Who Is UU?

When I met with Ari to learn about them, they told me stories about their life. I’m struck by Ari’s success at finding and building meaningful communities. 

Ari grew up Pentecostal but left the church because they felt like the church was becoming too distracted by end-times conspiracies, too invested in imperialism, and too homophobic. One day, they told me, they’d just had enough. “I walked out of church because we were in Sunday School and they were talking about how gay people don’t go to heaven.” This didn’t fit Ari’s understanding of what a church should be. Ari had learned a lot about social justice for LGBTQ people through Tumblr and felt that human rights should be part of the mission of all churches. 

This church’s attitude also wasn’t consistent with Ari’s conception of themselves. “I’ve always been either an ally or queer in some way.” Ari is non-binary and asexual and didn’t feel welcome in their Pentecostal church. Ari stopped attending, but they didn’t stop looking for meaningful connections.

Ari later found community with Middletown Pride, and then through that, they found UU Meriden. They had seen the church before, but had felt that as a self-identified non-practicing Christian they should find a Christian church. Now that they had realized that they didn’t identify as Christian, they were open when they were invited to UU Meriden at a Tag Sale. “I guess kismet happened,” they said. 

This spiritual journey has taken place alongside an educational one. Ari grew up in Meriden and Waterbury, and went to Wilcox Technical High School. Now they attend CT State in Middlesex, where they’re studying sociology. Ari says they got a bit of a late start with college but really feels like that was the right path for them. This past semester, Ari’s favorite class was in U.S. History. They felt they learned a lot about baby boomers’ role in the civil rights movement. Ari has been surprised by how radical history can be. Ultimately though, Ari loves sociology because learning about people – why they do what they do – is important in order to help people.

When Ari isn’t doing classwork, their hobbies include reading, especially non-fiction about history and social justice. They were very excited to recommend Robert Putnam’s “Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community”. This book about the increasing isolation of the American public uses the decline of bowling leagues as a microcosm of broader civic engagement. 

Ari enjoys a variety of music and has found community there too. They love pop-rock and emo music. My Chemical Romance is one of Ari’s particular favorites, and they have found great joy in the Tumblr and other social media “fan spaces” that discuss the band and its music. Additionally they really enjoy K-pop, pop music from Korea. Ari says that, perhaps surprisingly, listening to the pop band BTS really radicalized Ari. “They talk a lot about anti-authoritarianism, class struggle, and self acceptance.” 

Ari was very excited to show pictures of their beloved emotional support animal, a dog named Roxie. “She’s scared of everything! We both are anxious and scared and sometimes mean about it, but I’m trying to be nicer.” 

When they get a chance Ari enjoys cozy video games like Animal Crossing and Pokemon. Ari is also interested in crafting. They make Kandi bracelets and designs out of perler beads. 

Now, Ari has joined another community – our Unitarian Universalist church. “I was a little hesitant about choosing a religious label, but I wear it with pride now.” They’ve found something special about this congregation’s commitment to one another, and we’re lucky they’ve joined us.