It looks like the final draft language for the proposed revisions of the Unitarian Universalist Principles and Purposes has been written. It still needs the approval of the UUA Board of Trustees to go forward to the General Assembly for ratification.
It pains me considerably, considering my respect for the members of the Commission, but as things currently stand, should it make it to the floor of the General Assembly, I believe I will be voting against it.
There is no doubt in my mind the new draft document is a vast improvement on the first.
But, that critical section which I’ve railed against here and here, has been barely modified.
This is the first version:
“Grateful for the traditions that have strengthened our own, we strive to avoid misappropriation of cultural and religious practices and to seek ways of appreciation that are respectful and welcomed.”
This is the current:
“Grateful for the traditions that have strengthened our own, we strive to avoid misuse of cultural and religious practices while seeking ways of appreciation that are respectful and welcomed.”
While the faddish term “cultural misappropriation” has been deleted, its definition has been retained.
And the questions I need answered are:
Who decides what is misuse?
Who gets to do the welcoming?
And, critically, what happens to those of us who are deemed by someone to fall on the wrong side of the line?
I am deeply troubled by this…
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