At the congregational meeting March 1, UUCS members voted to send a statement to the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) and to the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association (UUMA) calling on the UUMA to rescind its censure of Rev. Todd Eklof, to cease referring to the UU movement as a white supremacy movement, and to encourage discussion and action to counter oppression and injustice wherever they are found. The text of the statement follows:

Public Statement to UUA and UUMA

Members of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Salem, Oregon, encourage discussion of controversial topics. We oppose recent efforts by ministers in our denomination to discourage discussion of The Gadfly Papers: Three Inconvenient Essays by One Pesky Minister as well as the censure of its author Rev. Todd Eklof by the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association.

Following extensive discussions of the book, we conclude that condemnation of it and its author as racist are incorrect. White privilege is inherent to those of us identifying as Caucasian, but we reject the characterization of the Unitarian Universalist Association and its member congregations as being white supremacy institutions.

Our congregation celebrates its status as one of the first designated Welcoming Congregations in the UUA. Our social justice team is active and resilient. We participate in local and regional efforts for immigrant justice, and we were the first and remain the only Sanctuary Church in Salem.

We call on the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association to rescind its censure of Rev. Todd Eklof, to cease referring to the UU movement as a white supremacy movement, and to encourage discussion and action to counter oppression and injustice wherever they are found.