
Josh Linman
What Can We Do To Fight Racism?
Updated: Jun 18, 2020
By now most of you have heard the news of the tragic murder of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer, and the shooting of Breonna Taylor in Kentucky, and the modern day lynching of Ahmaud Arbery in our own state.
I hope those news stories outraged you.
One of the core practices we want to engage in as the community of Common Table Decatur is to fight for justice and that is going to be the focus of our worship gathering this Sunday. This Sunday is Pentecost, the day we celebrate the birth of the church with the infusing of God’s resurrection spirit on that community of people.
God’s purpose in sending Jesus and the Spirit is the same as God’s purpose in unleashing the church: to bring healing and justice and wholeness and joy to all people. From the recent headlines, we’ve got a lot of work to do!
As we fight for justice, one important thing for me and anyone who is white to remember is that we must take an active role in fighting against racism. It’s not enough to not be racist. It’s not enough to post on social media. The onus is on us to educate ourselves, to listen, to act.
I’ve included some resources below that might be helpful as you join me in doing that.
I hope you'll join me in this important work.
Resources for Fighting For Racial Justice:
Where to start:
75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice
Books:
I’m Still Here - Austin Channing Brown
How to be an anti-racist - Ibram X. Kendi
The Color of Law - Richard Rothstein
The Cross and the Lynching Tree - James Cone
White Fragility - Robin DiAngelo
Dear Church - Lenny Duncan (ELCA pastor)
Movies:
13th on Netflix(watch the trailer)
Selma(watch the trailer)