: TRUUsT Social Space. Join the group Second Wednesdays at 5pm PT, 6pm MT, 7pm CT, or 8pm ET for social and spiritual connections in a community of trans UU religious professionals.
Image text reads: Better Together TRUUST Social Space. Meets First Fridays at 2pm ET, 1pm CT, noon MT, or 11am PT.
CONGRATULATIONS to our members:
Rev. Paul Langston-Daley – celebrating 25 years in the ministry!
Arran Morton and Steven Leigh Williams – completing their MFC interviews and being welcomed into fellowship with the UUA!
2020. It’s been a long three years, and as we wind our way out of the silence, we wanted to say hello and give you a bit of an update.
First, we’re growing! We expect to be close to 150 members when all is said and done. We are pleased and honored and excited and humbled by the number of trans religious professionals who have joined us in the last few years, and grateful for everyone’s patience as we have moved through the onboarding backlog. If you are, or know someone who has not applied for membership and wishes to do so, now is a good time. If you did apply and you haven’t heard from us by April 15, check your spam folder, and if there’s nothing there, send an email to sky at admin@transuu.org and we’ll get you in process.
Second: we’re restructuring! Or maybe structuring-the-first-time is more accurate. As we grow, we need more structure and systems, so we’re putting them in. Longtime members will have seen evidence of this in things like setting up a better email system, revitalizing this blog, setting up regular online social events to supplement our regular retreats, and creating other backend improvements. If you’re a member, check your email for more details.
Third: as part of that restructuring, we have (very part-time) staff! Rev. Leela Sinha (ze/zim) is our interim director, and Rev. Sky Williams Tao (they/them) is our administrator. Please welcome them as they support us in moving forward into our future form. If you need to contact us, start with admin@transuu.org and you’ll get routed to the right person.
We have so many exciting ideas and possibilities ahead of us, and we’re so glad you’re reading along here as we pick up steam. Check back for more updates as we go!
Thank you so much for being here. We’re truly glad you’re with us.
Nothing We Do Will Be Perfect. The irony of the cover of the print issue of the spring 2019 UU World has not been lost on the membership of TRUUsT and our greater trans* community.
The UU World’s article titled “After L, G, and B” frames the trans experience by centering a white, heterosexual, cisgender woman’s experience. By doing so, it reduces trans people to objects—something that happens far too often in society and in our UU communities. The use of harmful slurs, the conflation of intersex and trans experience, and a repeated focus on surgery, hormones, and pronouns perpetuates stereotypes around trans experiences that devalues the gifts we have to bring to the world and Unitarian Universalism.
The impact of this article will have long-lasting effects. While the UU World has a vital role in communicating issues of importance to Unitarian Universalists around the world, often representing the leading edge and the best in our UU faith, it is that trust and faith in this magazine which makes this article all the more harmful. Well-meaning people who have no other known relationship to or interaction with trans lives will now believe that these words and actions are acceptable. They are not! Continue reading
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