A Message for No Kings III + Invite A Friend!

I spoke at the No Kings III rally on March 28. You can watch here (thanks to my other half for bringing his camera and getting this). The text of my speech is also at the bottom of this blog post.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaW7ll8KvS4

Each speaker was invited to finish with a call to action. I knew others would address a myriad of practical actions we could take as participants in democracy – as defenders of democracy.

As the only religious leader on the speaking list, I encouraged something more basic:  building the connections of community that are the foundation for fighting fascism. In neighborhoods and networks of mutual aid. And in caring communities like congregations – places that anchor us in our values, and renew our spirits within beloved community. Places that can help to sustain us for the long haul.

I wore my clerical collar to the rally. Quite a few people stopped me, wanting to talk about the role religious communities can play. Some of those folks already had their own religious community, but others did not. People also stopped by First Unitarian’s table that our social action team coordinated, curious to learn about us.

Why do I bring this up? Because there are a lot of people out there feeling scared and disconnected. People who are hungry for spiritual community, and who share our Unitarian Universalist values. But they can’t find us if they don’t know about us.

So I want to encourage every member of the First Unitarian community to consider who YOU might know that might fall into that category – who might benefit from having a community to plug into regularly, with shared values and the spiritual sustenance available in a place like this. I encourage you to tell them about First Unitarian, and invite them to come to church with you and check it out.

Because as former UUA president Susan Frederick-Gray often said, “This is no time to go it alone.” We need each other. And other people out there need a religious community like this one.

~ Rev. Shari

Text from my No Kings III rally speech (Gallagher Park, Omaha, 3-28-26)

We can only be great together. I put that on a poster ten years ago, when the uprising began with the first Women’s March. We can only be GREAT together. And we can only be SAFE together.

I invite you, whenever I say, “we can only be GREAT together” to respond with “we can only be SAFE together.”

Let’s try that:   We can only be great together.

       (We can only be safe together.)

In the face of grave challenges to democracy and humanity, I turn to principled nonviolence a la Gandhi and King. Satyagraha, the practice of nonviolence, literally means in Sanskrit “clinging to truth.”

The deepest truth I cling to is that every human being is fundamentally the same in our basic needs, in our intrinsic worth, in our belonging. That goes for all, of every race and gender identity, every religion (or lack thereof), any immigration status, and any other characteristic that fascists might try to use to separate us from one another.

We can only be great together. (We can only be safe together.)

The ICE assaults in Minneapolis showed just how powerful a movement is when it is organized from the grassroots, not top-down but bottom-up. One of my Unitarian Universalist colleagues summed up what she learned at the clergy actions in the Twin Cities:  “the antidote to fascism is community,” she said. Yes, active community organized for mutual aid.

We can only be great together. (We can only be safe together.)

Now, some of us have been deeply hurt by religious groups or leaders. And that may be the very reason that we now recognize cannibalizing leaders, cannibalizing movements when we see them. Which is what the cult of MAGA is. What white Christian nationalism is…  

Jesus clung to the truth, clung to love and solidarity with “the least of these,” in the face of empire – whatever the cost. Christian nationalists, in contrast, are courting empire, clinging to the promise of power.

The dynamics of coercive control loom large. As a survivor of a high demand group, I notice how the powers that be in our country behave like a cult leader, or like a domestic abuser.

They alienate our country from friends and allies, making us more isolated in the world.

They belittle and bully anyone who might threaten their hold on power.

They create in-groups and out-groups. They say (to white folks), you have earned it, your ancestors were hardworking pioneers, but these new immigrants, they are dangerous and undeserving.

They hoard knowledge and power. They say, don’t worry your pretty little head (citizens, or Congress) about what we’re doing in Venezuela, or Iran, I’m a strongman, I’m the only one who can keep you safe.

They gaslight. They say, the mainstream media is all fake news. And don’t trust the evidence of your own eyes and ears either, they say – just believe what WE tell you.

They try to call the shots on sex and reproduction – while they protect rapists and pedophiles.

Every one of those patterns is cult-like. Christian nationalism is a fraud and a spiritual con. MAGA is a fraud and a political con. They say, look over here at our empty promises and don’t look over there at what we are taking away from everyone (or at least from the 99%).

What we must all do is hold onto our power, USE our power. Not think that it’s over and give up, when the fight for democracy – the fight for each other – is very much still ON.

Remember, alone and scared is how they want us. Feeling powerless and focused on our personal survival is how they want us. That’s how authoritarians win.

So, whatever else you do, I invite you to build relationships with your neighbors – to actively extend your networks of mutuality.

And if you don’t already have one, find a caring community. It could be a religious community or some other group with roots. A place to anchor you in your values, to renew your spirit within beloved community, and to sustain our shared work for the common good.

Friends, separateness is a lie. Community is the truth. Supremacy is a lie. Pluralism is the truth. Domination is a lie. Mutual flourishing is the truth. Let us cling to these truths.

For – We can only be great together. (We can only be safe together.)