In keeping with the strong legacy of social action by both Universalism and Unitarianism, the UU Amherst has been committed to social justice since its inception.

In the 1960’s and 1970’s, the congregation was in the forefront of improving race relations.  

• In 1963, the UU Amherst hosted an all-day conference on the inner city in conjunction with Citizens Council on Human Relations (CCHR), a community-based organization concerned with race relations. 
• Rock Ledge Day Camp, a multi-racial camp for suburban and inner-city, children was organized in 1966 and continued through 1975.  From 1967-1970, the Social Concerns committee and Lincoln Memorial Methodist Church in Buffalo ran a nursery school at Lincoln with support services for mothers of young children. 
• The Country Day Nursery School (1968-1976) was created and operated by members of this church to provide an integrated Nursery school experience for suburban and inner-city children.
• Also in 1969, the UU Amherst and the UU Church of Buffalo organized a chapter of Black And White Action focused on producing as response to institutional racism especially through the Arts.  This led to the Black and White Arts Festival, a series of six programs aimed at reducing racial tension by showcasing professional (primarily Black) artists and dramatizing the Black contribution to American culture.

In 1981, the Social Concerns committee started a local chapter of Remove Intoxicated Drivers (RID) that evolved into a community-based organization focused on instituting tougher laws and law enforcement in the area of drinking drivers as well as on offering support to victims of drunk drivers and their families.

UU Amherst received international media attention in 1987 when our minister, Rev. Carl Titchener, distributed condoms during a Sunday service entitled the “Condom Conundrum” to emphasize the need to deal with the problem of AIDS.

In 2016, after congregation wide study and vote, UU Amherst boldly announced its support of Black Lives Matters, only the second church in Buffalo to do so at the time.

Justice In Action continues to be one of UU Amherst’s values.