It’s been a little over three years since the murder of George Floyd. During COVID we came face to face with lynching and racism and couldn’t just pass on by because we were all stuck inside. So, what did we do? We turned phrases we didn’t understand (as White people) like “critical race theory” andContinue reading “From George Floyd to white comfort”
Tag Archives: Racism
Brokenhearted
“Being brokenhearted leads to clarity about our unwillingness to abide racist behavior. It is very disheartening to hear white people who are not trying to move beyond being allies try to explain acts of racist terror and other daily denigrations of people of color with oversimplifications instead of properly naming them. The energy generated fromContinue reading “Brokenhearted”
Moving from an ally to something deeper
“Ponder this: If you were dying, who would you prefer to be accompanying you on the journey — an ally or a fellow pilgrim?” — Catherine Meeks
Yes, I see color
“…I have concluded that for the most part such comments (“I don’t see color”) are an attempt to communicate a willingness to see beyond color. That’s admirable, but proclaiming not to see color does not get that point across very well. White people who are determined to confront racism in the outer world and inContinue reading “Yes, I see color”
National shame
We are a severely broken society and culture. It doesn’t show up in our GDP or stock market portfolios. We use money as a “leading indicator” in white America. We don’t take into account how we treat people. Ever.
Race and the conversation
“We have to do far more than talk about racism, but the work of transformation must engage conversation. Transformation cannot take place in a vacuum, but it can emerge even from relationships that are complicated and painful. And even situations that are disturbing and appear mostly negative can result in change, sometimes almost without beingContinue reading “Race and the conversation”
Why still talk about race?
Why still talk about trauma and justice? As a white man I am not free of trauma, but there are areas of trauma where I have choices. I can remove myself. To choose to remain in the issue is a luxury I have as a white man.
The hard path
“Racism is much like a chronic illness. It must be diligently managed on a daily basis. There are no days off in the management of a chronic illness… Many of us believed that the Voting Rights Act took care (of voter suppression). Now we see that it did not. But we relaxed because we thoughtContinue reading “The hard path”
The way forward is with courage
It is MLK Day. I will see enough softball quotes of Dr. King today to last me awhile. This is my annual invitation for you to read “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” Go look it up. I’m not even going to allow the convenience of a link here to help you. If you haven’t read itContinue reading “The way forward is with courage”
Freeing ourselves of the confirmation bias
Catherine Meeks in her book, The Night is Long but Light Comes in the Morning, has a meditation on the “shadow” in our lives. It’s that unseen force in our lives that will fill in the gaps between fact and our perception. We have a way of seeing something, or someone, and it is quicklyContinue reading “Freeing ourselves of the confirmation bias”
Apprentice 2 Jesus 