Updated: September 25, 2022
Title: Disability Justice Associate
Staff Group: Organizing Strategy Team (OST)
Reports To: Organizing Strategy Director
Location: Open*
Grade: Program Specialist I
Hours/Week: 9, part-time
Purpose
To ensure the UUA’s justice organizing on key intersectional justice priorities uses the lens of disability justice, and to ensure Unitarian Universalists have opportunities to deepen their commitment to disability justice through organizing and advocacy.
Principal Responsibilities
- Monitors issues and concerns that disproportionately impact disabled people or are raised by disability advocates, in relationship to the UUA’s key intersectional justice priorities. Provides information and support to the Side With Love team to ensure these issues are a part of the team’s overall work.
- Connects with coalitions and organizations in disability justice and organizing on behalf of the UUA, including EqUUal Access. Creates or promotes back opportunities for UUs to engage through the Action Center around these organizations’ advocacy.
- Helps to create and/or maintain online resources, webinars, and information on disability justice as a framework for organizing and liberation, and on current justice issues affecting disabled people. Writes email or social media messages related to ableism, disability justice and advocacy.
- Acts as a member of the Side With Love Organizing Strategy Team, including attending team meetings and supporting joint team events as available or necessary.
- Performa other duties as requested by the Organizing Strategy Director, the Executive Vice President, or the President.
Qualifications
This is a non-exempt position with an hourly midpoint of $28/hour Compensation may vary based on factors such as experience, qualifications, and geographical location, with offers potentially ranging from 10-15% higher or lower than the midpoint. Note that qualifications may be met as a result of lived experience, volunteer work, professional experience, and/or formal or informal training. Requirements include:
- 1-3 years of professional experience in project management, organizing, advocacy, non-profit, government or religious organizations, congregations, or similar roles.
- Exceptional analysis, practice and understanding of disability justice as a framework for anti-oppression and full inclusion. Strong grounding in overall social justice and principles of anti-ableism, anti-oppression/anti-racism/multiculturalism.
- Expertise in community organizing, justice building, and/or policy advocacy, including awareness and support of issues affecting the disabled community.
- Significant personal, professional or lived experience participating in and/or supporting disabled communities, including people with physical disabilities or impairments as well as those who are neuro divergent. Experience in spaces led by and for disabled people, rather than spaces created by service providers, is of special importance
- Demonstrated experience in leading collaborative projects and initiatives, especially communications projects, successfully managing logistics and deadlines.
- Experience working in team-settings and multi-layered institutions. Is a thoughtful and engaged team player. Effective communicator, writer, and presenter (in virtual contexts).
- Must be able to use a computer, including the Microsoft Office suite of applications (Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word), Zoom meetings and web phone. Website and social media proficiency (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.) is essential.
- Work or lived experience with communities of color or indigenous peoples is of particular value.
- Eagerness to work in an organization in which the dismantling of white supremacy is a high priority.
Occasional travel may be possible but would not be required in the position.
How to Apply
People with disabilities, people of color, indigenous people, Hispanic/Latinx, and LGBTQ candidates are encouraged to apply. The UUA is committed to developing a diverse and talented staff team. If you are excited about this role, but are unsure whether you meet 100% of the requirements, we encourage you to inquire and/or apply. Please submit your resume and cover letter via our applicant portal (ADP WorkforceNow) on uua.org/jobs. If you have any questions, please reach out to careers@uua.org .
About the UUA
The Unitarian Universalist Association is a progressive religious denomination headquartered in Boston’s waterfront Fort Point Innovation District. Our faith community of more than 1,000 self-governing congregations brings to the world a vision of religious freedom, tolerance, and social justice. Our normal workweek is 35 hours, we pay 80% contribution towards health insurance premiums, 10% towards retirement (after one year), and have generous paid time-off policies. We are a great place to work, and we value diversity. The UUA is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to the full inclusion of all. As part of this commitment, the UUA will ensure that applicants and staff with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact the Department of Human Resources at careers@uua.org . For more information on the UUA, visit us online at UUA.org and uuworld.org.
Support for the Mission and Values of the Association
The Unitarian Universalist Association is a progressive and historic religious denomination. All UUA staff members are expected to perform their job duties in accordance with the UUA’s values, principles, and mission. Unitarian Universalism puts love at the center of our commitments, which embrace the Shared Values of justice, equity, transformation, interdependence, pluralism and generosity. The following points drawn from these Shared Values are of particular importance for the UUA’s work environment and staff culture:
- Pluralism and generosity: We affirm the need for a human-centered workplace that allows our diverse staff to flourish. We also understand that our wider culture and society oppresses and denies human dignity, and we seek to counter the effects of that oppression in our hiring and workplace culture so that each person feels whole and valued.
- Justice and equity: We speak openly and publicly of our support for social and political issues, including LGBTQ equity, racial justice, climate justice, gender equity, and reproductive justice.
- Interdependence and transformation: We recognize that the liberation of all people is interwoven, and we work to counter patriarchy, white supremacy, colonialism, homophobia, transphobia, environmental exploitation, and other interrelated systems of marginalization
