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Justice & Advocacy - an affiliate website of The Lehigh Conference of Churches

Justice and Advocacy Committee

Our Vision

We envision a community answering to God’s movement among us in which basic rights of fairness and freedom from poverty for all people prevail.

Our Mission

The Justice and Advocacy Committee, as the independent voice of the Lehigh Conference of Churches, is an advocate for social justice. The Committee reaches out to a diverse community of member congregations and other faith organizations to inspire and encourage engagement for problem-solving. We provide educational opportunities and public forums for theologically-based discussion as we call out mutual concerns and unjust conditions.

Our Work with Congregations

We partner with our local congregations as well as local, state, and national organizations, such as Bread for the World and the Pennsylvania Council of Churches to provide faith based educational workshops, public forums, and training events on current social justice issues and public policy advocacy. We can also provide or recommend speakers on current social justice topics for study groups and judicatory events.

From time to time, J&AC organizes local workshops on social justice issues, such as our annual Food/Hunger workshops in partnership with Bread for the World each spring; and fall workshops on immigration reform (2007), Health Care (2008), Homelessness (2009), Jobs, Workers, & Economics (2010), the Growing Economic Divide (2011), Affordable Housing (2012), and Criminal Justice / Restorative Practices (2013, 2014), Fair Legislative Redistricting (2017,2018), Support for Local Immigrants (2017,2018), Healing Communities Training (2018).

We have also organized several informal gatherings "Congregations in Mission: Finding Common Causes" for missions/outreach/social concerns committee members from different congregations to get acquainted with each other and to form new partnerships where there are common interests.


Allentown Spring Events on Justice and Advocacy

March 3rd, 2020

COVID-19 Advisory – Due to the corona virus pandemic, the following events have all been cancelled or postponed indefinitely

(click on event titles for more details)

  • “Embracing the Full Household of God” (on Immigration)
    March 28, 2020 (Saturday, 9am-3pm) at First Presbyterian Church, Allentown
  • The Color of Justice: “Bail Reform: The Time Has Come!”
    April 15, 2020 (Wednesday, 7-9pm) at Muhlenberg College
  • Spring advocacy event: “The Bread of Justice”
    April 18, 2020 (Saturday, 9am-3pm) at First Presbyterian Church, Allentown
    making the connections between racism, poverty, and hunger
      • Poor People’s Campaign: A Call for Moral Revival
      • Bread for the World: Nutrition and the Racial Wealth Gap
      • Traces of the Trade: Slavery, Racism, and Reparations
  • Campbell Lectures with Katrina Browne
    “Reparations: A Faith, Spiritual and Biblical Engagement”

    April 23, 2020 (Thursday, 7:00-8:30pm), April 24, 2020 (Friday, 9:00-10:30am)
    responding to America’s legacy of racism, slavery, reconstruction,Jim Crow, red-lining, and mass incarceration
    at Dubbs Center (Lehigh Conference of Churches – 5th and Allen Streets)

Celebrate the life of Martin Luther King, Jr.

December 24th, 2019

Allentown Events – January 19-20, 2020

  • January 19, 2020 (Sunday, 6:00pm) “Traces of the Trade”
    A special screening of the feature documentary, “Traces of the Trade” which examines the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history. Given the myth that the South is solely responsible for slavery, viewers may be surprised to learn that they were Northerners.
    Sponsored by the Lehigh Conference of Churches and First Presbyterian Church, Allentown.
    Location: First Presbyterian Church, Allentown. For details and [free] registration, see www.lehighchurches.org.
  • January 20, 2020 (Monday, 9:00am) Interfaith Prayer Breakfast with Sheryll D. Cashin who will be speaking on “A Case for Reparations from the Faith Perspective.” Dr. Cashin is a Professor of Law, Civil Rights and Social Justice at the Georgetown University Law Center. Please join us for prayer, breakfast, and fellowship.
    Location: First Presbyterian Church, Allentown. Cost: $25. For details and registration, see www.lehighchurches.org.
  • January 20, 2020 (Monday, 11:00am) Allentown NAACP Celebration with
    Dr. Tina Q. Richardson, Chancellor, Penn State University, Lehigh Valley campus.
    Location: St. James AME Zion Church, 410 Union St., Allentown.

NCC Peace & Social Justice Conference

September 26th, 2019

October 1, 2019 (Tuesday, 9:00am-9:00pm) Northampton Community College
Peace and Social Justice Conference with workshops and presentations
on prisons and restorative justice.

  • 9:30 – 10:45am – Lipkin Theatre – Restorative Justice Workshop
  • 2:00 – 3:15pm – College Center 220 – Prison 101: Prison Industrial Complex
  • 3:30-5:30pm – Lipkin Theatre – Documentary Inside/Outside, with Nandini Sikand.
  • 5:30 – 6:30pm – Lipkin Theatre – Panel Discussion: “At the Intersection of
    Education and Punishment on Prisoner Education Initiatives”
  • 7:15 – 9:00pm – Lipkin Theatre – Climbing PoeTree musical performance
    (… and more … See program schedule for details).

All events during the day are free and open to the public.


Lights for Liberty: A Vigil to end Detention Camps

July 2nd, 2019

On Friday, July 12, 2019 at 7pm Lights for Liberty will bring thousands of people to detention camps and other significant sites across the country. In Easton, PA, there will be speakers beginning at 8pm and a silent candlelight vigil at 9pm.
Location: Riverside Park Amphitheatre, Easton, PA
The Easton event is sponsored by College Hill Presbyterian Church and Lehigh Valley for All. For further information, see the Easton facebook event and www.lightsforliberty.org.


Criminal Justice Reform in the Prison System
The Color of Justice:Reentry

May 28th, 2019
June 13, 2019 (Thursday, 7:00-9:00pm) NCC Bethlehem Campus
Reentry.” Panel discussion with: Marie Bartosh, Northampton County Chief Adult Probation Officer; George Little or Kelly Evans, Pennsylvania Deputy Secretary of Reentry; Hasshan Batts, Executive Director, Promise Neighborhoods, Lehigh Valley; Nancy Dischinat, Executive Director, Lehigh Valley Workforce; Bonnie Winfield, Journey Home Project; and Bobby Apgar, returning citizen.
… read more »

Criminal Justice Reform in the Prison System
The Color of Justice:Incarceration

April 4th, 2019
May 16, 2019 (Thursday, 7:00-9:00pm) NCC Bethlehem Campus
Incarceration.” Confirmed speakers include: John Wetzel, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections; Joe Welsh, attorney; Bonita Crowe, former employee of Northampton County, (and others TBA).
Location: Northampton Community College, 3835 Green Pond Road, Bethlehem, PA 18020 in the College Center, David Reed Community Room (Rm.220).
… read more »

Criminal Justice Reform in the Prison System
The Color of Justice: Bail Reform

March 30th, 2019
April 3, 2019 (Wednesday, 7:00-9:00pm) NCC Bethlehem Campus
Bail Reform.” The featured speakers will be District Attorney John Morganelli; defense attorney Gary Asteak; Nina Reynard, Chief of Pretrial Services in Northampton County; Dr. Michael Pittaro, Adjunct Professor, Criminal Justice; Melvin Geiger, Returning Citizen; and Panel Moderator, Shanita Hubbard.
Location: Northampton Community College, 3835 Green Pond Road, Bethlehem, PA 18020 in the College Center, David Reed Community Room (Rm.220).
… read more »

Criminal Justice Reform in the Prison System

February 7th, 2019

March 11, 2019 (Monday, 11:45am-1:30pm)
“Criminal Justice, the Color of Money”
How the criminal justice system discriminately favors those with financial resources. Guest speakers include PA Attorney General Josh Shapiro, President Judge of Lehigh County, Ed Reibman, and Northampton County Judge Craig Dally. This is a “Kick Off” luncheon for Criminal Justice Reform in the Prison System to promote our subsequent 3 part forum series on: Bail Reform, Incarceration and Re-entry.
REGISTER HERE ($25 includes lunch). Organized by Easton NAACP and CACLV.
… read more »

Wells Fargo & Co – illegal and unethical practices

December 12th, 2018

Here’s what you should know if you do business with Wells Fargo & Co.


Lehigh Valley Homelessness – Barriers and Resources

November 28th, 2018
  • Bill White’s editorial and blog provide an overview of current homeless sheltering programs in Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton. That includes the winter shelter at the Allentown YMCA, Salvation Army, Sixth Street Shelter, Family Promise, Rescue Mission; Safe Harbor in Easton, and Bethlehem Emergency Sheltering Program. Evidently, the Lehigh Valley Rapid Results 100 Day Challenge on Homelessness is focused on Allentown only.
  • The LVHN Street Medicine team provides healthcare for homeless folks in the Lehigh Valley. The team sets up clinics at soup kitchens … read more »

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