Commentary on the intersection of race, culture, and faith
The Black Lives Matter organization is one of the scores of organizations that are invested in the liberation of Black people and the dismantling of systemic racism. There are also scores of grassroots organizations and groups that are acting under the presupposition that’s Black Lives Matter, but are themselves not aligned with the organization. There… Continue reading Black Lives Matter, but everything ain’t Black Lives Matter
Jon McNaughton's painting "Legacy of Hope" is a literal illustration of what it means to take the Lord's name in vain.
On the path of anti-racism, there are times when we are going to find ourselves at odds with others. There are times when the path might feel hard and lonely. But if we keep on pushing toward what is right, we will find our people.
In May of 2020, amidst national unrest sparked by the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and many others, symbols of the Confederacy have started to come down. The State of Mississippi voted to remove the confederate flag from its canton. A slave auction block was removed from the Historic Downtown of Fredericksburg,… Continue reading Taking down the Emancipation Memorial: When whiteness tells our stories
Whiteness tries to equivocate about what racism is so that it can falsely equate prejudice with racism and thus ignore the compounding effects of the history and systems of race in this country. Racism is prejudice + power. Prejudice is wrong. It is hurtful. It harms people and relationships. Racism is insidious because it ties… Continue reading Racism = Prejudice + Power
White Evangelicalism is in love with power and they imagine they are being persecuted when they perceive that they are losing that power.
White folks, especially white men, get the privilege of boasting in their inexperience and touting it as an asset.
I saw an image recently that said, “Privilege is when you think something is not a problem because you aren’t affected personally.” This is 100% true. The image inspired me to think more about what privilege is. This is privilege... Privilege is when you think that you can dictate to marginalized people what they should… Continue reading This is Privilege
Kirk Franklin's treatment by the Dove Awards shows us why Black folks need to be wary of "multicultural, multiethnic" Christian spaces
I am taking a course on the music of the civil rights movement, and the PBS Documentary “Eyes on the Prize is required viewing. I have found myself feeling incredibly angry because there is SO much that has not changed since the civil rights years.
I wrote this poem as a way to express some of the feelings and frustration that I feel.
The Armchair Commentary 