Truth and Action Roundup 9.26.25

View this email in your browser Welcome to the Truth and Action Roundup, your reliable weekly source of information, inspiration, and opportunities for action during the second Trump administration.  Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to continue receiving it. This Tuesday, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who insists on being called the “Secretary of War,” and President Donald Trump gathered military leadership for an unprecedented speech. During this address, armed forces leaders were informed that protections for service members, such as anonymous reporting and strict adherence to a code of ethics, were no longer priorities for the current Secretary of Defense. Following this, the Commander in Chief announced that the military would be a key part in targeting the “enemy within” and cited Chicago specifically as a “training ground” as an example of the “dangerous cities” where they’ll play a “big part.” The response to this speech has been chillingly muted among civic leaders. Congress’s failure to avert a government shutdown, and the ongoing fallout from recent high-profile political violence continues to dominate headlines. These are essential issues that are critical to the care and safety of our neighbors. We must, however, stay clear-eyed in connecting the neglect of our neighbors, seen in the removal of public resources, and the violence tearing apart our communities from mass shootings, with a political leadership now calling on the military to prepare to “apply force” against people in the United States. What these issues highlight is a fundamental rejection of the Christian commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves. Since the buildup to the call for the military to use cities in the United States as “training grounds” has also included weeks of the military carrying out strikes in the Caribbean on civilian vessels culminating in Trump unilaterally declaring the country is in “armed conflict” with civilians in the Caribbean, we must now understand why we are required to stand up for our neighbors as we would for ourselves. We now see the true purpose of asking us to turn away from the hungry and sick when we’re being told our neighbors are an “enemy from within.” We also witness the tragic results of people accepting such messages, as shown by the repeated displays of violence that seem to follow one another. As Christians, we understand that this is not the inevitable future for our society. We recognize that we must oppose any politics that calls us to abandon the core principle of our faith, which is to see and honor the divine in every person. By demanding resources and care for every person, we can build a vision that makes space for us all. We must stand firm in our faith and spread love by protecting and caring for our communities. It is through this work that we create a vision of society that truly reflects our faith. - Rev. Moya Harris and Chad Stanton, Sojourners In the News 1. The Trump administration continued its authoritarian overreach while facing some signs of pushback: • A new national security memorandum from Trump will likely double the size of the FBI’s domestic terrorism watchlist from 5,000 to 10,000 by expanding domestic terrorism indicators such as “anti-capitalist,” “anti-Christian,” and “anti-American.” • The Supreme Court allowed Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook to remain in office while the case deciding whether Donald Trump can fire her continues, with a ruling expected sometime before next June after oral arguments in January 2026. • Pete Hegseth’s enforcement of stricter shaving rules and “male-based test standards” for fitness is likely to disproportionately penalize Black and female troops. Pseudofolliculitis barbae (PSB), colloquially known as razor bumps, is a painful skin condition that affects at least 60 percent of Black men and can lead to permanent scarring. The military has had exemptions to daily shaving for people who suffer from PSB in place for decades prior to Hegseth’s order. 2. The Trump administration continues to pursue its cruel deportation regime: • We continue to see cases of ICE detentions that separate family members from each other. Advocates allege that these family separations are by design and implemented as a retaliatory measure to coerce migrant people into leaving the country. • Pope Leo criticized the administration’s “inhumane treatment of immigrants in the United States,” suggesting that supporting the administration’s cruel immigration policy while opposing abortion is not a consistent pro-life stance. 3. The federal government partially shut down this week after Republicans and Democrats failed to pass a temporary funding bill: • Trump warned that he can use the shutdown to make “irreversible” cuts to social safety net programs and has also repeatedly threatened to use the shutdown as a pretext for mass layoffs of federal workers. • Democrats have pushed to include an extension of tax credits in the funding bill that would keep health insurance premiums more affordable for the 24 million Americans who get their coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces. Without the extension of these tax credits, premiums are expected to rise an average of 114% next year for this group. 4. There were troubling developments in several conflict areas around the world: • The Trump administration’s proposal to end the war in Gaza faces uncertain prospects, with Hamas’ leader in Gaza reportedly opposed to its provisions requiring Hamas to disarm and play no role in Gaza’s future governance, as well as the potential for Israel’s continued military presence in parts of the strip. • The Israeli military intercepted vessels in the flotilla attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, detaining hundreds of activists, including Greta Thunberg. • The civil war in Sudan continues to create widespread suffering and death, with the city of el-Fasher under a particularly horrific siege. • A drone strike in Haiti killed at least eight children last month, while the alleged target of the strike escaped unharmed. The Haitian government task force that conducts the drone strikes is reportedly being advised by Vectus Global, a private security firm owned by Blackwater founder Erik Prince. Take Action • We’re calling for a boycott of Chevron for its partnership with Israel as the genocide against the people of Gaza continues. We also demand that Congress make the District of Columbia the 51st state in the country. • On October 18th, there will be another nationwide No Kings Day protest. SojoAction is supporting as an organizational sponsor. What We’re Reading “Chicago Faith Communities Say ‘Joy’ Is Key to Resisting the Feds” | And as I was praying for them, they started shooting at me, and they pelted me with exploding balls of chemical munitions, hitting me, aiming for and hitting me on the head, in the face.  (By Tate Young) “Looking at Life Through the Eyes of Gaza” | If we are all speaking out about Palestine, they can’t put us all in jail. (By Josiah R. Daniels) “We Aren’t The First Christians to Face a Kairos Moment” | If we follow the example of our South African siblings, we in the U.S. need to articulate a prophetic theology that refuses to be neutral or apolitical, and is committed to explicitly naming and condemning the powers that prohibit justice. (By Adam Russell Taylor) Deep Breaths  When Justice Feels Delayed The onslaught continues. It is easy in this moment to feel hopeless or to be overwhelmed with anger. Our senses are under an assault that is not normal. We are at the beginning of another government shutdown. We’ve been here before, but this one feels different. The sinister undertones cannot be ignored. Politicians are playing chess with people’s livelihoods, chasing after the best soundbite. It is downright depressing. In times like these, I turn to the prophets. Habakkuk once cried out: “O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you, ‘Violence!’ and you will not save? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So the law becomes slack, and justice never prevails. The wicked surround the righteous; therefore judgment comes forth perverted.” -Habakkuk 1:1-4 Aren’t we asking the same questions? Aren’t our senses taking in the same grief? What then shall we do? Like many, I have felt helpless and discouraged. But Habakkuk shows another way. Though destruction was before his eyes, he declared: “I will stand at my watchpost and station myself on the rampart; I will keep watch to see what he will say to me and what he will answer concerning my complaint.” Habakkuk 2:1 That is our call too. Stay alert. Keep listening for God’s voice in the chaos. Each of us has an assignment—yours may look different from mine, but each matters. And then God’s charge to Habakkuk: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it. For there is still a vision for the appointed time… If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.” Habakkuk 2:2b-3 Writing itself can be an act of discernment. Whether one word or many pages, putting pen to paper clears the fog and steadies the spirit. Sometimes the words make sense, sometimes they don’t. But something happens when we write. Words carry power. Words can shift worlds. And sometimes, God might speak through the pen. This week, write one word—or a whole vision—and watch how God meets you in it. Rev. Moya Harris, Senior Director of Programs, Sojourners The Truth and Action Roundup is compiled by Sojourners staff: President: Rev. Adam Russell Taylor Senior Research Associate: J.K. Granberg-Michaelson Digital Content and Community Specialist: Kassandra Tapia Chief Program and Impact Officer: Bryan Epps Political Director: Chad V. Stanton Senior Program Director: Rev. Moya Harris Digital Education and Outreach Specialist: Cortnie Brooks Policy and Action Assistant: Trinity Williams Senior Director of Marketing: Sandra Sims Donate Subscribe Copyright © 2025 Sojourners. All rights reserved. Email: sojourners@sojo.net | Tel.: 202.328.8842