San Diego Friends Meeting (Quakers)

REVIEWED: The Quaker Faith: Friends of Love and Truth Stuart Masters addresses some big questions: Who are the Quakers? What do they have to offer? And do they have a future?

This month marks 57 years since the Stonewall uprising in 1969, when a police raid of a gay bar in Greenwich Village incited a riot and days of protests, one of the catalysts for the gay liberation movement in the United States. And Quakers were there.

Quakers came out to the streets to give first aid to injured protesters. Then the next year, when gay rights leaders were organizing the first Christopher Street Liberation Day Parade to commemorate the Stonewall uprising, they asked Quakers to teach parade marshalls about nonviolent civil disobedience. Quakers were the first and only religious group to march in that first gay pride parade, and they have done so ever since.

Quakers are not a monolith, and to this day some are not LGBTQ affirming. But many Friends were and continue to be proud allies and members of the q***r community.

Why I Attend the Evening Quilting Session A poem by Carole Mertz.

Happy Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! Today we honor Fred T. Korematsu, a man who practiced nonviolent resistance at the age of 19. In 1942, Korematsu resisted a racist executive order by refusing to leave home for a Japanese internment camp.

Executive Order 9066, signed by President Roosevelt, was in effect with its racist logic. The Lieutenant General at the time argued that “the very fact that no sabotage has taken place” from Japanese Americans proved that soon it would.

Korematsu's case reached the Supreme Court, which ruled against him. More than 30 years later, though, this court ruling was overturned. Toward he end of his life, he earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his courage.

This is just a brief snippet. Read more about Korematsu's life here:
https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/fred-korematsu-battle-against-internment-of-japanese-americans/

Photo credit: Gary Fong/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images

As a peace church, how to Quakers observe ? The answer depends upon the person. Some Friends take time on Memorial Day to reflect on the physical and emotional trauma that happens to all people affected by war. Some Friends teach or learn about Conscientious Objector status, perhaps by supporting young people in building their personal case file against war. Some Friends resist war by refusing to pay taxes, and some Friends look for ways to continue paying health care to veterans while resisting other war taxes.

As a Quaker, how do you intend to observe Memorial Day? Reflections are welcome in the chat.

This week's Vitality newsletter offered some food for thought. You can read it here:
fgcquaker.org/memorial-day

And, to learn about Conscientious Objector tips from Friends in New York, see their website:
nyym.org/content/conscientious-objection-war

Next month is Pride Moth! Has your meeting ever set up a table at Pride? How did people interact with you as they walked by? What did you do to respond to wind, rain, or other surprises that can happen when running a booth outside? This post is part of our "What Say You" series in which we ask Friends (and newcomers!) about aspects of Quaker outreach.

And if you have marched in Pride, feel free to share a photo! We'd love to see your smiling faces.

If you're new to Quaker spaces, check out the public statements that Friends have made in support of LGBTQ+ rights. They're listed as "Minutes of Conscience," which are public statements that the Quaker meeting can get behind as a group.

https://www.fgcquaker.org/fgcresources/minutes-of-conscience/lgbtq-concerns/

Protect, Resist and Build with AFSC · American Friends Service Committee This monthly webinar series brings together AFSC supporters to learn about how to protect our communities, resist authoritarianism, and build peace with justice. Join us on the Third Tuesday of every month at 8pm ET/ 7pm CT/ 5pm PT. If you are registering from outside the US please use the zip code....