Below are selections from the transcript of the speech that yesterday Barack Obama gave on race relations in America. I’m turning 50 this week. I thought I might die of old age before I ever heard anyone of Mr. Obama’s political prominence publicly say things this basic and true. Racism is the cancer of our nation. I personally thank God that someone of Mr. Obama’s status finally said things about it as real as:
“[The Declaration of Independence] was not enough to deliver slaves from bondage, or provide men and women of every color and creed their full rights and obligations as citizens of the United States. What would be needed were Americans in successive generations who were willing to do their part — through protests and struggle, on the streets and in the courts, through a civil war and civil disobedience and always at great risk — to narrow that gap between the promise of our ideals and the reality of their time.”
“Like other predominantly black churches across the country, Trinity embodies the black community in its entirety — the doctor and the welfare mom, the model student and the former gang-banger. Like other black churches, Trinity’s services are full of raucous laughter and sometimes bawdy humor. They are full of dancing, clapping, screaming and shouting that may seem jarring to the untrained ear. The church contains in full the kindness and cruelty, the fierce intelligence and the shocking ignorance, the struggles and successes, the love and yes, the bitterness and bias that make up the black experience in America.”
“We do not need to recite here the history of racial injustice in this country. But we do need to remind ourselves that so many of the disparities that exist in the African-American community today can be directly traced to inequalities passed on from an earlier generation that suffered under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.
“Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven’t fixed them, fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today’s black and white students. ”
“Legalized discrimination — where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black homeowners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or fire departments — meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between black and white, and the concentrated pockets of poverty that persists in so many of today’s urban and rural communities.
“A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one’s family, contributed to the erosion of black families — a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. And the lack of basic services in so many urban black neighborhoods — parks for kids to play in, police walking the beat, regular garbage pick-up and building code enforcement — all helped create a cycle of violence, blight and neglect that continue to haunt us.”
“For the men and women of Reverend Wright’s generation, the memories of humiliation and doubt and fear have not gone away; nor has the anger and the bitterness of those years. That anger may not get expressed in public, in front of white co-workers or white friends. But it does find voice in the barbershop or around the kitchen table. At times, that anger is exploited by politicians, to gin up votes along racial lines, or to make up for a politician’s own failings.
“And occasionally it finds voice in the church on Sunday morning, in the pulpit and in the pews. The fact that so many people are surprised to hear that anger in some of Reverend Wright’s sermons simply reminds us of the old truism that the most segregated hour in American life occurs on Sunday morning. That anger is not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems; it keeps us from squarely facing our own complicity in our condition, and prevents the African-American community from forging the alliances it needs to bring about real change. But the anger is real; it is powerful; and to simply wish it away, to condemn it without understanding its roots, only serves to widen the chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races.”
“Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.”
“In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination — and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past — are real and must be addressed.”
![John Shore on The Huffington Post](http://johnshore.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/huffpost.jpg?w=120 "John Shore on The Huffington Post\")
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Christian, merely making repudiation to your statement about conservative "hellfire and brimstone exaggerations."
Being in Texas most of my life, I have grown up seeing racism and have personally dealt with family members I feel are bigots. It's always necessary to stand against prejudice, no matter the cost. I have left more than one church because of racist views. The most recent wanted to move further north because the demographics weren't conducive to the type growth they wanted – I believe this is called "white flight."
Obama stayed in that church 20 years – sorry, I don't see the congruency with his speeches and the integrity of the man is at stake.
Who is running for president, Obama or his pastor. Perhaps Kennedy should have been held accountable for Vatican policies?
Personally, my vote is not with Obama (if I were a Democrat) because I don't think we have the resources to pay for some of his wonderful ideas. But that race and religion are not the issue.
Washed – what does heaven and hell have to do with this? Did I miss something? And your response to Rocklock is off a bit. Most did not want to get rid of slavery. Many did. But at least half did not. Hardly something to crow about.
As the white father in a bi-racial family I see racism in America fairly frequently. As a person that lives abroad, I see racism in my host cultures very frequently. It is real where ever we go. The tendency is to cling to those that are like us. All too often we are not comfortable with what is different from us, and unfortunately esteem it less. There's no beauty in this form of life. We must look beyond the familiar and see the beautiful Mosaic that God has created. Racism is not just an American experience. It is a human experience. It is evidence of the depravity of man.
However, as Christian we are to seek reconciliation with those we have wronged and those who have wronged us. We are to forgive the those who have offended us even if they are unwilling to repent, and repent even if the offended are unwilling to forgive. Rev. Wrights message was inexcusable. Especially the comment of, "God D**** America." I cannot see how on earth a Pastor of a Christian church could wish Damnation on a person much less an entire country. That being said, If we have offended our brother we must seek reconciliation where the offense is real or felt. The fact is there is much to be angry about in the black community. History has been horrible. Politically they have been played too only for votes, and church wise the vast majority are still even more segregated than our schools ever were. Racism is alive and well. I often look at my two small mixed race sons and wonder what life will be like for them. They are beautiful, but different. My pray is that we can all start seeing others beauty and not just the difference.
God Bless Everyone,
I agree with most of the opinions stated here, that Mr. Obama gave a history making speech regarding racism. As an African American Woman and Pastor, I also agree that there have been sermons preached over the decades that voiced the hurt that many of my race endured due to racism. Airing our hurt over the pulpit doesn’t make us any less godly or called to ministry. It simply makes us human. The black church, as all churches do, act as a family and when one of us is hurt, we all hurt. We try to be there for everyone, not just our own race, and embrace them in any state they may be. When someone displays their hurt, whether we agree with them or not, we take the time to listen and offer comfort whenever possible.
That being said, how do we know that everyone in the church agreed with that Pastor’s sermon? How do we know that he didn’t repent to the congregation after preaching the sermon? How do we know that he didn’t make an attempt to reconcile things with God after evoking so much emotion and controversy among people? We don’t know.
The best thing for all concerned to do is pray. The word of God does state to touch not my anointed and do my prophet no harm, so whether we agree with that Pastor or not, he is still called by God to do a work and will have to answer to HIm accordingly.
How many of us have made racially inspired jokes? Classified an entire race of people because of the failures of a few? How many of us have preconceived ideas of what each race is like because of what we’ve been taught by our parents? At some point in our lives, we have all been guilty of racism on some level, our prejudiced wasn’t revealed through mainstream media.
I am not saying that we should overlook any wrong doing in the body or condone ungodly behaviour but I am saying that we need to make sure that our won lives line up with the unadulterated word of God before we make any comments, suggestions, or judgement calls about someone that we know absolutely nothing about, except what has been afforded us through the media.
John,
Right on and to the point. First-century Christianity appeared to have overcome the “moral failing” of discrimination – but currently Christians are mired in it. Discrimination, especially racism, won’t go away without being addressed head-on and recognized.
Have to mention a favorite song addressing this – “Legacy” by “Pierce Pettis. An excerpt:
You are a black man
l am a white man
We both come from the Southland
Both doing the best we can
Where the grim reaper was my brother’s keeper
The way my brother was kept
Small wonder Jesus wept…
…We learned the golden rule
in separate Sunday schools
In a house long divided against itself.
This may go down in history as one of the MOST IMPORTANT speeches of this century.
Barack Obama speaks words of tremendous power.
“In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination — and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past — are real and must be addressed.”
Absolutely. I agree—however, not in God’s house. Not the anger that was displayed towards America, and Americans.
“He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.” 1John2:9
A place of worship should never be used to further political opinions.
This whole thing about "houses divided on Sunday" is so tired and overblown. Look, there are probably hundreds of different Christian denominations in this country. This is because people have different ways of expressing worship, different views on certain biblical issues, gravitate towards a particular style of preaching the Bible (expository or topical), etc. Nothing racist about it. A particular demographic will always, for the most part, congregate with people they know and are comfortable with and this is true both ways.
If a black church and a white church are both serving Jesus, who cares that they're not integrated? As long as both have love for the other, it makes no difference where people decide to go. If a church is multi-racial then great and if not, as long as there isn't a discriminatory element to it then that's ok as well.
I'm starting to think this guy might actually be the Messiah (not really) as some have purported if he can give a speech about race and have people forget that:
1. His pastor has said, from the pulpit, that the white man invented Aids to kill the black man.
2. Gave a life time achievement award to L. Farrakhan
3. Said, from the pulpit, all of the things that have already been reported…GD America, blah, blah
4. That he never repudiated this racist in twenty years of attendance.
5. Attended a church that espoused Black Liberation Theology which from what I have read is from the pit of hell (one of it's founders, James Cone, had this to say, "If God is not for us and against white people," writes Cone, "then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill gods who do not belong to the black community.")
The fact that this guy is still viewed as a viable candidate just shows how much this country is NOT racist, as a whole.
Imagine the reverse situation. A white candidate who's pastor frequently spewed anti-black venom along the lines of pastor Wright but in reverse. Not only would he be toast as pres. candidate, the masses would denounce that he step down from the senate, as would be appropriate.
We deal with racism all the time in my church, which is predominantly white. Most of the people we minister to outside in our community are black, however. Does that make us racist, passively or otherwise? We also have a black man out of our church who has started our sister church in the same area, who is working primarily with black people… does that make us segregationist?
Christian, did you know that Jesus preached on hell more than he did heaven, as well as more than the Old Testament mentions it?
RockLock, you might do well to re-check your American history. The truth is, most of the Founding Fathers wanted to get rid of slavery, but the southern states would not have joined the new government if that had been the case. So they made compromise whereby they would have to deal with slavery later, but when the later dates came, they kept compromising. You're fooling yourself if you think that nobody wanted to deal with slavery long before the Civil War. Yes, what happened is regrettable, but it is completely inaccurate to say that blacks were not meant to have rights in America. Did you know that some blacks even fought for independence with the rest of the forefathers? They reasoned that if they could not have all of their freedom, they would fight for what they could get at the moment, and continue to reach for more later. Are you saying that they were misguided? I think they would tell you that it was worth it.
I take it most of the posters have not bothered to go and read what Rev. Wright says on the Trinity United Church of Christ website – http://www.tucc.org
Look at the bottom for the link to Talking Points <if it's still there.
Ingrid – I grew up in the 50s and 60s too. As a Cherokee in that time I faced discrimination, namecalling and humiliation. You're not telling me anything I don't know about- but a Christian Church is not a place for hate theology. No eloquence can convince me otherwise.
Again, I would advise people to read the words on the church website. I've said my piece – and I wish you all peace.
dstrtrosy, thank you so much for being honest and telling the truth. I'm a black woman who had a half-white/half-mexican roommate. She was so enraptured with her prejudice she didn't even know how racist she was. Today, she's one of my best friends in the world but it took a lot of time, prayer and eye opening to come to terms with her own black heart in regards to this issue.
What non-racist Whites don't seem to understand is that America never meant to include the rights of black people. I am not represented by the forefathers of this country. The history of blacks in America, even when other ethnic groups receive apologies and monetary reparations, is largley overlooked. Most people don't understand unless you've lived in a society of being a minority. You don't ride buses being the only white on it, you don't go to job interviews being the only white person in the building, the only white person in your class at school. You have no idea the mental toll it takes of feeling powerless and not represented in a society. To some extent, neither does Obama because he's just as much white as he is black.
Many pastors spoke about 9/11 being punishment due to excusing abortion and homosexuality in this country. White preachers didn't mention the moral issue of racism because they don't deal with it. I don't agree with what Pastor Wright said or even the amount of times he's spoken about it, let's not make the mistake of thinking only whites are racist. Let's also not make the mistake that being a Rev of a United Church of Christ means he and his congregation are bible believing Christians.
I think he's speech was excellent. I think he may have made a political mistake by not disowning Wright – at least that's what the pundits are saying- but to do the right thing as opposed the politically expedient thing is very refreshing to behold.
I believe everything he said is true. I think that the church in America has been, and still is, generally, racist. Perhaps not deliberately anymore but more in a passive way. Just look at the congregational make up of most (not all churches). And not very long ago, in Wright's lifetime, not many white Christians supported Dr. King – in fact most fought him.
I think theologically conservative preachers (from which Wright appears to have his roots) are generally full of bombastic rhetoric and hyperbole. Fire and brimstone exaggerations. Even though there is no doubt that what Wright said was taken out of context but there has been plenty of cause at times to replace God bless with God damn when talking about some of America's actions.
Besides – what this guy is saying is no worse (or even as bad) as some of the things pastors have said about God's vengeance being wrought in events like 9/11 and Katrina.
In above comment, the word you I left without a clear antecedent. I meant Ingrid in that instance.
And to Mona, you are very right that there is a culture in many black churches that pastors say things that are racially charged and at some points outright racist. I am positive to the untrained ear of the outside eye it would appear like a bunch of black folks preparing for war, but the truth of the matter is that whether you agree of disagree with his sermons, this is his experience and the experience of many men like him, like my father, my uncles, my ex husband and the list could go on forever. Rather than do a blanket condemnation on the man for being extreme lets look at his reality and try to find a way to bridge that gap with him and men like him.
As Christians it is our duty to look past their failings and try to bridge that gap that has left them so angry and frustrated to begin with.
The people who oppose Obama that do so on the basis of race are a very small minority (or perhaps Clinton supporters). Think about it for a second… if Obama were white with the exact same policies, do you honestly think that 99% of the conservatives who will vote against him in the general election would vote for him in that instance? You harm only yourself if you say that this is the case.
No, there is no "racism" inbred within us. The tendency to sin, yes. But being born in the U.S. does not make you racist any more than being born in Germany makes you agree with Nazi beliefs about the supremacy of the "Aryans" over the Jews.
I don't believe we're stereotyping when we (by we, I mean conservatives) condemn the remarks made by the Rev. Wright. Do you really think that God would condone a man who purports to preach in His Name calling for Him to "Damn" America for the faults of SOME Americans from the past, and even fewer Americans from the present. How come it is that people like you leap to defend Rev. Wright when he blames America for 9/11, but react with anger at the "Baptist" church that protests at the funerals of American soldiers and claims that America is being punished for gay marriages?
Barack Obama's speech was all about politics. It is necessary to have political debate, for when there is no opposing voice, dictatorship WILL result and we WILL lose our freedom as Americans. I commend Obama for making the speech, and I commend him for strongly disagreeing with his Pastor's remarks. But it was about politics, and disagreement IS open and honest discussion.
Okay John,
First, let me say thank you. You are one of the few blogs I can count on consistently to offer unbiased opinion on many of the issues that face us today. I applaud your ability to see past not only race and color, but also religious barriers. I live in Youngstown, OH where race is quietly swept under the rug while in the kitchens and behind closed doors racist rhetoric is allowed to flow unchecked.
That said, as a black woman, I want to address the Black church experience and say that often times a Black pastor not only teaches biblically sound lessons, but also serves as a political commentator to his parishioners. It must be understood that while other commenters find it easy to condemn this pastor because his sermon snippet deviated from what one may consider an applicable bible based sermon the truth of the matter is that many Black preachers come from a tradition where their congregations got everything they needed from the church, because community resources were not at their disposal. This is part of the legacy Obama discusses.
While those of us who access information and information technology are more aware of the world around us the black church is truly a hodgepodge of people. It is one of the few places you can go as a poorly educated person and still be given a place of dignity and honor. When you walk into most black churches on Sunday morning it is difficult to tell who works in a mill, is on welfare, is a CEO or on Social Security. Honestly, most times you can only barely tell by the parking lot.
The Black church experience is a level playing field. I disagree wholeheartedly and vehemently with any of the comments who look at this on the surface and then make a value judgment against this man or his former pastor.
This was not Obama's way to win votes. This was a candid and open conversation about the truth of race relations in America. Youngstown is not the only place where we put on a public face to hide private verbal bile. The only way to actually move forward in America is to admit that we all come with some preconceived notion about other races and cultures. I don't care how saved you are, if you were born in the USA there is a certain level of racism inbred in all of us that we must own up to, address and overcome.
For anyone to say that everyone opposing Obama is NOT doing so based on race is a fallacy. While some may have honest concerns with his potential presidency there is the very real and active group who seek to spread fear by playing on the very subtle racial stereotypes we all hold. You may not personally vote for him because of issues but there is a group of people in this country who choose a more sinister reason. Just like there is a group of Black Americans who will vote for him simple because our pride in his accomplishments says we should support him. That is not every black person, but we do exist.
This speech is ground breaking because in it he has said all the things we know but are to afraid to discuss amongst ourselves. Rather than look at the political ramification of his message, like the divisive pundits would prefer, we should instead have an open and honest discussion about the truth in his speech and may that speech can be the door that opens the floodgates of racial healing because it opened our ears to the voice of reason.
Sorry to blog in your comments.
It seems to me that the problem of racism is political economy and those who preside over it. Since blacks won the divine war of freedom, all of the so-called anti-discriminating and poverty elevating government programs have not actually solved the problem because the ultimate goal is not to solve the problem but rather to enhance power and the wealth of the chosen few.
The problem is not one of opportunity or equality it is one of equity and justice. If 'we the people' quit believing the gospel of free market that is severely regulated and controlled by legislatures and corporate management and stop bowing to the socialist baloney of secular egalitarian tolerance (another name is the totalitarian fairness) and demand of both a livable wage to afford the command from on high to consume, consume, consume, much of our social problems we be solved.
If the janitor, receptionist, dish washer made what ihe/she needed to be an obedient tax paying consumer, then blacks would have little reason vent frustration out on others in their communities mainly because more blacks are steadily employed than whites. Enough money enough of the necessary stuff of life plus enough to fund good schools, government services, etc., etc.
In light of all that, most, if not all, legislators and council members are tied at the hip to the status quo political economy based on a pyramid -like hierarchy of wealth and power who millionaires and near millionaires by maintaining the a discriminatory political economy. That includes those who wear black robes and sit on high to judge our lives and behaviors and create unconstitutional laws.
Heck, the justice who adjudicated for secularism's high wall of Religion and Public Separation–and its legal sacrament now administered by ACLU–was a member of the KKK.
Again, the political economy thrives on discrimination. Welfare hurt everyone–yellow, black, and white–because it was based on enhancing political power at the expense of freedom and independence. If it were not so, welfare payment would never have been given directly to individual citizens except for the truly disabled and elderly infirm. Instead, welfare tax dollars would have been given to small- and medium-sized business and maybe set-asides for start-ups to enhance business productivity, the economy, and move citizens toward economic independence. Government would have paid welfare dollar onto top of minimum (welfare) wages to enable business to train and pay individuals a livable income no matter what the job.
In other words, welfare is not merely charity. It is a mean toward socialist totalitarianism. Replace it with what the founding generation envisioned for all and much discrimination and injustice will come to a holy end.
Amem. From a white lady.
I hate to say it, John, but Rev. Wright's philosophies have nothing to do with addressing moral failings. It has to do with bitterness and hatred, which is not commended ANYWHERE in the Bible. The treatment of blacks in the history of this country is inexcusable, but you cannot expect to gain a first right by a second wrong of bitterness and condemnation towards those who themselves have had NOTHING to do with the oppression of blacks in America.
While Obama made some good points in his speech yesterday, he by no means made any sort of history. Politicians have said such things before and will say them again. What Barack Obama did in his speech yesterday was merely prove that his campaign IS about race, even if the people who oppose him are not opposing him on the basis of race.
WHOA! Hold on a minute! The anti-American words of Rev. Wright was not contained in a few speeches or sound bytes or videos. It is the theolgy of the church.
I wrote an entire article on it at Helium.com. If you can commend Rev. Wright's words and the churchs theology after reading what is posted on their church website- we live in different worlds.
I am an American Indian – I don't spout hate talk about this country though I often disagree with how history was written concerning indigenous people and even what is occuring in a federal court to day in a class action suit.
Let's call Rev. Wright's words what they are – political extremism and lets make no mistake that Obama knew of them years ago and has sat under the theology for many years. He touched on some of them in his book, Audacity of Hope!!
I'm not posting my link, but if anyone wants to read the article, email me and I will give you the link to my article. Piica@aol.com
Fine! Address moral failings from the pulpit – all of them. Don't just pick and choose. Do we know if Rev. Wright ever tackled all of the moral failings faced by his congregation? We probably never will. I know this: In a black church on the south side of Chicago, a philosophy like that of Rev. Wright puts people in the pews. A person in the pew means money in the plate. How many of those parishioners wanted to hear about each and every one of their sins every Sunday? How many would be there week after week when they started to hear about their sexual immorality, their drunkenness, their hatred, their bitterness…pick your sin! You know…. the same sin that we all deal with every day?
Right now, this speech was reactionary. If Senator Obama wants to talk about racism, I applaud him and encourage him to do it more. But, Mr. Obama: Don't you dare talk about it after you've sat under the hate-filled philosophy of Rev. Wright. Don't come and do it when it looks like you are putting out a fire. It tells me you are "reactive" and not "proactive" It shows me that you are unable to exercise proper judgment. It turns out that good judgment is essential to being President of the United States. May God Bless the United States of America!
Freetobe: The reality of racism isn't a "political opinion." It's a moral failing. And the pulpit is the perfect place from which to address moral failings.
Marcy, I would argue that the sexual revolution hurt all races equally in the ways you mentioned.
On to the race issue:
I lived for 8 years in the panhandle of Texas, one of the great bastions of continuing racism in this country. In 1998 I moved to a small town that had, only ten years earlier, removed from its city laws one regulation that stated "all colored people must be outside of the city limits no later than 7 pm." Japanese families were persecuted openly–in 1998!–and not one black or African-American person (read Whoopie's book to understand the semantic difference) lived there at all.
Until 2000. One Sunday I was singing a special and looked at the people sitting to my right. I almost choked to see an entire black family beaming up at me. As I sang, I prayed, "God, please let these people be passing through." In the nearly 3 years I had served at this particular church, I had heard a great many racist comments from the older members. And while this was not tolerated by the leadership in any overt form, they were finding it difficult to eliminate. I did not want any spiritual or emotional harm to come to that family I saw sitting there that morning.
Well, the family was not passing through, and in a few weeks they placed membership at our church. About two weeks later, our wonderful, loving pastor preached a King-esque sermon against prejudice that would have wrung the heart of any civil rights activist. It was Biblical and it was political and it was powerful. I have never been more proud to be a follower of Jesus than I was in that moment.
And let me tell you how powerfully God worked through that sermon. Starting in our church and radiating out in waves, the community began disallowing prejudicial acts of any kind to be perpetrated against its citizens. More black families moved in. The Japanese families began sleeping safely at night and socializing freely with their neighbors. God used one sermon to make real, radical social changes in that town.
Can I condone the words of the Reverend Obama was defending (and not defending) in his speech? No. Can I understand them? Yes. His anger has nothing to do with me, personally. But I feel that Obama's strong response does. Thanks for posting this, John.
Amen! again
John,
It seems to me Mr. Obama is correct in many ways. Even today, many (perhaps most) black people continue to experience discrimination. If only 1% of white people are strongly racially prejudiced, that means one out of every 100 white people a black American encounters is likely to discriminate against them. So if a black American goes to a baseball game where there are 25,000 people, 250 of those are racists. It's pretty likely that a black person is going to encounter one of those racist people. If a normal person has contact with 100 people each day, a black person will meet one of those people every day! That would convince anyone that white Americans are racist.
And yet, 99% of Americans are NOT racist, and most of us find the actions of those racists abhorrent. So how do we counteract the actions of those few who insist on remaining racist in spite of all that has been done to convince them this is wrong? Will taxing the majority of Americans, both black and white, in order to pay reparations for things we all agree were wrong, convince the minority of racist Americans? Somehow I doubt it. Will forcing businesses to hire black people regardless of their qualifications improve the condition of black Americans and persuade the racists they were wrong? It seems unlikely; in fact, it reinforces the belief of the racists (and of some blacks as well) that blacks can't compete on their own merits – and that seems far more harmful in the long run. It seems to me a public relations battle, conducted mostly person-to-person by those who understand that all people are equal in value, is the best approach, though it is slower and cannot happen through government dictates. But we white Americans have GOT to commit to undertaking this battle fiercely, to doing all we can to make friends with black Americans even when we are rebuffed (recognizing that they have been wounded repeatedly and may find friendship dangerous), to speaking up when black people put appropriate words to their feelings (as you has done here) even if we disagree with some of their other positions, and to publicly and immediately repudiating racist actions and speech wherever we find them.
At the same time, I think Mr. Obama has made a serious mistake in eliminating moral issues from the discussion of how the black culture in America got where it is. In the 1950's, in spite of the unconstitutional limitations on black freedom in many states, black families were improving financially relative to the rest of the country. Black people attended church in far greater numbers, black men were marrying before they had children and staying with their families, and black children were facing opportunities they had never had before. People like Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and General Colin Powell went to college and rose to prominence during those years. But the s-xual revolution of the 1960's decimated the black culture. It encouraged black men to consort freely without any obligations; it communicated to black women that their value was exclusively in their physical attractiveness, and it convinced black men, women, and children that church was irrelevant to their daily lives. In spite of the civil rights movement and affirmative action, the financial condition of the majority of black America has declined drastically since the 1960's, and the black family has nearly been destroyed.
While I recognize that anger and bitterness over racism has been partially responsible for the condition of blacks in America today, I don't believe their situation will improve significantly until black Americans as a group return to a moral foundation. If they are willing to give up blaming and resenting white people (many of whom also find racism detestable), and recognize their need for solid spiritual and moral underpinnings, they will perhaps improve their own condition far more than anything the rest of us can do for them. Black men need to do the hard work of earning a living, marrying their women and raising their children; black women need to hold their standards higher and refuse to sleep with a man until they are married; black churches need to stop preaching against whites and Jews and start calling their own people to live according to biblical standards. (Some are, and their people are prospering as a result.)
In the meantime, white people need to undertake a ministry of building relationships with black people, no matter how difficult that may be. (And it is difficult – many black people have been hurt enough that they are unwilling to allow whites to form even an acquaintance with them.) We need to listen when black people have the courage to speak about their feelings and experiences. And we need to speak up boldly against racism and any form of prejudice. And we also need to advocate for spiritual and moral values for American culture as a whole – for men to marry and be faithful to their wives, for women to save themselves for marriage. The revolution of the 1960s has been harmful to all Americans; we all need to be called to higher standards.
John, I found the most interesting statement Mr. Obama made yesterday was (paraphrase) "I am sure you all here you pastors say things you disagree with all the time." My pastor preaches the Bible faithfully and does not go beyond what it says to make any political point or vent personal feelings. Either this pastor does not faithfully preach the Bible (seems obvious he does not) or it is assumed that those in the pews are simply going to a social gathering and will continue to create their own truth as they see fit. Interestingly at Easter time this is what a famous Roman leader once said Jesus before handing Him over for crucifixion "what is truth." The Bible does not condone racism or deny the pain it causes, but it surely does not put the hope or future of believers in the hands of those who may oppress us. Rather as Jesus said "These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) Either our hope lies in Jesus or in something else. To suggest in any "Christian" preaching that hope lies elsewhere is to remove Jesus from the place of Lord. May He bring those who search for hope elsewhere into a knowledge of the truth.
Dear John Shore, Speaking about and actively helping to heal injustice is very important for the the body of Christ which includes all races . I truly believe in my heart that as Christians we should listen and try to understand and acknowledge past hurts! However, to say racially divided, abusive speech, about Jews, whites, and anybody not African- American like many of Rev. Wright's sermons and call it healing or understanding and using the pulpit to do so is not Christ centered and is not truth!!! He will be judged evermore for inciting hate, fear, and untruth in his church to fellow believers. You can not use the name of our LORD for any political gain or ideology of hate! God is sovereign and reigns on high. I will continue to pray that Satan's handprints are not on ANY Pastor's sermons and will lift the Lord's name high and glorious. Rev. Wright's comments about America are shameful and hurtful to many people who serve this country….police, firefighters, our military….We are a blessed nation indeed and need to reconcile and heal from the past prejudices that linger in our nation. Rev. Wright's sermons and others like him will not serve to heal the body of Christ or help people to focus on Christ's love or teachings. In Christ, Joyce
Um, make that "Amen". (I'm typing in the dark.) Amen!
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