UWCJ Statement on Equity and Social Justice

Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity, respect and equity regardless of race. As an inclusive young-children serving organization, we know that when they are raised in an environment that treats them with the humanity and respect they deserve, they make meaningful contributions as members of our society.

The violence and threats against marginalized communities and individuals serve to expose our society’s underlying racism, prejudice and privilege that prevent too many people from feeling they are treated within the rights guaranteed by our US Constitution. These actions are antithetical to our values as UWCJ and are unthinkable in a just society.

Until people of all backgrounds and identities call out discrimination and demand its removal from our society, nothing will change. We must all do our part, working United, to make our communities the places that our children need them to be – equitable, respectful and opportunity-filled.

We don’t claim to have all the answers, but we are willing to listen and learn. We pledge that, United, we will do our best to ensure that the basic human rights and freedoms of every person in every community are protected.

UWCJ Diversity and Inclusion Policy

Underlying the role and mission of UWCJ, is a firm belief in the dignity of all people. We reaffirm that belief in our policies which guide and direct our employment practices, program funding, volunteer recruitment and service delivery. The purposes of this corporation are to have:

• An organizational ability to develop and implement an open, on-going measurable process to lead the community in the identification of, prioritization of, and advocacy for community wide human service needs.
• An organizational ability to raise funds and acquire resources sufficient to attain our mission;
• An organizational ability to develop and implement an ongoing process to advocate funds and resources to address the prioritized community needs;
• An organizational ability to generate and sustain community support and commitment for the entire UWCJ enterprise through a systematic communications program which both speaks and listens to the community; and
• An organizational ability to manage UWCJ operations effectively and offer assistance to agencies wishing to improve their management skills.

February 7, 2008