Your club has members who come from different backgrounds, religions, and ethnicities. In response to current events, some members want to take a stand against social injustices in your local community and abroad. Other members find these issues political or controversial, and don’t support the club taking action. This has created tension in the club and alienated and upset some members. As the club chair for community service, you want to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard and the type of projects and initiatives you support in the community are endorsed by all members.
What would you do?
Service in Action 
This is an interesting one. There may be some varied reasons why some members are opposed to taking a stand on this issue. I would encourage club members to have a frank discussion on the issues. Perhaps personal biases could be aired, and the discussion might lead to at least a public statement of understanding the need for social justice, locally and abroad. . I think that doing so would be in the spirit – if not the letter – of what we understand Rotary stands for.
This is a wonderful way of drawing out the values of each of our clubs!
Learning to ~~~and engaging in ~~~ civil discourse builds bridges of honoring with grace and understanding. This is about building goodwill and better friendships as well s being fair to all concerned!
I’ts a very hard dilemma that challenges our genuine disposal to consider the diversity as a resource…
As Chair of Community service I should understand that the issue is, firstly internal at the Club. So I’ll organize a Club meeting about that, inviting the members to face honestly to the different stands and reasons.
In order to prepare the meeting I’ll hand on a questionnaire with a series of questions that each member will have to answer:
example: Do you think there are inequalities in our Community? If yes, Which? How do you think we can amend them? Which actions? What can we do as Rotarian Individuals and as a Club?
After that I’ll invite the members to comment the results during the meeting, suggesting the fact that we do’nt are here to build a social theory or to choose which poilitical party is better, but to take the better actions and ways in order to reduce inequalities, as a properly Rotarian task.
The meeting should have the format of free rotarian discussion, that is among friends, listening the different reasons, and having the goal to achieve a shared initiative. Myself, as a Chair of Community Service Committee sholud be the moderator and the guidance of the meeting.
I think that, reducing ideological or conservative positions as a possible biases during the discussion, we can get closer both two parties of the club.
If there are someone that insist in his immovable stand (whatever it could be), it means that he/she is not inclined to dialogue and understanding the existing diversity and different positions as a contribute to act in benefit of our Community. So if this member wants to go, it is free to do it.