• The prompt and orderly elimination of barriers to imports from
  developing countries by the United States and other wealthy nations

• The prompt and orderly elimination by the United States and other
  wealthy nations of subsidies on agricultural production and exports that compete with the developing countries’ agricultural products.

• A substantial increase in international economic, environmental, and humanitarian assistance to developing countries on the part of the United States and other wealthy nations, particularly for education, health, social security, infrastructure, rule of law, governance, and other initiatives likely to improve the lives of the poor.

CALLS UPON the officials of our Association and upon our fellow Unitarian Universalists to urge timely action by our political representatives to achieve these constructive reforms. 

"Cedar Lane Redraft"

This approach was the second choice of the the Cedar Lane Church,

KEY TO CHANGES: All changes in the August 2002 Draft Statement of Conscience distributed by the UUA Commission on Social Witness are shown in bold. Material to be added to the August Draft is underlined. Material [to be removed] is shown in [brackets and italics.]

Summary of the Statement of Conscience

Economic globalization is a complex and dynamic system of connections, facilitating the flow of information and technology and commerce. It is a process of transformation that accelerates the integration of social and economic activities around the world. [It has resulted in the marginalizing and impoverishing of the peoples of the developing world and people of color, as well as the destruction of the environment and the depletion of natural resources.] As people of faith with respect for the worth and dignity of all creatures and for the interdependent well of all existence, Unitarian Universalists are called upon to bring an ethic of care to our understanding of globalization and to do what we can to achieve its full potential for lifting the vulnerable populations of the world out of poverty and to reverse the harm it causes without joining a myopic backlash against it. We are challenged to affirm our connection with all life and our responsibility for one another and the planet that sustains us.

Our world is one world:

its ways of wealth affect us all:

the way we spend, the way we share,

who are the rich, who stand or fall?

“Our World is One World” is a prophetic hymn written by Cecily Taylor in 1930. Its verses capture the essence of today’s debate over globalization. Globalization brings with it many benefits, but the fruits of globalization have been inequitably distributed and many of its costs have been disproportionately paid by the least able. As a community of faith, we are challenged to bring an ethic of care to our understanding of globalization and to do what we can to maximize its potential for poverty reduction and to minimize its adverse effects. [reverse the devastation it has created without becoming a part of a myopic backlash against it.]

Defining Economic Globalization

Economic globalization is a complex and dynamic system of connections, facilitating the flow of information, technology, and commerce. It is also an ongoing process of transformation. [The underlying theory of economic globalization is the unleashing of free-market competition, driven by self-interest, measured by the accumulation of capital.] The fundamental ideas fueling globalization are the same as those that inspired primitive tribes thousands of years ago to trade something of value to another tribe. Unlike primitive tribal communities, modern communities have developed technological advances such as the Internet, which facilitate rapid market integration. By breaking through traditional, national, cultural, and social boundaries that have divided people throughout history, economic globalization has resulted in the near instantaneous exchange of information, the rush of commerce, the massive migration of peoples, thereby integrating economic and social activities around the world. Although the globalization of world markets has reaffirmed the intrinsic ways in which humanity is interconnected, injustice and inequities exist.

Benefits and Liabilities

[The market forces of globalization are driven predominantly by economic imperatives set forth by the United States. Economic globalization is, therefore, increasingly perceived as America’s imperialist colonization.] The current expansion of economic growth has contributed mightily to the high standard of living enjoyed by many in the West and has raised living standards of hundreds millions of people formerly living in poverty in the Third World. [others living and working elsewhere in the world.] However, hundreds of millions of other poor people have been left behind or have seen their living standards decline. Some view economic globalization as a primary cause of [Many Americans, accustomed to our fiercely individualistic and competitive culture, find it difficult to grasp and uncomfortable to bear] the crude global realities of abject poverty, hunger, and cultural and environmental destruction. Others see it as a potential solution to the hunger and poverty that have plagued humanity throughout history.

[Although some people, especially those with access to capital, have enormously benefited from complex economic global transformation, many people have not and are becoming increasingly angry. The globalization ethic has allowed systematic exploitation of labor and the environment, coercive monopolistic pricing of goods and services, criminal evasion of local legal controls, growing debt among developing nations, widening gaps between economic classes, and devastation of traditional culture in societies marked by urbanization and exploitation. Often, despite being the world being more technologically integrated, many so-called “winners” feel increasingly isolated and disconnected from their immediate communities. Many react to these senses of change and isolation by turning to ideological and religious fundamentalism. Others become myopic and parochial. Still others turn to criminal behavior and international terror.]

As people of faith, we have a responsibility to take a stand to make democracy work for all people, locally and globally. We are challenged to find ways to create political and economic democracy and to develop vital egalitarian community life, addressing the needs and fostering the participation and leadership of the disenfranchised.

We are challenged to develop a vision to uphold human rights and to help preserve the identity-based traditions that give meaning and continuity to people’s lives, while empowering them to do what is necessary to thrive in a system of economic globalization.

As Unitarian Universalists, we affirm and promote:

• The acceptance of one another and the encouragement of spiritual growth, and a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. As a people of faith, we are called to study further and better understand the economic, political, and cultural issues of our times. Deepening our global awareness can enhance our individual and communal spirituality.

• The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; and justice, equity and compassion in human relations. The policies and practices of the International Monetary Fund, the World Trade Organization, and other financial institutions advancing globalization [must] should be [reevaluated and realigned such that the freedom and dignity of individuals in all countries must be the primary consideration in the formulations of economic policy] regularly evaluated to assure that these institutions carry out their mandates effectively and benevolently. Existing debt of the poorest nations of the developing world [needs to] can be forgiven by the World Bank and other international lending agencies as part of a strategy under which such countries become self-sustaining. We [can] should become more effective advocates for increased funding for international economic, environmental, and humanitarian assistance [as well as expansion of educational opportunity], particularly for education, health, social security, infrastucture, rule of law, governance, and other initiatives likely to improve the lives of the poor. We should work for the prompt and orderly elimination, by the United States and other wealthy nations, of their barriers to imports from developing countries. We should also work for the elimination of United States’ and other wealthy countries’ subsidization of agricultural production and exports that compete with the developing countries’ agricultural products. We need to work to ensure that intellectual property provisions of international trade agreements [do not put profit making over the rights of people to] take account of the needs of people in the least developed countries for medication, seed, and the ownership of their own cultural and genetic material.

• The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within society at large. We [must] should recommit ourselves to active participation in local, state, and national elections. We need to network with other progressive faith-based and community organizations to increase voter registration and turnout within disadvantaged communities. We need to advocate for the reversal of [American] laws and policies that perpetuate unjust economic systems. We need to hold [our] political leaders accountable for their policies.
• The inherent worth and dignity of every person. Individual Unitarian Universalists, congregations, and the Unitarian Universalist Association [must] should actively participate in the work of international organizations that advocate for human rights, worker rights, and environmental protections. The privilege of transacting business is extended to corporations by the countries in which capital is invested – corporations have the responsibility to pay their workers a comfortable, locally defined living wage, provide a healthy and safe work environment, and respect the right of their workers to bargain collectively in independent labor unions, in accordance with the laws and international commitments of these host countries.
• Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. Through partnerships with Unitarian/Univeralist congregations throughout the world, service in the Peace Corps, participation in international youth and cultural exchanges, and travel, we will have our perspectives and our hearts opened to the ideas, ideals, and dreams of others throughout the world, thereby making us better partners in the quest for a more equitable and environmentally aware global community. We [must advocate for trade] should advocate international agreements that safeguard the natural environment including the air and the oceans.

As Unitarian Universalists, we are challenged to bring an ethic of care to our understanding of globalization. The transformation from ignorance to knowledge, from silence into speech, and speech into action, is not easy. If we are to see the world for the interconnected web it really is, we are challenged to build a spirituality [of resistance to privilege. Such a spirituality of resistance] that would [have us] turn us [from fierce individualism firing a self-serving globalization] toward a relational sense of ourselves in a globally inclusive community of all living things[.] and [The privilege now cultivated by unfettered global markets would be replaced by] an ethic and practice of [constraints] serving the common good.

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Arlington Street Church draft feedback

This is a proposed draft for a congregational discusssion, as forwarded by Phil Deering. I would love to put up the final statement

Summary of the Statement of Conscience

Economic globalization is a complex and dynamic system that facilitates the flow of information, technology and commerce and that accelerates the integration of social and economic activities around the world. Untoward consequences of globalization include the marginalization and impoverishment of people, as well as the destruction of the environment and the depletion of natural resources. As people of faith, we respect the worth and dignity of all creatures and the interdependent web of all existence. Thus Unitarian Universalists are called to bring an ethic of justice to our understanding of globalization and to do what we can to reverse the harm it causeshere and abroad through informed and nonviolent dissent. We are challenged to affirm our connection with all life and our responsibility for one another and for the planet that sustains us.

______________________________________________________________________________

Our world is one world:

Its ways of wealth affect us all:

The way we spend, the way we share,

Who are the rich or poor, who stand or fall?

“Our World is One World” is a prophetic hymn written by Cecily Taylor in 1930. Its verses capture the essence of today’s debate over Globalization. Globalization can bring many benefits, but the fruits of globalization have been reaped by transnational corporations and wealthy elite while its costs have been paid by ordinary people around the world. As a community of faith, Unitarian Universalists are challenged to bring an ethic of justice to our understanding of economic globalization and to do what we can to reverse the devastation it has created here and abroad.

Defining Economic Globalization

Economic Globalization is fueled by a belief “that a single global economy with universal rules set by global corporations and financial markets” (Maude Barlow) is in everyone’s best interest. The current form of economic globalization unleashes markets from regulations meant to protect national sovereignty, the democratic process, human rights, labor rights, the environment and social justice concerns. “The most important tool in this assault has been the creation of international trade agreements whose tribunals and enforcement measures supersede the legal systems of nation-states, and supplant their judicial processes by setting up independent dispute resolution systems that exist outside the confines of our courts and laws.” (Maude Barlow)

Benefits and Liabilities

The market forces of globalization are driven predominantly by economic imperatives set forth largely by the United States for the benefit of transnational corporations and the wealthy elite. Economic globalization is, therefore, increasingly perceived as America’s economic imperialist colonization. The current expansion of economic growth has contributed to the high standard of living enjoyed by many in developed countries and by the international elites but has worsened the living standards for the majority of the people. One sees a direct relationship between the increase in international trade agreements and the increase in abject poverty, hunger, and cultural and environmental destruction.

While those with access to capital have benefited enormously from globalization, many people have not, thus fueling anger and despair. Globalization ethic has exploited labor and the environment, led to coercive and monopolistic pricing of goods and services, enabled the evasion of local legal controls, accelerated the debt of developing nations, widened economic class gaps, devastated traditional cultures, and assaulted the democratic process.

As people of faith, we have a responsibility to make democracy work for all people, locally and globally, and to find ways to promote economic fairness while addressing the needs and fostering the participation of the disenfranchised.

We are challenged to develop a vision to uphold human rights and to help preserve identity-based traditions that give meaning and continuity to people’s lives, while enabling them to thrive.

As Unitarian Universalists, we affirm and promote:

• The acceptance of one another, encouragement to spiritual growth, and a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. As a people of faith, we are called to study and understand the economic, political, and cultural issues of our times. Deepening our global awareness can enhance our individual and communal spirituality.

• The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; fostering equity and compassion in human relations. We believe that trade and investment treaties and foreign policy should conform to the principles set forth in the Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and that international human rights law should take precedence over other areas of international law, including trade and investment treaties. The policies and practices of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Trade Organization, and other financial institutions, trade organizations and treaties that advance economic globalization must be realigned to give primacy to the freedom and dignity of individuals in all countries when formulating economic policy. We are called to become advocates for increased funding of international economic, environmental, and humanitarian assistance, as well as the expansion of educational opportunity and debt forgiveness in poor nations. We need to work to ensure that intellectual property provisions of international trade agreements do not put profit over the rights of people to medication, seed, and the ownership of their own cultural and genetic material.

• The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within society at large. We must actively participate in local, state, and national elections and network with other progressive faith-based and community organizations to assure that people’s right of self-determination is respected. We need to advocate for the reversal of American laws and policies that perpetuate unjust economic systems and to hold our political and corporate leaders accountable for their policies.

• The inherent worth and dignity of every person. Individual Unitarian Universalists, congregations, and the Unitarian Universalist Association must actively participate in the work of international organizations that advocate for human rights, worker rights, and environmental protections. The privilege of transacting business is extended to corporations by the countries in which capital is invested—corporations have the responsibility to pay fair taxes to help governments fulfill their social responsibilities, fully account for their finances including the cost of their social and environmental impacts, pay their workers a comfortable, locally defined living wage, provide healthy and safe work environments, respect the right of workers to bargain collectively in independent labor unions, and to protect the environment. Civil and criminal liability for corporate crime, both here and abroad, should be strengthened. Transnational corporate welfare, both domestic and international, should be eliminated. Government-backed guarantees of bank loans to corporations engaged in speculative investments should be eliminated. Corporate governance laws should be overhauled such that sovereignty lies with the people not with the legal construct known as “ corporation,” and that corporate charters periodically be reviewed and revoked when necessary.

• Respect for the interdependent web of all existence. Through partnerships with Unitarian/Universalist congregations throughout the world, service in the Peace Corp, participation in international youth and cultural exchanges, and travel, we will have our perspectives and our hearts opened to the ideas, ideals, and dreams of others throughout the world, thereby making us better partners in the quest for a more equitable and environmentally aware global community. We must advocate for trade agreements that safeguard the natural environment including the air and the oceans. Water, essential to all existence, should be declared a public trust and a human right rather than a good or service, and should not be appropriated for corporate profit, but should be exempted from international trade agreements and investment schemes.

As Unitarian Universalists, we are challenged to bring an ethic of justice to our understanding of corporate economic globalization, and to transform ourselves from ignorance to knowledge, from silence to speech, and from speech to action. If we truly see the world as an interconnected web, we then will build a spirituality of resistance to inequality and turn from fierce individualism and self-serving globalization to a perspective of ourselves as part of a globally inclusive community of all living things. We are called to fight inequality that is cultivated by deregulated and privatized global markets, replacing it instead with an ethic and practice that serves the common good.

Additional:

Add to the sentence on page 2 under defining economic globalization, "The current form of economic globalization unleashes markets from regulations meant to protect national sovereignty, the democratic process, consumers,... I believe that will get more folks' attention.

Also add thereafter "These trade agreements are negotiated in secret with trade ministers and select businessmen being sole participants in the negotiations.  Groups concerned with human rights, consumer safety, the environment  and the democratic process are denied equal involvement in these negotiations.  Under globalization trade treaties, corporations can sue countries in secret trade tribunals for any anticipated lost profits that result from various government regulations.  The awards are taken from national treasuries.  Because government regulations are often viewed as "unnecessarily burdensome" or as "illegal government expropriations" of transnational corporate property under the terms of these globalization treaties, transnational corporations then end up having more legal remedies under these international agreements than do domestic corporations or even the citizens of that country.

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Phil Deering's input to Twin Cities Metro area (TCM) discussion

Via Phil Deering who wrote:

I send this out as a draft to encourage discussion/debate. I also encourage other individuals or groups to borrow or paraphrase from this document as they see fit. (see next paragraph for more on that)

It is very important to note that I have borrowed heavily from the statement written by the Arlington Street Congregation. In have also paraphrased and borrowed from information I've gathered on the web. Although I've tried to provide proper attribution, there may be errors in what I've attributed to whom. Please understand that any plagerism was done in the spirit of developing a powerful and meaningful statement. If we decide to go forward, we can discuss further how to provide proper attribution.

This draft will be reviewed by people in the TCM on Wednesday Feb 12. After that review we will send our version to the CSW as formal input.

Proposed Change to Draft SOC on Economic Globalization

UUs respect and affirm:

• The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
• Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
• The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all, and;
• Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Our faith calls us to active participation in efforts to promote a world that is based on values of cooperation between cultures and nations, respect for diversity and human rights, and economic justice and environmental sustainability.

The values of our faith stand in stark contrast to a powerful, destructive force known as economic or corporate-led globalization.

Defining Economic Globalization

The conceptual underpinnings of economic globalization are fueled by the assertion that "a single global economy with universal rules set by global corporations and financial markets" (Maude Barlow) is in everyone's best interest.

In reality, rather than serving everyone, economic globalization serves the interests of an elite minority, since it unleashes markets from regulations meant to protect national sovereignty, the democratic process, human rights, labor rights, the environment and social justice concerns. “The most important tool in this assault have been the creation of international trade agreements and whose tribunals and enforcement measures supersede the legal systems of nation-states, and supplant their judicial processes by setting up independent dispute resolution systems that exist outside the confines of our courts and laws.” (Maude Barlow) The damage done by the trade agreements and tribunals has been increased by powerful international economic development organizations including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund who have forced free-market reforms on the struggling economies of many nations of the developing world. (Note this paragraph and the one before were taken in large part from the statement of the Arlington Street Congregation)

The trend toward globalization has sharply accelerated since the 70s due to a concentration of political power in the hands of the wealthy, the implementation of "free trade" accords such as NAFTA and GATT, the rise of pro-globalization media cartels (which are themselves active behind the scenes in advancing globalization), the rise of organizations advancing the agenda of economic elites, and the increasing economic and political influence of the Trans National Corporations . Because economic globalization promotes a system where practically everything (from goods and services, to health care and educations from water to plant, animal, and human genes) becomes privatized , it is becoming increasingly necessary for the giant corporations to rely on US (and client state) military power to defend the so-called rights of the free market.

Who Is Affected by Economic Globalization

As the giant corporations increase their span of control over the economic and political lives of the peoples of the world, those with the least power suffer most. People of the developing world, indigenous people and people of color, and women and children bear a disproportionate burden of poverty and lack of basic human rights. This is also true for the environment: massive destruction of habitat and resources is happening much faster in the developing world, where the people lack the economic and political power to protect the natural habitat.

Although the initial brunt of the ills of economic globalization is borne more by the those with the least power, millions of citizens of Western Europe, the US and Canada are already experiencing job loss, tears in the social safety net, destruction of the environment, and a weakening of democratic institutions and citizen political power. This shift is a direct result of the logic of economic globalization, where the insatiable need for profit creates a spiral where wages fall, taxes are reduced and power becomes more concentrated in the hands of the corporate elites.

A UU Response to Economic Globalization

As people of faith, we have a responsibility to take a stand to make democracy work for all people, locally and globally. Thus Unitarian Universalists are called to bring an ethic of justice to our understanding of globalization and to do what we can to reverse the harm it causes here and abroad through informed and non-violent dissent. We are challenged to affirm our connection with all life and our responsibility for one another and for the planet that sustains us. (Note: this paragraph was taken from the statement of the Arlington Street Congregation.) (Also note that other footnotes that are in the MS Word version did not come across when I pasted the text into the email.)

From here on we would continue with lines 53-91 of the Draft SOC

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UU Fellowship of Gainsville, FL: Alternative Statement of Conscience

WHEREAS Unitarian Universalists, as people of conscience, covenant to affirm and promote the inherent truth and dignity of all people, the free and responsible search for truth and meaning, the use of the democratic process, and the sanctity of the interdependent web of existence

AND

WHEREAS economic globalization is inherently a value-neutral process of moving toward one integrated market in which all resources (capital, information, labor, materials) are traded without regulatory frictions (such as tariffs, subsidies, and constraints) that has been ongoing for millennia

AND

WHEREAS the trade of goods and services that results due to the current organization and practices of economic globalization has improved the living conditions and quality of life of many members of the world’s populations while at the same time severely diminishing the living conditions and quality of life of many others and leaving a significant minority without an adequate share of the wealth that has been created,

We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association, do hereby make the following Statement of Conscience.

We call upon the governments of the countries of the world to establish policies that (1) ensure that economic globalization does not allow one set of participants to benefit while other sets are harmed and (2) improve the distribution of the wealth resulting from globalization without creating barriers to the creation of that wealth. Specifically, we call upon governments to:

• Recognize the inherent worth and dignity of each citizen of their own and other countries, and eliminate policies that appropriate an inordinate share of the gains from trade for a single group or nationality.
• Recognize the right of the citizens of each country, through a democratic process not driven by monetary influence, to determine the best use of the resources available to them in their pursuit for improved quality of life. Should representatives of a developed country identify a global value to maintaining a resource in its current condition (e.g., rainforests), they must make fair and just compensation to the developing country that is asked, for the greater good, not to exploit the resource.
• Eliminate barriers to trade (e.g., tariffs) that increase the cost of imported products and/or services to residents of developed countries.
• Eliminate subsidies to products and/or services provided by developed countries that decrease the cost of those products and/or services below the costs of similar products and/or services provided by residents of developing countries.
• Establish, and encourage other governments to establish, the rule of law in trade transactions such that the individuals who produce goods and/or services receive fair and just compensation for their contribution. For example, governments must eliminate traditions of bribery and other side payments that transfer wealth in a corrupt fashion.
• Establish, and encourage other governments to establish, the rule of law in economic support transactions such that donations by individuals and/or countries intended to improve the quality of life of others are used for that purpose and not to enrich corrupt local leaders. This includes the principled and careful reduction and/or elimination of the debt of developing countries that currently prevents them from investing in the care, education, and improvement of quality of life of their populations.
• Establish, and encourage other governments to establish, policies that support their citizens in their pursuit of new skills and trades when global markets shift demand away from existing ones. The inherent worth and dignity of displaced workers requires support and encouragement for the ability to adapt to changes in their world.
• Establish a world organization that would specify baseline international standards for environmental protection, worker health and safety (including child labor), and fair wages, and would certify when products and/or services are produced and sold in accordance with these basic standards. Such standards would not necessarily be constant worldwide, but will take into account reproducible scientific evidence, local mores and customs, and the relative costs and benefits of compliance.
• Encourage responsible worldwide population control to reduce the number of chronically underpaid workers and slow the rate of global resource consumption.

We call upon the members of the Unitarian Universalist Association, and other people of conscience, to:

• Learn about economic globalization, in the spirit of a responsible search for truth and meaning, by
  • Reading a diverse set of materials that address the topic (including books, newspaper articles, Internet-based reports, and publications by global financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank).
  • Participating in local study groups and encouraging others to do so.
• Recognize, in the spirit of a responsible search for truth and meaning, that many perspectives on the causes and consequences of globalization exist, and to be open-minded regarding new evidence and interpretations.
• Participate in the democratic process by
  • Supporting candidates who will work toward the elimination of trade barriers (tariffs, quotas) and corporate and agricultural subsidies.
  • Communicating frequently with elected officials to promote this Statement of Conscience and to discuss positions on specific issues related to the equitable distribution of globalization’s benefits.
  • Supporting global justice and fairness by making donations of time, effort, and resources to organizations and causes that ensure the donations reach the target group and are not siphoned off to enrich corrupt leaders and politicians.
• Purchase products and/or services that
  • Are certified by a world organization to have been produced and sold in accordance with baseline environmental, health and safety, and fair wage standards.
  • Do not disproportionately consume natural resources or transform resources into waste and pollution.
  • Do not knowingly benefit from inequitable tariffs, quotas, or subsidies.
• Develop and promote a perspective on the quality of life that
  • Emphasizes the inherent worth and dignity of individuals and their heritage.
  • Emphasizes the need for justice and equity throughout the world’s populations.
  • Is not predicated upon the acquisition of ever larger and more technologically advanced material goods.
• Promote and publicize the principles that this Statement of Conscience embodies. Through Letters to the Editor and other public forums, improve awareness of the issues that globalization encompasses and of how individuals, through recycling, conservation, and the use of energy-efficient vehicles, dwellings, and appliances, can affect the consequences of globalization.

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UUJECO feedback

The UUJECO has published feedback in the Spring 2003 edition of their newsletter "The Call".

All changes from the August 2002 Draft Statement of Conscience are shown in bold. Deletions are shown in [brackets and italics]. Additions are underlined.

Summary of the Statement of Conscience

[Economic globalization is a complex and dynamic system of connections, facilitating the flow of information and technology and commerce. It is a process of transformation that accelerates the integration of social and economic activities around the world. It has resulted in the marginalizing and impoverishing of the peoples of the developing world and people of color, as well as the destruction of the environment and the depletion of natural resources. As people of faith with respect for the worth and dignity of all creatures and for the interdependent well of all existence, Unitarian Universalists are called upon to bring an ethic of care to our understanding of globalization and to do what we can to reverse the harm it causes without joining a myopic backlash against it. We are challenged to affirm our connection with all life and our responsibility for one another and the planet that sustains us. ]

Our world is one world:

its ways of wealth affect us all:

the way we spend, the way we share,

who are the rich, who stand or fall?

“Our World is One World” is a prophetic hymn written by Cecily Taylor in 1930. Its verses capture the essence of today’s debate over globalization. [Globalization brings with it many benefits, but the fruits of globalization have been inequitably distributed and many of its costs have been disproportionately paid by the least able.] As a community of faith, we are challenged to cultivate [bring] an ethic of care to our understanding of globalization and to institutionalize concepts, processes, and programs that help us to do what we can to reverse the devastation it [has created] is creating. [without becoming a part of a myopic backlash against it.] Meanwhile we can actively support the mounting potential of globalization to build a creative, growing local and international movement for human dignity, peace, justice, environmental health, and sustainability.

Defining Economic Globalization:

[Economic globalization is a complex and dynamic system of connections, facilitating the flow of information, technology, and commerce. It is also an ongoing process of transformation. The underlying theory of economic globalization is the unleashing of free-market competition, driven by self-interest, measured by the accumulation of capital. The fundamental ideas fueling globalization are the same as those that inspired primitive tribes thousands of years ago to trade something of value to another tribe. Unlike primitive tribal communities, modern communities have developed technological advances such as the Internet, which facilitate rapid market integration. By breaking through traditional, national, cultural, and social boundaries that have divided people throughout history, economic globalization has resulted in the near instantaneous exchange of information, the rush of commerce, the massive migration of peoples, thereby integrating economic and social activities around the world. Although the globalization of world markets has reaffirmed the intrinsic ways in which humanity is interconnected, injustice and inequities exist.]

Globalization can be viewed narrowly as accelerated integration of global markets, or, as we are using it here, more broadly as the growing global integration and interconnectedness of not only markets but systems of communication, finance, law, societies, and culture.

Benefits and Liabilities:

[The market forces of globalization are driven predominantly by economic imperatives set forth by the United States. Economic globalization is, therefore, increasingly perceived as America’s imperialist colonization. The current expansion of economic growth has contributed mightily to the high standard of living enjoyed by many in the West and others living and working elsewhere in the world. Many Americans, accustomed to our fiercely individualistic and competitive culture, find it difficult to grasp and uncomfortable to bear the crude global realities of abject poverty, hunger, and cultural and environmental destruction.]

While the process of globalization has brought benefits to some, most nations, working people, the poor and people of color are suffering from its profound effects. The rules governing the globalization process are being written in trade agreements and international law, by institutions that control capital. The wealthier countries’ representatives to national and international bodies, the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other multi-lateral institutions dominate the process of rule-making. The rules thus produced, both in principle and practice, are biased in favor of the wealthy, as they insist on packages of reform measures like dropping tariffs, eliminating capital controls, enforcing intellectual property rights, privatizing public services, eliminating regulations that protect labor or the environment, health and safety. We can observe this phenomenon and measure the stress on economies using quality of life indicators, as opposed to depending primarily on financial indicators such as GNP or GDP that make it difficult to see the rising inequality between the economic classes. Worse, enforcement mechanisms such as secretive trade tribunals, that favor capital while undermining local, state, and national sovereignty are being included in trade agreements and rules of the WTO. Meanwhile, enforceable mechanisms for democratic governance, such as the UN, global courts, and treaty systems remain weak, unsupported, or under funded.

[Although some people, especially those with access to capital, have enormously benefited from complex economic global transformation, many people have not and are becoming increasingly angry. The globalization ethic has allowed systematic exploitation of labor and the environment, coercive monopolistic pricing of goods and services, criminal evasion of local legal controls, growing debt among developing nations, widening gaps between economic classes, and devastation of traditional culture in societies marked by urbanization and exploitation. Often, despite being the world being more technologically integrated, many so-called “winners” feel increasingly isolated and disconnected from their immediate communities. Many react to these senses of change and isolation by turning to ideological and religious fundamentalism. Others become myopic and parochial. Still others turn to criminal behavior and international terror.]

As people of faith, we have a responsibility to take a stand to make democracy work for all people, locally and globally. We are challenged to find ways to create political and economic democracy and to develop vital egalitarian community life, addressing the needs and fostering the participation and leadership of the disenfranchised.

We are challenged to develop a vision to uphold human rights and to help preserve the identity-based traditions that give meaning and continuity to people’s lives, while empowering them to do what is necessary to thrive in a [system of economic globalization] global economic system.

[As Unitarian Universalists, we affirm and promote:] In living the principles which form our covenant and guide our priorities, we Affirm and Promote:

• The acceptance of one another and encouragement of spiritual growth, and a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. We recognize the challenge of making meaning of information, that is selected by the very media institutions that are likely to financially gain from its interpretation. We are challenged when, as many of us do, we work for the very institutions that are currently gaining in the process of globalization. As a people of faith, struggling to understand complex and dynamic systems, we affirm the value of Congregational groups devoted to a cyclical process of study and theological reflection, followed by actions taken to live out our faith and our principles, a way UUs have used to effect profound personal and societal change. [we are called to study further and better understand the economic, political, and cultural issues of our times. Deepening our global awareness can enhance our individual and communal spirituality.]

• The real goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; and [justice, equity and compassion in human relations] respect for the interdependent web of existence.

[The policies and practices of the International Monetary Fund, the World Trade Organization, and other financial institutions advancing globalization must be revaluated and realigned, such that the freedom and dignity of individuals in all countries must be the primary consideration in the formulation of economic policy. Existing debt of the poorest nations of the developing world needs to be forgiven by the World Bank and other international lending agencies. We can become more effective advocates for increased funding for international economic, environmental, and humanitarian as well as the expansion of educational opportunity. We need to work to ensure that intellectual property provisions of international trade agreements do not put profit making over the rights of people to medication, seed, and the ownership of their own cultural and genetic material.]

Environmental sustainability and the freedom and dignity of people in all countries must be primary considerations in the formulation of economic policy. We seek ways to hold political and economic leaders responsible for the health and well-being of their peoples, and environments. Thus, we plan programs and measure the success of economies locally and globally based on “quality of life” indicators such as infant mortality rates, age at death, educational attainment levels, availability of housing and healthy food, declining levels of toxicity and greenhouse gasses, rate and quality of participation in democratic decision-making, availability of publicly funded media, thus avoiding over-dependence on exchange of money (GNP/GDP) as indicators of economic/social health.

• The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within society at large. . [We must recommit ourselves to active participation in local, state, and national elections. We need to network with other progressive faith-based and community organizations to increase voter registration and turnout within disadvantaged communities. We need to advocate for the reversal of American laws and policies that perpetuate unjust economic systems. We need to hold our political leaders accountable for their policies.] Recognizing the importance of making political democracy work, and the impact of oppression, we recommit ourselves to vitally engaged local, state, and national democratic participation, while we explore the potential of global democracy. Working with other faith based and community groups, we seek to increase dialog and voter participation of disenfranchised communities, while we improve systems of advocacy for a reversal of U.S. and international laws and policies that perpetuate unjust economic systems. Recognizing the social role of private capital, initially sanctioned into existence under agreement to serve the commonweal, we advocate mechanisms to hold private capital accountable to community values: socially screened investments, shareholder activism, advocacy for transparent reporting practices with financial and social measures, and corporate chartering with social and environmental requirements.

• The inherent worth and dignity of every person. Justice, equity and compassion in human relations. [Individual Unitarian Universalists, congregations, and the Unitarian Universalist Association must actively participate in the work of international organizations that advocate for human rights, worker rights, and environmental protections. The privilege of transacting business is extended to corporations by the countries in which capital is invested – corporations have the responsibility to pay their workers a comfortable, locally defined living wage, provide a healthy and safe work environment, and respect the right of their workers to bargain collectively in independent labor unions. Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. Through partnerships with Unitarian/Univeralist congregations throughout the world, service in the Peace Corps, participation in international youth and cultural exchanges, and travel, we will have our perspectives and our hearts opened to the ideas, ideals, and dreams of others throughout the world, thereby making us better partners in the quest for a more equitable and environmentally aware global community. We must advocate for trade agreements that safeguard the natural environment including the air and the oceans.]

The Unitarian Universalist Association must establish a staffed ongoing committee to monitor economic justice issues, produce resources, and actively support the work of Congregations that advocate for human and civil rights, worker rights and environmental protection. We recognize that institutions, including our own Congregations, have the responsibility to pay their workers a locally-defined living wage, provide a healthy and safe working environment, and respect the right of workers to bargain collectively in independent labor unions. As Unitarian Universalists we oppose trade agreements and policies, such as the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas or General Agreement on Tariff and Trade and Services, that do not include enforceable standards for environmental human health and security. At the same time we seek to encourage the use of certifiable fair trade products, practices that further environmental sustainability, global partnerships for peace, service, solidarity, and cultural exchange, such as the Peace Corps, and vital equitable local economies.

As Unitarian Universalists, we are challenged to bring an ethic of care to our understanding of globalization. [The transformation from ignorance to knowledge, from silence into speech, and speech into action, is not easy.] We acknowledge our fears and resistance to change as we benefit from economic structures that foster violence, oppression, and inequity.] We acknowledge our fears and resistance to change as we benefit from economic structures that foster violence, oppression, and inequity. If we are to see the world for the interconnected web it really is, we are challenged to build a spirituality of resistance to privilege. Such a spirituality of resistance would have us turn from fierce individualism firing a self-serving globalization toward a relational sense of ourselves in a globally inclusive community of all living things. The privilege now cultivated by unfettered global markets would be replaced by an ethic and practice of constraints, a celebration of diversity, and creation of economic structures [serving] that serve the common good.

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Neal McBurnett

Last modified: Mon May 19 13:56:15 MDT 2003