The goal of Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE) has always been to build a “Just and Sacred Society.” Since 1996, CLUE has worked to bring together clergy and lay leaders of all faiths with the marginalized, the unheard, and the least protected — low-wage workers and immigrants — in the cause of a just economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. CLUE cultivates a network of more than 900 religious leaders, partnering with allied community organizations and labor unions to advocate for better working conditions, and with lawmakers to establish policies that improve a lot of workers and their families.
CLUE affirms that Solidarity is Sacred. CLUE works as a coalition of diverse congregations with a progressive agenda around workers’ rights and issues of economic justice. Clergy and lay people involved in this work occupy a very specific place within the larger social justice landscape, and they bring the following unique gifts to the struggle:
- Religious communities from both high and low income neighborhoods;
- A common call to humanity rooted in the conviction that faith demands justice always and everywhere;
- Inspiration and support for workers facing intimidation, unfair treatment, retaliation, and harassment;
- Counter-messaging of the portrayal of the struggle as a private competition between economic interests.
UUSM’s partnership with CLUE
Clergy and lay leaders are expert counselors, chaplains, and allies of people facing oppression. And faith communities have resources to directly help those facing hardship. By enabling an organized, connected, interfaith community focused on building an economy that works for everyone, CLUE builds the foundation for achieving living wages, affordable health care, workplace safety, sane scheduling, and a seat at the table in making decisions about working conditions. How does CLUE do it? Workplace by workplace: as workers develop a vision, local CLUE committees help them develop their voice and then amplify that voice with the power of scripture, love, and compassion. When the struggle is hard, CLUE offers courage and encouragement that they might persevere.
Our UU faith tells us that every person has worth and dignity, and we believe in equity, justice, and compassion. Our UU Santa Monica congregation has long been part of CLUE’s important struggles for justice.
- Accompanying workers at the Bonus Carwash at Lincoln and Ashland as they sought to unionize, and raising awareness about wage theft and unsafe conditions in the industry that helped pave the way for new state regulations protecting carwash workers.
- Supporting workers at countless Santa Monica hotels over many decades as they sought collective power and continue to use it to bargain for better wages and working conditions, including panic buttons to protect workers from sexual assault and safer room-cleaning policies that protect housekeepers from injury.
- Walking with workers at the (in)famous Chateau Marmont as they spoke out against harassment and discrimination.
- Celebrated in April 2024 when CLUE announced that ALL of the union hotels in Santa Monica had agreed to provide life-changing wages, benefits, and other historic protections to their workers.
Generous Congregation
Our practice here at UUSM is to dedicate half of our non-pledge Sunday offerings to organizations doing work in the world that advances our Unitarian Universalist principles; the other 50% of the offering is used to support the life of our church.
UUSM’s Generous Congregation program supports our church community. And together, we uplift the reach and impact of vital organizations doing work we could not do on our own. This month, half of our Sunday offerings will go to CLUE. Your donations will help strategize tactics for winning campaigns and support hotel workers, in intimate solidarity, to win real benefits for those at the bottom of the economic ladder.
Please consider supporting the mission of our church, and CLUE. To give right now, text “$20 GCC” to 844-982-0209. (One-time-only credit card registration required.) Or visit uusm.org/donate and reference Generous Congregation. Thank you.
