Why I am a member of Interfaith Action

By Rev. Jim Boler, D.Min.

I respect and marvel at the work of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. I moved to southwest Florida in 1988 and over the years have watched the CIW develop into an international force for justice. I, like those of you reading this, am committed to working with the CIW to improve sub-poverty wages and end modern-day slavery and human rights abuses in the fields. So why did I join Interfaith Action (IA)?

I joined because my faith has been strengthened by the witness of farmworkers using nonviolent methods to raise awareness of unfair labor practices. God is at work in Immokalee. I find hope in the ability of the CIW to gain the support of socially responsible fast food chains, food service companies and supermarkets. In the past the workers were invisible but now they have formed a vibrant community and their voices are being heard. I want to participate in this movement.

Joining IA provides a visible support community for the CIW. I am not a farmworker so I am not eligible to join the CIW (a coalition of active farmworkers). Interfaith Action, a partner organization of CIW, gives me the opportunity to be part of all this history. I walk on picket lines, meet with elected officials, stand outside corporate headquarters and write letters to the editor. And I have been known to preach a few sermons about farmworkers.

But when I join (and contribute) to Interfaith Action I am doing so much more. Interfaith Action provides a wide range of logistical and technical assistance to the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, both in Immokalee and in national tours and actions. IA staff, along with the staff of Student Farmworker Alliance, serves as translators at CIW public events. IA helps to rally conscientious consumers working for ‘fair food.’ IA arranges speaking engagements and room and board on CIW national tours and hosts ‘immersions’ in Immokalee for those of us in this area and for people, including a lot of graduate students, from around the country.

Most importantly, I think, Interfaith Action connects the CIW with faith based organizations and communities and helps us to move from charity to justice. IA (first called Religious Leaders Concerned) is how I was introduced to the CIW. Interfaith Action provides a vehicle for living out the moral and ethical dimensions of our faith traditions.

I joined Interfaith Action so that even when I can not be there with the Coalition, the staff of Interfaith Action is there for me.
-Rev. Jim Boler, D. Min., retired United Church of Christ minister

To become a member, e-mail info@interfaithact.org with your name, address, faith community/affiliation, and click here to make an online donation- please note "membership" in the notes section. Or you can e-mail us to request the membership brochure that you can mail in.