As your constituent and as the Environmental Sustainability Specialist for the Nevada Chapter of Mormon Women for Ethical Government, I wanted to thank you for your support of conservation efforts and effective environmental policies both at the state and federal level.
Continue readingWe are at a critical juncture for taking effective action and implementing policy to mitigate the effects of climate change. The climate is changing independent of partisan interests or national boundaries—it is a concern that must be tackled collaboratively.
Continue readingScience has been showing us for years that our Earth is in need of drastic change. I encourage you, as your constituent, that we need to push for more bills that are in support or address climate change. Marginalized communities are one of the most affected by climate change. Within our state of Utah, we have seen our Native American tribes suffer from loss of land and resources. With recent news of the drought Utah will face this year, I am concerned as a Utahn and a mother for our Native American communities. We need your voice.
Earth is one thing we all share in common. If one group of us does irreparable damage to Earth, the rest of us feel it. This is apparent with what is happening in climate change. Climate change then sets up a desperate situation as humans then try to clamor for resources that are vital but become scarce. Over history, we have seen how perilous wars can become further creating death, division, and deep political hurt.
Please consider looking more closely at our environmental issues as they are completely connected to other important human issues.
As women of faith, our ethic of environmental stewardship is informed by prophetic counsel. For example, President Russell M. Nelson proclaimed: “We should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations.”
Likewise, Mormon Women for Ethical Government’s Principle of Ethical Government (2f) states: “Governments and members of society have an obligation to exercise responsible stewardship of the earth, thereby protecting not only the wellbeing of their citizens, but also that of both future generations and other citizens of the planet (see D&C 59:18-21 and D&C 104:13-15).”
Because environmental issues occur on a large scale, we must find broad solutions founded in institutional reform if we are to achieve lasting impact. This responsibility is not a partisan issue but a human one, and environmental protections have historically motivated compromise across ideological and party lines.
We are at a critical juncture for taking effective action and implementing policy to mitigate the effects of climate change. This is particularly urgent for poor and marginalized communities, who are disproportionately impacted by climate change. The climate is changing independent of partisan interests or national boundaries — it is a concern that must be tackled collaboratively. Currently, proposed infrastructure legislation focuses on climate change and addresses other environmental issues, such as improving water infrastructure. Other upcoming environmental policies emphasize land conservation and market-based strategies for carbon reduction.
This letter-writing campaign began in honor of Earth Day (April 22), urging members of Congress to prioritize effective environmental policies. With the authors’ permission, we’re reprinting some of those letters here.
During this election season, Mormon Women for Ethical Government invited all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as well as groups or initiatives that gather individuals by means of a shared faith in Jesus Christ or their membership in the Church, to pledge not to leverage or weaponize faith and membership for the purpose of political gain.
In addition to the groups and initiatives that signed on to our pledge, many individuals eagerly pledged as well. Here are select testimonials from those who have signed on and shared why this issue is important to them!
The 11th Article of Faith can be applied to politics as well. Agency is at the root of our beliefs, and we all have the right to vote according to our own conscience.
Jill C.
Fallbrook, CA
Using sacred spaces and icons should absolutely never be used to promote a political agenda. Politics is such an ugly enterprise and currently so divisive, that I can’t imagine anyone using their position in the church or community to forward their party or candidate by associating or photographing with a sacred space or image.
Mary S.
Orem, UT
On May 15, 2020 President Trump fired the nonpartisan inspector general of the State Department. This is the fifth inspector general Trump has fired in the past two months. Trump’s firing of five inspectors general continues a pattern of behavior intended to shield the presidency from oversight and should be deeply troubling to all Americans. Congress must hold the Trump administration accountable for these unprecedented and unethical firings. The following are excerpts from a portion of the letters written in response to MWEG’s call to action on this issue.
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I’m submitting my concerns regarding the proposed changes to the Procedures for Asylum and Withholding of Removal; Credible Fear & Reasonable Fear Review. I have spent the last three years working with asylum seekers in Phoenix, Arizona, after they have been released from ICE custody. I have participated in interviews of their experiences in their home countries, as well as the countries they have traveled through to get to the United States. Many of their experiences involve horrific violence, torture, the kidnapping of children and death threats for refusing to sell drugs. The most common feature of these horrible experiences was that the government couldn’t or wouldn’t do anything to protect its own citizens.
Continue readingThis letter-writing campaign began as an effort by Mormon Women for Ethical Government. Many of our members, especially those with international family, friends, and students, were very concerned that on July 6, 2020, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced they would modify the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), which allows international students to study in the U.S. on F-1 and M-1 visas.
As a result of the changes, students who have these visas would be required to leave the U.S. if their college or university is not offering in-person classes. In-person classwork has always been a requirement for these visas, but in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic the SEVP allowed foreign students to take their spring and summer classes online while staying in the country. ICE’s recent announcement makes it clear that this accommodation will not be available as of the fall 2020 semester, and international students whose schools are not offering in-person classes must transfer to a school that does offer in-person instruction — or “depart the country.”
Per the MWEG Principles of Ethical Government, we are committed to “promoting ethical government for the protection and well-being of our brothers and sisters.” Over one million men and women come to the U.S. each year to advance their education and develop their skills. Their presence blesses and enriches our country both here and abroad. ICE’s new policy is unnecessary, callous, and does not advance any American interests. After our open call for letters, we were impressed with the sincerity and thoughtfulness they embodied.
With the authors’ permission, we’re reprinting them here.
My son-in-law came to this country on a student visa and was on the last flight out of Liberia before it was shut down due to Ebola. My-son-in-law and my daughter’s other African friends, whom she met at university, have become vital contributors to our economy and our communities, many in vital fields.
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