Half of my job constitutes working on the Unitarian Universalist India Holdeen Program (UUHIP). If you haven't heard of this program please smack yourself across the face. Now you know how I felt about six months ago when I first started learning about this program. I was shocked that I was a UU and never knew a thing about the amazing work of Kathy Sreedhar and the UUHIP. It is truly a revolutionary program, taking a radical approach to grant making.

The UUHIP works with the most marginalized people of India, the women, the tribals, the lower caste people, and those that fall outside the caste system known as the dalits, formerly the "untouchables". These people have been discriminated against and degraded for thousands of years and even now with a democratic government and laws on the books protecting everyone's rights, the wealthy higher caste people still discriminate and the dalits are disempowered and disillusioned. Many of them live in bonded slavery, having borrowed money from someone of wealth; they are obliged to work for them until their debts are paid. After years of work, sometimes even generations, they have worked enough to pay back their debts numerous times, but they are still enslaved, with no rights and no future.

But there is hope for the marginalized people of India! Charismatic and fearless leaders have come forth over the past thirty years. They have worked tirelessly to organize the dalits, to give them a voice, and to teach them to use it at the right time, in an effective way, and pointed in the proper direction. These leaders are enabling bonded laborers to walk away from their bondage and believe that they are truly free. These leaders are organizing young dalits and women to approach government and demand that they provide universal primary education as the laws say they should. These leaders are standing up to the upper caste thugs who crack down on the dalits as they press for their rights. Where once the upper caste could beat and murder those from a lower caste, now they are facing charges and jail time. These leaders are receiving international acclaim, and their programs on the ground are growing and thriving. These Indian leaders and their organizations are supported by the UUHIP. Through unrestricted funding, consul, and strategic support the UUHIP has affected thousands of lives over the past 20 years. Throughout that entire period Kathy Sreedhar has traveled twice a year to India fostering meaningful relationships with the many leaders in the fight to ensure that all people are treated equally and that all people believe that they themselves have dignity and worth.

This past weekend I took part in the UUHIP board meeting. We met at Kathy’s house on Friday night and enjoyed an Indian feast with the seven of us and a representative (and friend of Kathy’s) from the Fund for Global Human Rights. It was a fascinating evening with conversation diving deep into the issues affecting the many different states of India. On Saturday we met for six hours at the office to conduct the business of the twice-yearly board meeting. It was invigorating to be a part of that board. Everyone on it was completely invested in the project, caring about its success, and protective of its partners in India and of its director Kathy. I have taken part in other board meetings, and it is not every board that has members such as John Summers, the current chair, who has written a book called “Empowering the Oppressed”, which details the work of the UUHIP and its partners in India.

Coming away from the board meeting it was resolved that I would initially work on collecting content for the website, reorganizing it in the process. So I spent the greater part of this week reading through what we have and thinking about how to beef it up. It has been fascinating to read through all of these materials detailing the importance of working on human rights issues. There is a lot of international discussion about development and all to often human rights issues take a back seat. A question asked by human rights workers would be, what good is a water pump bringing water to a village if half the village is considered “unclean” or “untouchable” and is unable to access that water? The work is tough, as its focus is on changing society, specifically individuals’ hearts and minds. But the UUHIP and its partners have been working very hard doing precisely that for the past twenty years. I feel blessed to be able to journey with them for at least the next two.