UCC youth bring bold faith to Capitol Hill 

This summer, high schoolers and recent graduates from across the United Church of Christ spent a week living, praying, and advocating on Capitol Hill as part of Youth Voices: Bold Faith, a joint program of the UCC Office of Public Policy and Advocacy in Washington D.C. and NOWCYM, the UCC Network of Wider Church Youth Ministries. 

The program ran twice this summer, once in June and again in July, giving two separate cohorts of young people a week-long immersion in faith-based advocacy, justice, and community. 

The Rev. Michael Neuroth, director of the UCC Office of Public Policy and Advocacy, emphasized the importance of bringing youth to the Hill.  

“I think the voice of our youth are one of the purest forms of hope and ideals that we as a society have. And so to me it’s important to uplift their presence, both to affirm their voice and to affirm their leadership,” Neuroth said. 

While staying near Capitol Hill, participants received advocacy training directly from policy staff at the UCC’s Washington, D.C. office, preparing them for face-to-face meetings with their own members of Congress. The training focused on helping youth find their voice to faithfully speak truth to power, guiding conversations about which issues mattered most to them, and offering practical tips for running an effective meeting with lawmakers and staffers.   

Chloe Miller of Eagan, Minnesota, and a member of Creekside UCC in Minneapolis, said she was excited to be in conversation with fellow justice-oriented and politically engaged youth.  

“With no action, nothing will change,” Miller said. “And in order for there to be much-needed change, youth need to get involved.” 

Across the two sessions, roughly 40 youth collectively conducted nearly 25 meetings with congressional offices, advocating for legislation on just immigration policy, protections for LGBTQ+ individuals, and gun violence prevention. Among the bills they raised were the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act, the ICE Badge Visibility Act (the VISIBLE Act), the 988 LGBTQ+ Youth Access Act, and others. 

The youth met with congressional offices spanning the political spectrum, speaking with staffers and, in some cases, with members of Congress directly such as Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Rep. Betty McCollum, Sen. Gary Peters, Rep. Mark Pocan, and Sen. Tina Smith. 

The issues that youth raised in their meetings were personal, direct experiences they carried into the halls of Congress.  

Lu Filkins of Duluth, Minnesota, and a member of Peace UCC, listed gun violence, LGBTQ+ protections, and immigration enforcement among the issues that mattered most. Filkins shared a personal story about a friend’s frightening encounter with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “[ICE] was down the street from where I work and where I live,” Filkins said, “That’s not okay.”  

Kevin Brown, associate conference minister for Faith Formation in the Minnesota Conference, reflected on the power of youth-led policy meetings.  

“It was amazing just to see how they were vulnerable, brave, and bold in sharing their own passions and justice commitments with folks in positions of power – and holding them to be accountable to the things that matter to their wider communities,” he said. 

But the weeks weren’t all policy meetings. The program built in time for prayer and faith grounding, conversations with young professionals early in their careers, and visits to some of Washington’s best-known sites, including the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the monuments along the National Mall. 

Both programs closed with a youth-led rally, where participants voiced their calls for justice through song, spoken word, and poetry. Gathered in the space outside the United Methodist Building, just across from the U.S. Capitol, the youth bore witness to the lessons of the week, holding signs with slogans like “Love Is the Law,” “America Is Built on Immigrants,” and “Love Thy Neighbor.” 

During the rally in June, Toby Watson of the UCC Indiana-Kentucky Conference said his experience underscored the importance of speaking up.  

“This has shown me when you have opportunities like this, it is instrumental that you take them to make your voice heard,” Watson said. “And whatever we do, we cannot let our opinions go unheard.” 

Jenn Ringgold, director of Faith Formation for the Michigan Conference, said the program taps into something she sees often in her ministry work.  

“As someone who has the privilege of focusing on ministry with children, youth, and families, young people have such a desire to utilize their faith in ways that make a difference. And being able to hone in on what is important to them… and equip them with the capacity to use faith language in a public way is so powerful,” Ringgold said. 

Across both weeks, participants voiced their appreciation for the convening and their eagerness to carry their newly honed advocacy skills home to their local communities. Asked what she took away from the week, Chloe Miller reflected on how to engage with those with whom she disagrees.  

“Don’t speak in anger. Speak with love, and a love that you know is real,” she said. “And have patience with those who can’t find that love yet.” 

View video highlights from the youth events:  

📹Capitol Hill Youth Tour 
📹 Youth Lobby Training 
📹 Youth Lobby Day  
📹 Youth-led Rally Day  
📹 Post-Rally Reactions 

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