By Bob Allen The former ethics spokesman for the Southern Baptist Convention says visceral reaction to decisions by grand juries in Ferguson, Mo., and Staten Island, N.Y., not to indict police officers in the deaths of two unarmed African-American males…
Southern Baptists move up summit on race as issue simmers
By Bob Allen The Southern Baptist Convention’s moral concerns agency announced plans Dec. 11 for a March summit on racial reconciliation responding to the deaths of African-American men in clashes with police in Ferguson, Mo., and Staten Island, N.Y. “The…
American Baptist, NYC clergy protest Eric Garner decision
By Bob Allen National and regional leaders of the American Baptist Churches USA called for an examination of the U.S. criminal justice system, while interfaith leaders in New York City said a special prosecutor should investigate police misconduct in light…
A Litany of Tragedies
The streets of Ferguson had grown quiet, but this was not to last. After weeks of deliberation and hours upon hours of testimony, the grand jury tasked with determining whether or not Office Darren Wilson should be charged with any…
SBC leader Russell Moore denounces Eric Garner grand jury decision
By Bob Allen Southern Baptist Convention ethics leader Russell Moore reacted with shock and disbelief to a grand jury decision in Staten Island, N.Y., not to indict a police officer captured on video using a chokehold to subdue a non-compliant…
The race talk
By Starlette McNeill Race. The mere mentioning of the word reveals our unpreparedness, inexperience, awkwardness. Race has been with us for hundreds of years, yet we still don’t know what to say about it — though we are clear on…
Race, Ferguson, and Youth Ministry
There are important conversations happening now in American about race. Since I’m a student minister, I’ve been thinking about my students and how this conversation needs to include them. So, how do I talk with teenagers about something as big…
Welton Gaddy decries burning of Brown family church
By Bob Allen Interfaith Alliance head Welton Gaddy called on authorities to quickly investigate a Thanksgiving week arson that destroyed the Ferguson, Mo., church where the family of slain teenager Michael Brown has attended since July. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms…
We’ve got a lot of race work to do in America
By Marv Knox No matter what we think about a grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown, can we acknowledge attitudes about race divide our nation? The grand jury’s Wilson/Brown decision…
Black pastor says racial profiling exists in the SBC
By Bob Allen A black Southern Baptist pastor says he believes the kind of racial profiling which some believe played a role in the shooting of Ferguson, Mo., teenager Michael Brown is alive and well in the Southern Baptist Convention….
CBF pastor hopes Darren Wilson decision will prompt dialogue
By Bob Allen A Cooperative Baptist Fellowship pastor in St. Louis said any hope for improving race relations lies not in agreement about a non-indictment in the Michael Brown shooting death but in relationships that will grow between people with…
Thabiti Anyabwile says Ferguson grand jury gives marching orders for change
By Bob Allen An African-American leader in the “young, restless and reformed” Calvinist movement in the Southern Baptist Convention called on President Obama to exercise strong leadership in light of a Nov. 24 grand jury decision in Ferguson, Mo., to…