Come out for Conversation and Action!

For this month's Social Justice Hour, we will be sending postcards to local voters to provide information about how to vote in Virginia's November 2025 state elections. These elections include the Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, and local House of Delegates races. These kinds of get out the vote efforts are especially important for State Elections, which generally have a lower turnout than Presidential Elections.

We will also have blank postcards on hand if you would like to write to your legislators about any of the (likely many) things that have been on your mind this past month.

In addition, we will be brainstorming ways to get involved locally. We're compiling these ideas into a list that can be easily shared with others to help people stay engaged in this overwhelming time.

Hope to see you for some community and action on Saturday, July 19 at 9:00am at Column 15 Coffee (701 Merrimac Trail)!

Mill Point Park: 100 Eaton St, Hampton, VA 23669-4056

Free event! A free speech and entertainment event to remind the administration and the world that LGBTQ people aren’t going ANYWHERE! There will be:

-Drag entertainment 
-Guest Speakers
-ASL interpreter
-Wheelchair accessible

A MULTIFAITH DIALOGUE & ACTION EVENT

Join Historic Area Religions Together (HART) and other local organizations for an afternoon of sharing, connection, and commitment to making this a braver and kinder community. We’ll hear from African-American, immigrant and LGBTQ+ neighbors about the religious values that inspire them to stand up for themselves, followed by table conversations and networking with others working for justice and respect for human dignity. Join us!

RSVP: by June 25
Stand Up RSVP for 6/29

UUFP (Newport News UU) will have a table  at this event and need some help with manning their booth. Please contact Kate (katemcgaw1@gmail.com) if you would like to help out.

https://www.visitnewportnews.com/event/i-am-what-i-am%3a-newport-news-pride-festival/374/ 

Hampton Roads Pride Presents: 5th Annual Pride at the Beach
Virginia Beach Oceanfront – 31st Street Stage
Sunday, June 22, 2025, 4PM
FREE with RSVP 
https://hamptonroadspride.org

We’re closing out Pride Weekend with a beachside blowout like no other — featuring the Queen of Bounce herself, BIG FREEDIA live on stage! Come ready to dance, celebrate, and soak in all the vibrant energy of the coast. Meet us at 3PM at 17th Street Park and march up the boardwalk for the 757 PRIDE MARCH in unity and celebration as we lead into a full evening of beachside Pride.

Join the Virginia Racial Healing Institute and Coming to the Table - Historic Triangle for the 4th annual Journey to Racial Healing Ceremony. The event will feature Charles Holman, who is linked by slavery to the family of former U.S. presidents George H.W. Bush and George Bush. Visit the Juneteenth Commemorative Art exhibition, share good food, and listen to Charles Holman’s “journey to racial healing” as featured in the Washington Post. Admission is free but registration is required. For information, visit www.varacialhealinginstitute.org

37th Annual PrideFest

The Heart of Pride Weekend

PrideFest is the centerpiece of Pride Weekend—bringing together community, music, art, and activism in a high-energy, family-friendly environment. Join us on Saturday June 21, 2025 for a full day of live performances, local vendors, the iconic Pride Boat Parade, and moments that uplift the LGBTQIA+ community and allies alike.

Much of African Music is based on call and response. The drum is the first to announce itself and send a message bringing the community together. As the drum calls, the community is expected to respond by playing back to the drummer or hollering out by voice. How will you answer the call?

Kicking off with a parade, this community celebration features Celebrity Hip Hop Artist/DJ Grand Master Dee of the chart-topping group Whodini, an African attire fashion show featuring international runway boss LOCO STRUT, a children’s entertainment center, the Black Authors Circle, special tributes to the displaced communities and churches, SOMOS Cultural Drummers, and much more! Free admission. For more information, visit villagewjcc.org

Before Juneteenth and the Emancipation Proclamation, thousands of formerly enslaved men, women, and children gained freedom and sanctuary by escaping to Union camps in the South after Shepard Mallory, Frank Baker, and James Townsend secured their liberty at Fort Monroe. Learn about one of those men, Americus Weston, and his journey.

This compelling program features acclaimed storyteller Sheila Arnold alongside renowned vocalist Dr. Kathy Bullock and singers from the Jubalo Choir. Together, they weave a powerful tapestry of narratives and melodies rooted in the history of enslaved people’s journey to freedom and the abolitionist movement. Free admission.

Preview: Thursday, June 19 | 1:00 - 5:00PM | 412 N. Boundary Street

Opening reception: Friday, June 20 | 5:00 - 7:00PM | 412 N. Boundary Street

Preview the power of storytelling through fiber art at Williamsburg Regional Library’s exhibit, Stitched Stories of Strength. During the opening reception hear a talk from fiber artist and exhibit curator Lorrin Arrington Savage and enjoy refreshments. This unique showcase celebrates resilience, perseverance, and the human spirit, expressed through the intricate art of stitching, weaving, and textiles. The exhibit will be on view June 19 – August 6, 2025. Free admission.

The photographic output of Albert Durant, Williamsburg’s first city licensed African American photographer, provides a priceless visual history of the African American community in Williamsburg and the surrounding area from the late 1930s to the early 1960s. View many never-before-seen images taken by Durant that have recently been digitized and assist library staff by identifying the people, places and events pictured in his photos. Free admission

Thursday, June 19, marks the public opening of the restored Williamsburg Bray School building, one of the earliest North American institutions in which Black children were formally educated, and the 89th original building in Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area. This admission-free site tells the complicated stories of the Bray School students and their teacher whose experiences placed them at the intersection of education, religion and slavery in 18th-century Virginia.

Join us on Juneteenth at the Public Armory for talks and demonstrations by Master Blacksmith Darryl Reeves, a third-generation metal worker and owner of Andrew’s Welding & Blacksmith Shop in New Orleans’ Seventh Ward. Located at the Public Armoury.

Join the us as we break ground on the African Baptist Meeting House at the site of the original permanent location of the First Baptist Church, one of the earliest African American congregations in the United States. Faith leaders from First Baptist Church and the daughter churches will speak, commemorating the day and honoring the ancestors at their permanent resting place. Located on Nassau Street.

On Saturday, June 14th, there will be a terrific opportunity for our WUU community to step out and voice our commitment to our UU values of justice and love.

Joining hundreds of other cities across the country, a rally will take place 5:00 PM at the WJCC Courthouse to mark NO KINGS DAY – a day to protest the lawlessness of our current administration, a day to insist upon the rule of law, and the importance of human rights.

If you would like to carpool to the courthouse, please meet at WUU by 4:30 PM. We are expecting a larger-than-ever turnout at the Courthouse, so parking may be limited!

To prepare for this event, we will have a poster making session at 11:30 this Sunday, June 8th, after the service. Bring your poster boards (Dollar Store is the best place to buy them!), markers, paints and we will help each other create! (There will be some markers available if you do not have any.)

Questions? Contact Kate McGaw katemcgaw1@gmail.com

Carpool questions? Contact Wendy Mataya wmataya@aol.com

This event is approved by the UUA.

Pride LitCon is an event connecting authors of queer stories with readers. The event will take place in Richmond, VA on June 14th, 2025 at 1712 Bellevue Avenue, Richmond, VA 23227.

Join us at Grissom Library (366 Deshazor Dr, Newport News, VA 23608) to celebrate PRIDE on Saturday, June 7th from 2 PM to 4 PM with the well-known Drag entertainer Sabrina Laurence.

PRIDE BINGO is the name of the game as the traditional bingo caller is replaced by a sparkling Drag Queen, who calls the numbers, entertains the audience, and celebrates the LGBTQ+ community! We'll have a load of fun with prizes, snacks and music.

Adults 18+, registration required.
For more information visit, https://library.nnva.gov/264/Events-Calendar