U*Us Can't Help It. They Just Can't Help It. . .

uugrrl just made another great post on her excellent 'Speaking Truth To Power' blog that validates and reiterates something that I have been saying for years now. . . U*Us effectively support abusive clergy by doing nothing or next to nothing when victims of clergy misconduct, sexual misconduct or otherwise, bring complaints against abusive U*U clergy.

Here is an "annotated" version of my response to uugrrl's post that eloquently appeals to do nothing U*Us to start actually doing something about clergy sexual misconduct.

Very well said uugrrl.

Edmund Burke's famous saying -

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

is quite regrettably all too applicable to how U*Us respond to clergy misconduct of all kinds, to say nothing of other U*U injustices and abuses. . .

Allow me to paraphrase Albert Einstein's similar quote -

The U*U World is an "UNSAFE SECT"; not because of the U*Us who are evil, but because of the U*Us who don't do anything about it.

I remember confronting a certain unmentionable U*U minister from Ottawa about the fact that he and two other unmentionable Canadian U*U ministers had done absolutely nothing to affirm and promote provide justice, equity and compassion when I handed them a package of documents regarding the demeaning and abusive (non-sexual) clergy misconduct of U*Us know who. This U*U minister and two other Canadian U*U ministers conducted the first "peer review" of the unmentionable minister in question and they completely ignored the serious and well-documented complaint that I filed with them.

When I challenged him about their complicit negligence when I encountered him some years later at an anti-globalization protest in Ottawa, where he busy affirming and promoting the inherent worth and dignity of Ottawa police officers by hurling donut jokes at the overweight officers. . . his lame U*U covering response to my challenge was -

"Nobody did anything. . ."

So true. So shameful. And "good" U*Us, including UUA President Bill Sinkford and Rev. Dr. Tracey Robinson-Harris are still doing nothing or next to nothing to responsibly address, and adequately redress, the serious injustices and abuses that you and I and no doubt other people have repeatedly brought to their attention.

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