I am starting with stopping the silence. Being silent on this scourge of racism would put me in the category of those who simply say, “I’m not racist,” which according to author and researcher Ibram X. Kendi is simply not a thing: “You’re either racist or anti-racist.” I want to be known as an anti-racist and it’s time to put feelings into words and words into action. 

Anti-racism is not my area of expertise, so I thought I’d share with you where I’m starting in my own research. I’m grateful to friends (Thank you, Denise Pierce, Bea Baylor, and Becky Wright!) who have pointed me to helpful resources. I haven’t read all these, but I’m going to start. I recommend you do the same. And if we are serious about learning about this issue, we MUST read, listen to, and talk to people of color—and not just read and listen to our familiar white authors and pastors whom we love. The ones who know about oppression are the ones who have experienced it. We must learn from them! 

Step One: Acknowledge your white privilege 

White privilege is something every white person in America is born with and it results in inherent advantages over non-white people throughout society based simply on skin color. I confess I only learned about it 22 years ago when I was a grad student in a women’s studies program at The University of Alabama. What saddened me then—and now—is that it should have been the church who taught me about it. It should have been a repentant white church that helped me understand the centuries of racism that white people were responsible for and how to work to undo it and then modeled how for me! We can’t change the past, but the present and future are in our control (with God’s mercy) to make the changes necessary to heal this land! I’m starting NOW! 

Recommended books on the topic of whiteness: 

NOTE: These 2 books are by white authors, so please don’t stop here. See Step 2. 

White Awake by Daniel Hill 

White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism by Robin J. DiAngelo 

Step Two: With humility and a willingness to learn and LISTEN: Read a book or an article or a blog or something about racism written by a person of color

Here are some of the books and resources that have been mentioned lately by the people I’m learning from: 

Be the Bridge (award-winning book) and bethebridge.com by Latasha Morrison

How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram S. Kendi

I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

Video link HERE of Bishop T. D. Jakes (The Potter’s House, Dallas) and Pastor Carl Lentz’s (Hillsong East Coast) discussion of race in America

Facebook live discussion about race between Lisa Sharon Harper and Jen Hatmaker on Jen Hatmaker’s Facebook page. Link HERE.

Websites: 

NAACP: https://www.naacp.org/

Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/

Color of Change: https://colorofchange.org/

Movement for Black Lives: https://m4bl.org/

Equal Justice Initiative: www.eji.org

Here are two long lists of anti-racist resources for white people (such as books, articles, podcasts, videos, etc.)

List 1 link HERE

List 2 link HERE

Step Three: Make a friend – welcome a person of color into your world

This must be genuine. I’m not saying to “do a project” of making a friend. I’m saying, put yourself in places where you would naturally meet a person of color and then meet them and start a conversation. Maybe it’s at work. Maybe it’s at school. Maybe you’ll have to go to the other side of town to a restaurant owned by a person of color and make an effort to meet the owner. Maybe you’ll need to go visit another church. Ask God to direct you to a new friend, and I know God can do that! (By the way, white friends, you do know that Jesus is NOT white, but Middle Eastern, a person of color, and probably of a darker skin tone than any painting of Jesus currently hanging in your churches?) 

Step Four: Speak out against racism whenever you see it or hear it

Make your voice heard. It may be at the dinner table when your father-in-law says something racist. It may be at lunch with your girlfriends when one of them makes a racist comment about your waitperson. It may be at church when someone implies that white people are somehow superior or deserving of better treatment. If you have a blog or Facebook page or any kind of public platform, use it to address this horrible sin of American history and white Christian culture! We must name it to be able to deal with it. If we can’t identify it, it cannot be healed. 

Step Five: Have courageous conversations with people of color

We’ll never be able to work together until we can talk about an issue openly and honestly. And we white people must start by LISTENING. We cannot defend or justify any act where a white person assumes any power over a person of color—even if you think it was done innocently—it is still a systemic disease that must be eradicated. The white people need to take the initiative, make a place and a way, and then let the people of color LEAD us! 

Step Six: Pray about this issue and how God wants you to respond

Yes, this should have been at the top of the list, yet, I’m afraid this is where most of us would stop. We’d check this off our list and feel good about our efforts. That is not honoring to God. Just as Angelina Grimké wrote in 1836 (!) in her Appeal to the Christian Women of the South about the need for the abolition of slavery,

“1st. You can read on this subject. 2d. You can pray over this subject. 3d. You can speak on this subject. 4th. You can act on this subject. I have not placed reading before praying because I regard it more important, but because, in order to pray aright, we must understand what we are praying for; it is only then we can ‘pray with the understanding, and the spirit also’” (Appeal, pp. 16-17).

I am amazed how these acts of violence and oppression continue to be perpetrated when a call to end them has been shouted for centuries! When will white people hear the plea? When will white people change the laws? When will white people take responsibility for the oppression that continues to exist? 

Step Seven: Get personally involved in some aspect of creating change

Use your voice by voting knowledgeably and intentionally. Don’t vote for people who govern via tweets that are only capable of bullying, name-calling, and accusing others for their own lack of leadership. Write a member of congress about an injustice you know about in your community. Attend a city council meeting with a person of color. Help make phone calls to community members about election issues. Join a community or church group that is addressing racial injustices. Be present at events where injustices are being protested and discussed. It may mean we have to put ourselves at risk, but that may be exactly the call we need to heed. People of color put themselves at risk every time they walk out their doors into a racist world that refuses to denounce any and all forms of white supremacy.

Racism has been in our country for more than 400 years! It must be eradicated. The process will begin when repentant, Christian, white people start acting like Jesus and truly love our neighbors as ourselves and do to others as we would have them do to us. I’m committing my time and resources to do my part to end racism! Will you?