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.

With the release of many of Jeffrey Epstein’s emails this week, we’ve gotten a close portrait of the culture of elite impunity in a sharp contrast with the democratic accountability we experienced last week in the election results. The House Oversight Committee released 20,000 pages of documents it received in the estate of Jeffrey Epstein. Within these documents, we see prominent political figures, business leaders, and journalists offering and receiving advice from Epstein after he pleaded guilty to state charges of soliciting prostitution and soliciting prostitution of a minor, which had been publicly known and reported.

We know the consequences of this casual attitude towards sexual misconduct and the dismissal of the violence and trauma visited upon victims. Churches across the country have been shaken by revelations of sexual abuse from leaders who were granted impunity by the complicity and silence of leaders responsible for the safety and spiritual guidance of everyone in their community.

This stands in stark contrast with the resounding rebuke offered by voters in New York City to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who had been credibly accused of sexual misconduct before running for mayor. The support Cuomo was able to garner among business, media, and political leaders was brushed aside by the regular voters of the city, who could not overlook such conduct.

Here again, in the wake of the continuing revelations about Jeffrey Epstein, this pattern is repeating itself. While the Trump Administration and House Speaker Mike Johnson have dismissed the inquiries into Epstein’s conduct and its possible connection to Trump, polling and public sentiment consistently show the public demand answers and want to see accountability. As Christians, we must also be unerring in demanding the truth from the people entrusted to lead our country and our communities.

- Rev. Moya Harris and Chad Stanton, Sojourners

In the News

The longest government shutdown has ended, but uncertainty remains:

On November 12, eight Senate Democratic Caucus members joined their Republican counterparts to vote to end the longest shutdown in American history. The bipartisan deal that was struck does not include an extension of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies that would keep health care premiums low for Americans.
SNAP benefits for nearly 42 million Americans still face obstacles despite the shutdown coming to an end. The Supreme Court extended the pause on issuing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) until Thursday, leading to people waiting longer for their benefits to become available.

The longest government shutdown has ended, but uncertainty remains:

After a seven-week delay, Adelita Grijalva was sworn in on Wednesday and became the 218th signature to force a vote on releasing the Epstein Files. The same day, the House Oversight Committee released 23,000 documents to the public by way of the Epstein Estate. Many documents link Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
In July, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump Administration to continue with mass Federal layoffs, which was only exacerbated by the government shutdown. In less than a week, more than 7,000 flights were canceled due to unsafe staffing at airports. Even after workers resume their roles, flight reductions across the U.S. will continue until safe operating conditions return to normal.

Immigration detentions have led to gross abuses in the US and abroad:

In detention centers across the U.S., human rights abuses are being documented and made public; at least 20 people have died in ICE custody. A federal judge ordered the release of more than 600 immigrants arrested during ICE’s Operation Midway Blitz due to warrantless arrests made by officers. Community members and faith leaders continue to show up outside of detention centers, drawing attention to the ongoing disappearance of their neighbors, sometimes using creative methods to garner further attention.
Early in 2025, the Trump Administration flew hundreds of Venezuelan men to El Salvador to be detained in CECOT, a prison known for grave human rights abuses. The 252 men sent to CECOT endured torture, sexual and psychological abuse, by prison guards during their detainment.
The Trump Administration deported 120 Iranian immigrants to Tehran in September after reaching an agreement. Many of the deportees fled Iran out of fear for their lives, and now face uncertain futures in the land they left.

Take Action

Apaga el Odio is running a campaign demanding Univision and Telemundo stop airing ads for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which you can join here.
On Monday, November 17th at 3pm ET, Sojo Action will be partnering with Asociacion para la Educacion Teologica Hispana (AETH), Latino Christian National Network, and Fuller Centro Latino for "La Iglesia Que Acompaña al Migrante" a webinar discussing accompanying families in their mental health. You can register here.
On Wednesday, November 19th at 7pm ET, we will be hosting another iteration of our Faithful Conversations seminars, with the topic “Grace at the Table: Faithful Conversations with Family during the Holidays”, which you can register for here.
This week, we’re including a toolkit to organize Freedom Vigils for Immigrant Justice and Constitutional Rights in your community.

What We’re Reading

“Jesus Led Him to the Top of a Refrigerator to Protest SNAP Cuts” | “I see anything that I’ve been able to do in my life as a way of expanding my capacity to serve my neighbor.” (By Ethan Meyers)

“The Moral Lesson Buried in Last Week’s ‘Blue Wave’” | “I do not think anyone should live in shame, but feeling bad about doing something wrong is a sign of moral maturity.” (By Tyler Huckabee)

Best of the rest: “Military Coups and the Struggle for Power in Africa’s Sahel Region” | “What is happening in the U.S. now actually resembles what has been occurring in Niger for some time.” (By Rahmane Idrissa)

Deep Breaths 

When Truth Is Under Attack, Love Must Speak 

We are living in a time of strategic erasure. From banned books to slashed funding for HBCUs, from job losses among Black women to the manipulation of public health data, we are witnessing a quiet but coordinated campaign to distort truth and block pathways to Black and Brown flourishing.

This is not just a political moment—it is a spiritual one.

As people of faith, we know that theology is never neutral. How we see God shapes how we see people—and how we structure our world. A distorted theology leads to a distorted society.

Howard Thurman, the spiritual guide behind the civil rights movement, helps us see clearly. In Jesus and the Disinherited, he names three forces that undermine the soul of the oppressed: fear, deception, and hate. These forces don’t just silence and control; they strip people of joy, dignity, and power. 

But Thurman also offers a path forward: love as the final act of courage. Not sentimental love, not performative love—but dangerous, truth-telling, liberating love. A love that refuses to allow fear, deception, or hate to have the last word. 

In a season where power is being consolidated through disinformation, and where the vulnerable are being targeted through policy and neglect, our call is clear: to preach boldly, protect fiercely, and practice love as resistance. 

We are not called to be neutral. We are called to be faithful. 

May we re-member the God who stands with the disinherited. 

May we tell the truth—without apology. 

And may we embody the kind of love that doesn’t flinch. 

Amen. Ashe. Let it be. 

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