It has been 60 years since one of the most iconic gatherings in U.S. history, On Aug. 28, 1963, in Washington D.C., the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was held. Simply known as the March on Washington, this…
Trump, ‘law and order,’ and evangelical hypocrisy
“There’s a new sheriff in town” is a familiar American idiom. It evokes the image of a strong man who has come into a lawless Western town to establish much-needed law and order. This is a man who would rule…
Juneteenth: Moving from symbolism to substance
When President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation Jan. 1, 1863, it changed the legal status of more than 3.5 million enslaved Black people in the Confederate states from enslaved to free. It was two-and-a-half years later, on June 19,…
Preying preachers: Confronting clergy sexual abuse
There should be zero tolerance when it comes to clergy abuse of congregants. However, we learned years ago of how child sexual abuse by priests has been tolerated within the Roman Catholic Church. Since then, it has become unequivocally clear…
White supremacy in blackface: The curious case of Herschel Walker
Blackface is one of the disgraceful aspects of American history. Popularized in the United States after the Civil War, blackface involved white performers playing characters that demeaned and dehumanized African Americans. These offensive and blatantly racist performances were done in…
Three things white Christians can do to address white supremacy: Lament, repent, dissent
White supremacy is the erroneous belief that white people are superior to people of other races or ethnicities and should possess power and control in all areas of life. In fact, “race” was socially constructed centuries ago to ensure white…
Now is the time when we need to hear white evangelical leaders refute white supremacy
“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. … This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.” These words of…
Letter to white American evangelicals
What follows is a creative imagining of what Martin Luther King Jr. might say to white American evangelicals today. It was written by Joel A. Bowman Sr. in the spirit of King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” Dear white American evangelicals:…
The Capitol insurrection, the Lost Cause and the Confederate flag
On Jan. 6, 2021, I was in quarantine, recovering from COVID-19. As I read and watched TV to pass the time, I began to see early reports of the attack on the U.S. Capitol. I saw the events of that…