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Social Justice Tag: Women

Seeking short, student produced videos that will help Mercy spread the word about the power of women and reducing consumption.

View last year’s grand prize winning video. (*Note: the contest themes have changed for 2025.)

The Mercy Justice Team needs you, a Mercy student, to create a short, social media style PSA (public service announcement) video – think Reels or TikTok – that reflects the Sisters of Mercy’s Critical Concerns. Put those creative ideas and video skills to work and you could win $500!

How do women impact the world for good?

How can individuals reduce their consumption to better care for the Earth?

What is a policy or campaign that could help people reduce their consumption?

Who are the heroines of the Mercy Critical Concerns?

To receive information, updates and reminders about this year’s contest, complete this form and we’ll be in touch. Click here to learn rules for entry and how to upload your video.

View the grand prize winning videos from 2023. (*Note: the contest themes have changed for 2025.)

Purpose

For this year’s contest we are seeking short, PSA style videos (30 to 90 seconds) that are suitable for sharing on social media platforms such as TikTok or Reels. Video entries must focus on one of these topics:

The Power of Women
  • Videos should reflect the charism of Mercy and highlight the gifts and contributions that women, either individually or collectively, bring to society.
  • Videos could promote the contributions of women, tell the story, past or present, of a woman or women engaged in Mercy or justice, or dream about the future for women in society.
Reducing Consumption
  • Videos should reflect the Mercy Critical Concerns, especially the Critical Concern for Earth, but do not need to identify the Critical Concerns specifically.
  • Videos should encourage actions toward reducing consumption either on the personal or societal level.
  • Videos could be inspirational or motivational, provide a ‘how-to’ process for reducing consumption or provide information about the consequences of conspicuous consumption.

Contest Webinar

Watch our 17 minute webinar to learn more about this year’s contest.

Who Can Enter

Any student or group of students, high school age or older, enrolled in Mercy high schools, colleges/universities, or involved in a Mercy-affiliated ministry.

Use this tip-sheet to help you as you begin the process of creating your video.

Format

Read the complete rules

Length: 30 to 90 seconds

Language: English or Spanish

Other Requirements

1. Title. Each video must have a title. The title must be indicated on the submission form. The title does not need to be included in the video itself.

2. Credits. Credits must include the name of those involved in the creation of the video. The credits must also include citations for any images, audio, or text used in the video that is not original. The credits do not need to be included in the video itself, but must be included in the submission form.

The Sisters of Mercy may delete title and credit screens before posting videos on social media.

Entrants are strongly encouraged to use original footage and graphics as much as possible.

Important Note on Rules: In order to honor copyright protections, rules regarding use of images and music were updated for the 2022 contest and remain in effect for 2025. See the complete rules for details.

Deadline

All entries must be received by April 1, 2025.

Prizes

A panel of judges will use these criteria to select the winning video. Individual winners will receive financial awards. The Grand Prize Winner receives $500.

Winning entries may be featured on the Sisters of Mercy Institute web site and social media channels. Winners and their winning institution will be formally announced.

Interested?

If you think you might be interested in entering this contest, fill out this form to receive contest information and updates.

Past Winners

Click here to view all of our past winners.

November 2024

Articles from Mercy:

Local Justice News & Upcoming Mercy Events:

Critical Considerations

What happened on November 5, 2024?

Karen Donahue, RSM

In an article posted shortly after the election, Robert Reich, former Secretary of Labor (1993–1997) and currently professor emeritus of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, made a keen observation about the 2024 U.S. presidential election. He noted that the significance of the election is not only the outcome, but also how that outcome is interpreted. He said, “This is known as The Lesson of the election. It explains what happened and why. It deciphers the public’s mood, values and thoughts. It attributes credit and blame.”

Robert Reich’s article, along with one by David Sirota (from The Lever), investigative journalist and editor of The Lever, offer some helpful insights into this political moment and point to some positive steps to move our country in a new direction, one that serves the needs and aspirations of all.

Both authors debunk much of the conventional wisdom about why the election turned out as it did. They agree that the Republican Party has been, and continues to be, the party of wealth. However, the Democratic Party has abandoned its commitment to working class Americans, and this process has been underway for decades.

Trade deals and deregulation of the financial services industry, which were enacted during the Clinton years, have devastated communities, creating job insecurity and stagnant wages. Struggling workers see no reason to support the Democrats, and the psychological stress of their situation makes them vulnerable to a demagogue who promises simplistic solutions to the difficulties they are facing. Even though indicators such as the stock market and the unemployment rate show that the U.S. economy is doing well, most of these gains are going to those at the top of the economic ladder, and many workers have to hold down two or more jobs in order to make ends meet.

To regain the trust of the people, Robert Reich says that “Democrats must not just give voice to the anger but also explain how record inequality has corrupted our system, and pledge to limit the political power of big corporations and the super-rich.” David Sirota calls on Americans to “direct your anger at the right target, don’t disengage, diversify your sources of information so that you are exposed to more than just oligarch-owned news.”

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The Ecological Debt

Rose Marie Tresp, RSM; Institute Justice Team

I went to one of those “Everything’s a Dollar” store and saw 10 ounces of frozen mango chunks for $1.25. I bought four bags and opened one at home to eat. I started to think about where mangoes were grown and what it took to get this package of frozen mango chunks to me. How is it possible for these mango chunks to only cost $1.25? I thought of all the people’s labor who went to produce this: those who grew the mangoes, picked, cut them up, processed, shipped, and worked in the store where I bought them. The only way that this package could cost so little had to be that some of the workers in production of this package were not being paid a living wage.

Where do the consumer goods we buy in the United States come from? I started looking at the labels on my clothing, food, and other items. Articles of clothing often say the country that produced them: China, Venezuela, Bangladesh, India, etc. But what about other goods? I bought a grow light that I thought was produced in our local area only to realize it was assembled in our local area, but the pieces came from China. Our consumer goods and the natural resources used in production here come from around the world. Often in the U.S., we have no knowledge of the working conditions for those who produce the consumer goods and raw materials. We are also unaware of the environmental destruction caused in the mining of raw materials.

The lifestyles of those in the U.S. and other wealthy nations result in fundamental inequalities. Low-income countries consume six times less material and generate 10 times fewer climate impacts. The global minority has roughly 25% of the world’s population but earns 80% of the wealth and tends to dominate the global majority, both politically and economically.

Since much of our food and raw, natural resources come from the global majority where most of these workers live in poverty, the global majority is subsidizing the lifestyles of the global minority. Pope Francis refers to this as a true “ecological debt.”  An ecological debt is owed to the global majority since the natural resources and labor that give the global minority inexpensive consumer goods and food come from the global majority.

Furthermore, the overuse of consumer goods has caused the Earth, in the words of Pope Francis, to begin “to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.”

The places where this “filth” is deposited or left behind are in poor neighborhoods and poor countries with fewer enforceable environmental regulations. In the United States, landfills are found in poorer neighborhoods. In other countries, mining companies, after taking the available raw resources, leave behind dispossessed humans and environmental damages such as deforestation, polluted waters, and barren, poisoned land. These raw resources are used for cell phones and other electronic devices among other consumer goods. The multinational companies, producing consumer goods and raising capital in wealthy nations, are able to operate with little restraint on their activities among the global majority.

Villages, once self-sustaining in raising their own food, can no longer do so; the people migrate to the larger, over-crowded cities or to other countries in search of life for themselves and their children. The warming of the Earth means that a rise in temperature, along with the resultant drought, has made farming less productive or even impossible.

In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis calls us to an ecological conversion to be protectors of the Earth. He states that this is “not an optional or secondary aspect of our Christian experience” (Laudato Si’, 217). This conversion must result in efforts to move our political and economic systems to policies and practices which protect the Earth, our common home. This effort is particularly important, as the next administration plans to roll back current U.S. regulations which protect the earth. 

As individuals, we can purchase goods from Fair Trade companies and participate in efforts to change systemic inequalities.

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Article Archive

2024

November

Critical Considerations:

What happened on November 5, 2024?

The Ecological Debt

October

Overturning the Chevron deference

Critical Considerations:

Who are the Israeli settlers and what motivates them?

Assassination of Honduran water protector deeply grieves Sisters of Mercy

September

God walks with his people: National Migration Week September 23–29

Critical Considerations:

What does CEO compensation say about corporate priorities?

Anxiety – election season can heighten it!

August

Critical Considerations:

What is Project 2025 all about?

Working to stop weapon exports to Haiti

Beyond Voting:

Participating in Elections, part 2

July

Critical Considerations:

Is there a better way to spend $91 billion?

Education, Agriculture, & Emigration in the Philippines

Beyond Voting:

Participating in Elections, part 1

June

Critical Considerations:

Are we creating a prison-industrial complex?

Conscience

Mercy student videos address the Critical Concerns

May

Critical Considerations:

Degrowth is the only sane survival plan

Argentina and the government of hate

Listening to a chorus of voices

April

Critical Considerations:

An Israeli Jesuit reflects on war in the Holy Land

Advocacy Success! Expanded Background Checks for Gun Sales

March

Military spending and national (in)security

February

The challenge Gaza war presents for American Jews

January

Gaza war threatens credibility of West’s commitment to human rights and the rule of law

(click years to expand)

2023

December

Climate Summit fails to adequately respond to gravity of climate crisis

November

Critical Considerations:

The dangers of conflating Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism

Red flag laws in jeopardy: faith voices speak to save them

October

Jewish and Palestinian perspectives on Gaza crisis

September

U.S. China tensions impact efforts to address climate change

August

When Good Economic Policy Isn’t Enough

July

States Move to Weaken Protections for Child Workers

June

Corporate Lobbyists at Climate Talks

May

Electric Vehicle Transition Challenges

April

Repudiating the Doctrine of Discovery

March

Misrepresenting War

February

The Rise of Christian Nationalism

January

How the News is Reported Affects What We Know

2022

December

How Corporations Took Over the Government

November

The Independent State Legislature Theory Explained

October

The Next Phase in the Voting Wars

Local Justice News & Upcoming Events

Washington, D.C.

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Invitations from Christians for Ceasefire

Dec. 5th, Christians for Ceasefire is organizing a vigil during the National Christmas Tree Lighting. We will walk to the ceremony with a Christ in the Rubble tableau while singing Ceasefire Christmas Carols. Please join us. Join us between 4:30-7pm near the White House Ellipse at 17th and D St. NW. See this flyer and please share it with your churches, organizations, networks, and neighbors.

Dec. 10th, Jesus in the Rubble, Human Rights Day Nonviolent Actions
Here is a Prayer-Kit with Jesus in the Rubble visuals, songs, prayers, etc. for local actions, such as strategic processions to key locations. If you do an action, let us know! (emccarthy@franciscanaction.org) Please consider sharing with your partners across the country. There will also be a Churches for Middle East Peace vigil that evening. Find out about CMEP’s AdventNotArms campaign and sign on to their Christian leader’s letter to stop weapon shipments to Israel by Dec. 4th at 5:30pm ET.

Dec. 8-18, Accompaniment Delegations to Palestine. With Sabeel, we are going to keep the wave of accompaniment delegations going to Palestine, especially with the recent activity in the West Bank. Please consider joining or sharing this invite with trusted people. Register interest here. If you can’t go, please consider making a donation here to support other delegates going. There is another trip Jan. 18-27 (contact Carol: cgarwood62@gmail.com).

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These are some of the ways in which the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas will more fully live Laudato Si’ in 2024. To see the second year action plan click here.

Responding to the Cry of the Earth

  • The climate sustainability director will:
    • Collect utility usage data for smaller residences (i.e., apartments and houses) located throughout the United States. 
    • Expand community solar subscriptions to many of our houses and apartments for which such programs are available. 
    • Continue the electric vehicle (EV) pilot project at Merion, PA, with the purchase of an additional vehicle and the installation of additional EV chargers.  One other location will be selected to house an EV. Official guidance regarding the use, maintenance, and charging of EVs, along with concerns regarding metal mining, will be developed and implemented. 
    • Finalize guidance regarding the use of various sustainable and compostable alternatives to single-use plastic products.  A pilot location will be selected to test the overall process for implementing various parts of the guidance and determining what is needed (in addition to the installation of water-filling stations) in order to make the elimination of certain plastic products practical.  Complete the pilot solar project on the Belmont, NC, campus by the end of 2024.
  • Mercy Focus on Haiti aims to support the construction of 10 cisterns per month in the Gros Marne region, for the collection of rain water, using locally available materials. Cistern beneficiaries will receive training in the fundamentals of vegetable gardening, tree planting and reforestation, supporting both food production and the opportunity to sell surplus at market.

Responding to the Cry of the Poor

  • The Justice Team will deepen education and advocacy about the harms of extractivism to communities and the environment through: 
    • Mapping of extractivism near locations where the Institute has a significant presence; 
    • Educating the wider Mercy community about the experiences of communities most harmed by extractivism; 
    • Sharing more widely the statement on extractivism distributed among Chapter participants; 
    • Expanding our knowledge of extractivism to include practices such as agribusiness extracting nutrients from the land and the tourism industry dredging ports for cruise ships; and  
    • Solidarity and accompaniment of communities most harmed by extractivism
  • Sisters will continue participating in ecclesial networks (ie, in Meso-America and the regions of El Gran Chaco y el Acuífero Guaraní in South America) and will educate the rest of the congregation about how the Church is accompanying communities in these critical eco-systems.   
  • The Justice Team will participate in the “we are going to change the history of the climate and the planet!” campaign with the peoples of the Amazon in advance of international climate talks (COP30) in Belem, Brazil, in 2025.
  • Mercy Volunteer Corps has placed a volunteer yet again at Sanctuary Farm in Philadelphia and will offer short-term volunteer experiences at Mercy Ecological Center in Vermont.
  • Mercy Investment Services will expand and deepen the integration of environmental, social and governance investment strategies by:
    • Actively allocating capital to address diversity gaps amongst decision-makers and financial access within the Inclusive Opportunities Fund;  
    • Expanding the emerging managers program supporting firms owned or products managed by people with diverse or underrepresented backgrounds;  
    • Deepening Mercy Partnership Fund’s continued dedication to racial and gender equity as well as those that emphasize international opportunities; and  
    • Using our shareholder voice to explicitly call on companies to mitigate their impacts on people of color and to increase equity for disadvantaged communities.
  • Mercy Focus on Haiti will complete the fourth cohort of its poverty eradication program for women, and raise funds and set the stage for the fifth cohort. Participants from the first cohort will be able to create Village Savings and Loan Associations, which was offered to later cohorts as safe places to save money and access small loans. The first cohort participants also will be offered a tablet-based training program to develop the basics of finance and business skills.   Mercy Focus on Haiti will arrange for a physician member from the U.S. to make virtual visits with residents and walk-throughs of Bon Maison Samaritain, a house for persons who are elderly and infirm or mentally ill. Deteriorating conditions in Haiti have prevented in-person visits from the U.S.

Ecological Economics

  • Mercy Investment Services will:
    • Participate in learning opportunities to deepen our understanding of Catholic investing through documents such as Mensuram Bonam and Laudate Deum; 
    • Increase funding of mission-based environmental, social and governance investment managers and thematic managers in the equity fund;  
    • Originate additional commitments to impact managers in the Environmental Solutions Fund, which invests in renewable energy, energy and water efficiency, materials recycling, green buildings and sustainable agriculture;  
    • Commit additional investments to projects whose primary thematic area is environmental sustainability, impacts from the extractive sector or migration, or that address a just transition to a low‐carbon future in the Mercy Partnership Fund;  
    • Partner with other investors to engage corporations on water stewardship, greenhouse gas emissions, plastics use, biodiversity and other important issues; and  engage with other like-minded impact investors through the Catholic Impact Investing Collaborative, which is led by Francesco Collaborative, and through continued leadership within the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. 

Sustainable Lifestyles

  • The Justice Team and Climate and Sustainability Director will start exploring possibilities for working with other congregations of women religious to influence practices of dining service companies who serve our convents, retirement centers and other facilities. 
  • The Justice Team and Climate and Sustainability Director will continue the  Mercy Tips to Care for Earth as a monthly feature on the website. 

Ecological Education

  • Mercy Education has planned several activities for 2024:
    • “Generation Mercy,” an online meeting for students who are involved in Earth initiatives/clubs at their school, in the first half of the year; 
    • A commitment to highlight Earth in their newsletter at least 1 issue per month; 
    • Promote Mercy Meatless Mondays for the Lenten season; and 
    • Share some suggestions for Earth challenges for schools (i.e. zero waste meetings) to try to implement before Earth Day in April, then share about these in the newsletter/social media.
  • The Justice Team will organize an immersion trip to a region of western Pennsylvania experiencing an expansion of fracking and petrochemical facilities. 
  • The Justice Team will organize three immersion experiences at the U.S.-Mexico border to expand the number of sisters, associates, companions and co-workers who are educated about immigration policy and the reality at the border. One of these experiences will be solely for staff and board members of Mercy Investment Services.  
  • A Mercy associate in Guyana will develop a guidebook and set of advocacy tools for communities to understand the risks of the growing oil and gas industry in her country, and that will become a template for similar education elsewhere.  

Ecological Spirituality

  • The Justice Team will promote Laudato Si animators’ trainings and create a network of Mercy animators to work together and support one another. 
  • The Institute will participate in the Leadership Conference of Women Religious’ exploration and implementation of transformative justice work. 

Community Participation and Empowerment

  • The Justice Team will educate our network on the issues and the importance of voting our values in advance of the 2024 elections in the United States. 
  • The Justice Team will participate in a newly forming collaborative of Catholic organizations engaged in environmental and climate justice education, advocacy and practices.  
View last year’s grand prize winning video. (*Note: the contest themes have changed for 2024.)

The Mercy Justice Team needs you, a Mercy student, to create a short, social media style PSA (public service announcement) video – think Reels or TikTok – that reflects the Sisters of Mercy’s Critical Concerns. Put those creative ideas and video skills to work and you could win $500!

What does it mean to be a faith filled, values voter?

What is your own immigration story?

What is the immigration story of someone you know?

How can voting with Mercy affect our community, our nation, our world?

To receive information, updates and reminders about this year’s contest, complete this form and we’ll be in touch. Click here to learn rules for entry and how to upload your video.

View the grand prize winning video from 2022. (*Note: the contest format has changed since 2022.)

Purpose

For this year’s contest we are seeking short, PSA style videos (30 to 90 seconds) that are suitable for sharing on social media platforms such as TikTok or Reels. Video entries must focus on one of these topics:

Immigration
  • Videos should reflect the Mercy Critical Concerns, especially the Critical Concern for Immigration, but do not need to identify the Critical Concerns specifically.
  • Videos should inspire action to address the injustices that cause people to immigrate or the injustices that immigrants face in their new countries.
Voting
  • Videos should explore the ways that faith and Mercy values can influence the choices we make on our ballots.
  • Videos should inspire faithful citizenship and active involvement in elections without promoting partisanship or individual candidates.

Contest Webinar

Watch our 20 minute webinar to learn more about this year’s contest.

Who Can Enter

Any student or group of students, high school age or older, enrolled in Mercy high schools, colleges/universities, or involved in a Mercy-affiliated ministry.

Use this tip-sheet to help you as you begin the process of creating your video.

Format

Read the complete rules

Length: 30 to 90 seconds

Language: English or Spanish

Other Requirements

1. Title. Each video must have a title. The title must be indicated on the submission form. The title does not need to be included in the video itself.

2. Credits. Credits must include the name of those involved in the creation of the video. The credits must also include citations for any images, audio, or text used in the video that is not original. The credits do not need to be included in the video itself, but must be included in the submission form.

The Sisters of Mercy may delete title and credit screens before posting videos on social media.

Entrants are strongly encouraged to use original footage and graphics as much as possible.

Important Note on Rules: In order to honor copyright protections, rules regarding use of images and music were updated for the 2022 contest and remain in effect for 2024. See the complete rules for details.

Deadline

All entries must be received by April 3, 2024.

Prizes

A panel of judges will use these criteria to select the winning video. Individual winners will receive financial awards. The Grand Prize Winner receives $500.

Winning entries may be featured on the Sisters of Mercy Institute web site and social media channels. Winners and their winning institution will be formally announced.

Interested?

If you think you might be interested in entering this contest, fill out this form to receive contest information and updates.

Past Winners

Click here to view all of our past winners.

View last year’s grand prize winning video (*note: the contest format has changed for 2023)

The Mercy Justice Team needs you, a Mercy student, to create a short, social media style PSA (public service announcement) video – think Reels or TikTok – that reflects the Sisters of Mercy’s Critical Concerns. Put those creative ideas and video skills to work and you could win $500!

What form of injustice makes your nostrils flare every time it’s mentioned in the news?

Who do you know who’s been impacted by gun violence?

What story is yours to tell about the need for Mercy?

How do we challenge injustices in our society?

To receive information, updates and reminders about this year’s contest, complete this form and we’ll be in touch. Click here to learn rules for entry and how to upload your video.

View the grand prize winning video from 2021 (*note: the contest format has changed for 2023)

Purpose

For this year’s contest we are seeking short, PSA style videos (30 to 90 seconds) that are suitable for sharing on social media platforms such as TikTok or Reels. Video entries must focus on one of these topics:

Gun Violence
  • Videos should reflect the Mercy Critical Concerns, especially the Critical Concern for Nonviolence, but do not need to identify the Critical Concerns specifically.
  • Videos should inspire action to address gun violence.
Advocating for Justice
  • Videos should reflect the spirit of the Sisters of Mercy efforts to advocate on behalf of social justice issues.
  • Videos should inspire further advocacy.
  • Videos should seek to make the idea of advocating for justice more accessible to people of all ages by explaining why is it important or showing what it looks like.

NEW! Watch our 20 minute webinar

to learn more about this year’s contest.

Who Can Enter

Any student or group of students, high school age or older, enrolled in Mercy high schools, colleges/universities, or involved in a Mercy-affiliated ministry.

Use this tip-sheet to help you as you begin the process of creating your video.

Format

Read the complete rules

Length: 30 to 90 seconds

Language: English or Spanish

Other Requirements

1. Title. Each video must have a title. The title must be indicated on the submission form. The title does not need to be included in the video itself.

2. Credits. Credits must include the name of those involved in the creation of the video. The credits must also include citations for any images, audio, or text used in the video that is not original. The credits do not need to be included in the video itself, but must be included in the submission form.

The Sisters of Mercy may delete title and credit screens before posting videos on social media.

Entrants are strongly encouraged to use original footage and graphics as much as possible.

Important Note on Rules: In order to honor copyright protections, rules regarding use of images and music were updated for the 2022 contest and remain in effect for 2023. See the complete rules for details.

Deadline

All entries must be received by April 1, 2023.

Prizes

A panel of judges will use these criteria to select the winning video. Individual winners will receive financial awards. The Grand Prize Winner receives $500.

Winning entries may be featured on the Sisters of Mercy Institute web site and social media channels. Winners and their winning institution will be formally announced.

Interested?

If you think you might be interested in entering this contest, fill out this form to receive contest information and updates.

Past Winners

Click here to view all of our past winners.