Minneapolis, MN 55407
P.O. Box 7588
Phone: (612) 722-6612
Fax: (612) 722-6003
office@walkerchurch.org
Walter Lockhart, Pastor
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3104 16th Ave. S. Minneapolis, MN 55407 P.O. Box 7588 Phone: (612) 722-6612 Fax: (612) 722-6003 office@walkerchurch.org Walter Lockhart, Pastor |
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Our
Mission: To Nurture Spirituality, Build Caring Community,and Work Courageously
for Peace with Justice
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The "Justice for Walker Workers" Campaign Our current Peace with Justice (PWJ) project focuses on justice for the workers at Walker Methodist Health Center. These nursing home workers voted 61% to 39% in favor of unionization in 2003, but have met with a long series of legal delays by management, which has refused to recognize or bargain with the union The Walker Church PWJ committee has joined forces with the Minnesota office of AFSCME (the union representing the workers at the Walker Methodist nursing home) and the Worker Interfaith Network (WIN, formerly the Twin Cities Religion-Labor Network) to create the "Justice for Walker Workers" Campaign. To view/download a copy of the Justice for Walker Workers Campaign's FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) sheet, click here. To view/download a copy of the PETITION that the Campaign is currently circulating among church, union, and community members, click here. To view/download a copy of a flyer with suggestions for further action, including Walker Methodist CEO Lynn Starkovich's phone number, click here.click here. Peace with Justice (PWJ) is one of the core missions of Walker Church. The PWJ Committee, currently led by Paris Dunning and Joe Helsa, meets approximately every 2 1/2 weeks alternating between Wednesday evenings and Sunday afternoons. All interested folks are invited to attend the meetings. The meeting schedule is usually noted on the Walker Calendar on the home page of the web site or in the Walker Talker. The Peace With Justice Committee has been working to define how best to support PWJ initiatives that are of interest to Walker members and Minneapolis residents. The Committee has forged a plan that is a combination of direct action, education, research and facilitating connections within the Walker Community. Certainly these activities are all interconnected but they can be described separately. The PWJ Committee recognizes that Walker and its members have limited amounts of resources and time that can be committed to direct action campaigns and projects. With this in mind the Committee has agreed to select one project at a time to focus the efforts of Walker and its members. This does not mean that activity on other projects should be curtailed by any individual person, but that the effort of the group as a whole will be directed towards the single effort. There are many considerations given to selecting a project. Some of them included having a project of limited scope where Walker members could make a significant contribution and see results within a reasonable time frame where. The project should be working to enact systemic changes and ideally would benefit children, old people, poor people and/or people of color. Improving race relations, working with the immediate neighborhood and impacting the nurturing of our youth also are high priorities. Projects that could excite and energize the members are also high priorities. Committee discussions can be found by following the minutes . A summary of projects currently and recently worked on can be found by clicking here. Additional information will be provided in many ways (here, Walker Talker, Sunday Announcements, e-mail etc.) There are two components to the education initiative. One is to help Walker Members and others understand why we should care about certain issues. The more we can clearly identify the core issues and concerns, the better we, our supporters and our adversaries will be able to find a solution. This aspect of the PWJ Committee work will emerge over time as direct action projects are considered. The other component to education is informing Walker members and others about PWJ activities that are happening in the area. The plan is to publish some sort of PWJ Calendar so that members will have time to plan to attend various activities (as opposed to having a last minute call for help). The PWJ Calender will be available by clicking here. Prior to the publication of the Walker PWJ calendar, this link will lead to other locally produced calendars includint the Minnesota Alliance of Peacemakers. Check out the Links section of this web site for links to more PWJ groups in the Twin Cities. The PWJ Committee recognizes that some projects considered and not approved have considerable merit and may become an actionable project in the future. While the PWJ Committee as a whole can not devote significant time into developing plans for future projects, individual members can pursue these. A current example is a proposal to provide universal, affordable child care to Minneapolis residents. The need is great, the benefits are huge but currently there are no definable actions for the PWJ Committee to work on. Research will determine if this can be a future direct action. The Walker Community has a long and deep history of community involvement in PWJ and other matters. The PWJ Committee will survey Walker members to find out where the time, money and interest of our Community is being put to use. Some sort of resource document will be available so that members will be able to connect with others who share similar interests. Please check the links section of the web site to find local groups involved in Peace with Justice activities. Also check the Walker Talker in the Calendar and Announcements section for current activities of the Peace with Justice Committee. This Page Last Updated 8/22/06 |
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