race
Rabbi Sandra Lawson on how not to treat Jews of color
By Yonat Shimron — June 25, 2020
(RNS) — “When someone looks different, that is not the time to ask a bunch of personal questions. It’s a time to say, ‘Welcome. Thank you so much for coming,’” says Rabbi Sandra Lawson of Elon University.
Prayer is essential. Protest is required. Policy is necessary
By Jim Wallis — June 5, 2020
(RNS) — I have never seen so many white people care so deeply about America’s Original Sin, structural racial injustice, and the 400 years of violence against black lives.
Without annual meeting, amid decline, Southern Baptists continue debate on race, women’s roles
By Adelle M. Banks — June 4, 2020
(RNS) — Southern Baptists have struggled over the meaning of critical race theory in particular and the direction of the denomination in general.
For white churches, race should not be an ‘over there’ problem
By David Swanson — May 21, 2020
(RNS) — Though the social hierarchy of race comes at the expense of women and men of color, the work of deconstructing it must be done by those who constructed it.
Ahmaud Arbery died for the indefensible principle of white control
By Jemar Tisby — May 8, 2020
(RNS) — The presence of a black body has long been deemed a threat to be contained rather than a neighbor to be loved.
Oral history project preserves stories of black Muslim seniors amid pandemic
By Aysha Khan — April 17, 2020
(RNS) — A new oral history initiative aims to train black Muslim youth to document their elderly community members’ stories, before it's too late.
Multiracial churches growing, but challenging for clergy of color
By Adelle M. Banks — January 20, 2020
KELLER, Texas (RNS) — 'Pain is a part of the growth,' said the black pastor of a multiethnic Southern Baptist church in Utah.
Paige Patterson feared backslide after election of first black SBC president
By Adelle M. Banks and Yonat Shimron — November 18, 2019
(RNS) — A newly discovered letter from one former prominent leader of the Southern Baptist Convention to another reveals a depth of mistrust and suspicion toward the denomination’s first black president.
Mother Emanuel’s forgiveness narrative is ‘complicated,’ says reporter-turned-author
By Adelle M. Banks — June 6, 2019
(RNS) — 'The churches themselves are as segregated as ever,' Jennifer Berry Hawes says of Charleston, S.C. 'What has changed is that there are efforts to bridge divides between the people in those churches.'
As Emanuel AME documentary screens, survivors, families mull grief and guns
By Adelle M. Banks — May 15, 2019
WASHINGTON (RNS) — The survivors and family members of victims spoke of forgiveness — though some are at different stages than others — and answered questions about securing houses of worship.
In Detroit, one organization is schooling Muslims on racial justice
By Aysha Khan — February 20, 2019
(RNS) — In just five years, the Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative has grown from a Twitter conversation into an organization that has trained America’s biggest Muslim groups in racial justice.
As Southern Baptists mull executive vacancies, will diversity play a role?
By Adelle M. Banks — February 6, 2019
(RNS) — Two former SBC presidents, joined by a Las Vegas pastor, took the unusual step of sending a letter to the search committee for the new president of the SBC Executive Committee, inquiring about the breadth of efforts to fill the position.
“The Green Book” teaches about race in America
By Jeffrey Salkin — January 15, 2019
Race in America is a subtle conversation. A new film demonstrates that.
Does Trump encourage white supremacists? Faith groups divided in survey
By Adelle M. Banks — October 30, 2018
WASHINGTON (RNS) — The PRRI survey found sharp religious and racial divides over police brutality, immigration and churches' handling of #MeToo-related issues.
Amy Julia Becker reflects on the burden of white privilege
By Yonat Shimron — October 26, 2018
DURHAM, N.C. (RNS) — One day scanning her children’s bookshelf Becker realized nearly all the characters in those books were white, like herself, her husband and her three children.
