I wish that I was able to read all of the books that I wanted to on this subject. There were a lot more than I realized and the ones that I have read contained great points and were food for thought. The end of Black History Month won’t end my personal study of racial reconciliation, but it also won’t be my main focus anymore.

I read a chapter on racism written by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstefeld in their book, “Writings on the Wall: Searching for a new equality beyond black and white.” They had many good points in the chapter as well as some that I didn’t quite agree with, but overall was a good read. I unfortunately didn’t have time to finish the whole book before this post, but hope to finish it within the next few days. The main takeaway I found to be in the last few pages of the chapter. They list six points to attack the behavior (both intentional and unintentional) of racism. I will address the points and mention what they mean by the point as well as to add some of my own narrative to the points, adding in how as Christians we are to view these things.

1. Teach public awareness. Many people may not realize that what they are doing contains a racist attitude. They state that most people want to be kind and to do the right thing, but the lack of awareness makes it hard for people to realize what they are doing wrong. Instead grace should be given with correction so that understanding can grow. This can work in any situation where people are from different races. I believe that this defines the grace that God gives us and we are commanded to have towards our brothers and sisters. It helps us to grow in understanding and love for one another.
2. Apply social pressure. They use a scene from the film, Gentleman’s Agreement, to explain their point. Basically, we should stop remaining silent when racist attitudes or actions are presented, such as a racist joke. Instead we should speak up against that action or attitude. The Bible tells us to think of holy things and to speak and live in a way that honors God. Defaming another of God’s creation just to bring a few laughs is not honoring to God nor His created people, ALL of whom are created in His image.
3. Passing and enforcing anti-racist laws as well as blocking racist laws. I was unaware of this, but apparently there are laws, especially regarding drugs and bail, that make it harder for black people than whites when it comes to criminal justice. Neither race nor status should affect how a person is treated when it comes to the criminal justice system or how else could the system be deemed just? We need to be aware of the prejudices not only in the criminal justice system, but also all around us. God made us all different, but we all stand equally before God. He judges not based on race or economic status, but on whether or not our names are written in the Book of Life through believing that Jesus died for our sins. Only then are we declared just. The criminal justice system should not be focused on personal opinions and bribes, but on facts and the pursuit of truth.
4. peacefully protest every racist action. The key word is PEACEFULLY. Anger and hatred only breed more anger and hatred. As stated earlier, most people don’t realize that what they have done is considered racist and through peace and loving correction we can change how they view things. If we act violent in our protests, they’ll associate what we stand for with violence. As Christians, we are called to love one another and to pray for our enemies. The world tells us to fight back and to use our actions to speak for us, but speaking peacefully is also an action. The latter action points us to Christ rather than to man. We must remember that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the works of the devil. The devil seeks to divide and pit us against each other, but God calls us to unity and to work through our differences so that we can glorify Him together.
5. Promote affirmative action, at least for a period of time. They state that this means giving preference to minorities for a period of time until there is equal competition for all parties. Although I see the appeal to this, I’m not sure if it is the best method to use. People should be qualified for the position in which they seek.
6. Press for more minorities in TV and movies. I personally feel like there has been a lot more minorities who have acting careers. The Black Panther movie contained a majority black cast (and it was a good movie). The thing about acting is you have to be able to act (some may disagree). There should be equal opportunities for all nationalities as well as seeking to have more diversified casts. In the last two points, they are pressing for minority preference, but only until the competition is equal. At this point in time, I’m not sure if that will or will not be more effective in the long run.

The other book that I read on this topic was “The Church Enslaved: A Spirituality of Racial Reconciliation” by Tony Campolo and Michael Battle. This book is interesting because it is written by a white and a black man who have seen both sides of the issue. It also talks to both black and whites and points out flaws on both sides, not just the side of whites. This is a unique perspective because from many things that I’ve heard, whites are often assumed to be the only ones in the wrong and it is good to see the problems on both sides and how we can work together to reconcile with each other.

They list modern racism in whites as:

1. Dysfunctional rescuing: a condescending view of blacks as unable to help themselves and in need of their assistance.
2. Blaming the victim: believing the victim is at fault for the way they are treated.
3. Avoiding contact: segregating by race and not developing relationships between cultures.
4. Denying cultural differences: not realizing or caring to note the differences between cultures and how it affects and environment such as the workplace.
5. Denying the political significance of differences: how historical, social, psychological, economical influences affect the lives of both whites and blacks.

They also list the internalized racism of blacks:

1. Beating the system: when people of color avoid or fail to develop necessary skills for succeeding
2. Blaming the System: when the structures that were placed to help one succeed are blamed for the shortcomings without the consideration of personal failure.
3. Avoiding contact: avoiding or distrusting whites sometimes extending to the belief that some are not “black enough.”
4. Denying cultural heritage: when a person of color prefers white culture
5. Lack of understanding or minimization of the political significance of racial oppression: when a person of color believes another person of color to be less powerful and is usually manifested in passive and unassertive behaviors.

In both cases, the general assumptions are that whites are superior in the workplace and how both black and whites respond to that assumption. They also later mention how whites are assumed to be more intellectual while blacks are assumed to be more athletic. Both cases hold errors. Blacks can be superior in the workplace and can be quite intellectual. Whites can be great athletes as well. Color does not define a person’s intellectual tendencies nor their athleticism. They mention a story of how a group of white kids came into the black communities and did the work of social workers without pay. They established summer programs and Bible studies among other things. The paid professionals were upset by an article stating that those students were doing their job for free and put together a council to get rid of the student group. They stacked the room with residents hoping to lean the proceedings in their favor. Their main argument was that those white students were imposing white middle class values on the children and making black values seem inferior. As the proceeding was going in their favor, a middle aged black woman stood up and gave her two cents.

“You keep talking about white middle-class values,” she said. “What are these white middle- class values? I would like to know exactly what they are; you see, I never had the educational advantages that you city workers have had, so you’ve got to educate me, you’ve got to teach me.”… “Do you mean by white middle-class values that the children would dress and talk like ladies and gentlemen? Do you mean that they will take school seriously, instead of playing basketball till one o’clock in the morning on the city playgrounds? By white middle-class values do you mean that you would have a two-car garage with two cars parked in it? That you would have a husband and a wife living together and that you have regular jobs? Do you mean by white middle-class values that you expect your children to go off to college? Is this what you mean by white middle-class values? Or do you mean something else?” … Well, if you can’t tell me what white middle-class values are, could you please explain to me what black lower-class values are?” … “Well, if you can’t give me any answers to these questions then I can only say this: If white middle-class values are what I think they are, I say bring them on. I hope my children learn these values and what’s more, I don’t think they are white middle-class values, I just think they are the values of decent citizens.”

The group was allowed to stay the rest of the summer. The reason that I quote this story is because from my reading, it seems to be ingrained that blacks have to live a certain way and whites have to live a completely different way. I understand that there are cultural differences that we should strive to understand, but our cultural differences shouldn’t limit our ability to succeed. There is so much more in this book that I learned, but this already long post would be a lot longer if I continued. I recommend this book to anyone wishing to understand more about racial reconciliation and do note that as with any book, it should be read with a grain of salt.

Speaking of cultural differences, I learned many years ago from my favorite Sunday School teachers, who happened to be black, that there are different commercials for black people. One is geared toward wait gain for black women. That was my first introduction to how different beauty standards are. I also learned from my best roommate, who also happened to be black, that when black women will ask another to hold their earrings so they can smack sense into someone.

James O. Horton said in a video by PBS on the Underground Railroad: [The underground railroad is] “a major story with a tremendously important message for our time because if blacks and whites could work together 150 years ago under the kind of adversity that all of those people faced with the kind of danger that all of those people faced, we don’t have any excuses at the end of the twentieth century to be doing at least the same thing.”

We need to develop a culture where we all see each other as equals. Where we all strive to understand the problems on both sides of the issue. Where we recognize that all people have equal opportunity to achieve their goals, although some may have a rougher start than others. We need to understand that the past is in the past – we must learn from it, grieve its wrongs, but not live in it. We must stop separating things between races. I don’t call myself a Caucasian American so there’s no need for others to be called African Americans, Native Americans, Muslim Americans, etc. We are all Americans. There’s no need to call ourselves White Christians, Black Christians, and so on, those who have Christ as their savior are Christians. This isn’t to ignore the diversity that God has given us. That diversity is beautiful and designed by our loving Creator. It is to point to our unity first. If all we see is our diversity, then it will be hard to overcome the racial divide. But if we focus on what unifies us, we are able to see our diversity as a rich flavor to our unity rather than what separates us.