A couple of weeks ago I was able to interview Marlena Graves and Dennis Edwards after the murder of Ahmaud Arbery was exposed by a leaked video. It was a necessary conversation on race and racism and the reaction of the white believers.
Both of my guests are powerful communicators. Dennis has a piece posted on Christianity Today’s site concerning the latest upheaval in Minneapolis and the issues we really must deal with in this time.
Continue reading “Silence isn’t an option”“The common goal of 22 million Afro-Americans is respect as human beings, the God-given right to be a human being. Our common goal is to obtain the human rights that America has been denying us. We can never get civil rights in America until our human rights are first restored. We will never be recognized as citizens there until we are first recognized as humans.”
— Malcolm X: “Racism: the Cancer that is Destroying America,” in Egyptian Gazette (Aug. 25 1964).
“People say, what is the sense of our small effort? They cannot see that we must lay one brick at a time, take one step at a time. A pebble cast into a pond causes ripples that spread in all directions. Each one of our thoughts, words and deeds is like that. No one has a right to sit down and feel hopeless. There is too much work to do.”
– Dorothy Day
A black quarterback kneels during the national anthem. He states his reason. He is clear. And the political world erupts, making it about disrespect for the flag and not loving this country.
Protest marches erupt and there are chants of “Black Lives Matter” and the white world gets offended and shouts back “Blue lives matter!” or… worse… “All lives matter.”
Continue reading “Why Colin Kaepernick was kneeling and why black lives matter”Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia.
Breonna Taylor in Kentucky.
George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Lament. Anger. Deep grief.
I was setting up my next interview/discussion on race this morning and the man I was messaging asked me if I saw what had JUST happened.
Next week… another interview/discussion on race and racism. Look for it.
But for now… in my lament… I want to draw your attention to the obvious on those three incidents that have happened to African Americans: police brutality and prosecutorial neglect.
When white folks ask what “systemic racism” means… this is what it is.
Lord… let us wake up.
I was privileged to interview two important voices in my life on the issue of racism in light of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery.
Marlena Graves is an author and activist. Her forthcoming book The Way Up is Down is a wake up call to have our eyes on the marginalized in our world.
Dennis Edwards is a professor of New Testament studies at North Park seminary. He has pastored urban churches, including Minneapolis where we met. His forthcoming book is Might from the Margins.
For the audio, go HERE.
For the video, go HERE.
