Racism is the original and persistent sin of the United States. Unarmed black people are killed by police authorities and armed members of the public. Say their names: George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Tony Robinson, Trayvon Martin. So many others. We know this. We see this. We grieve. We are angry. We move on. It happens again.
Our racist system targets people of color for poverty, imprisonment, violence, and death. Primarily white institutions police black communities and communities of color. Primarily white institutions hold power in a criminal justice system that utterly fails to impose accountability on police officials and armed white citizens who kill unarmed black people. There is no justice. How, then, can there be peace?
We the elected leadership of religious congregations of women in and around the Louisville area stand in unity with those who feel the rage and despair of this moment. As majority white communities in the United States, we recommit to prayer, self-examination, and advocacy. Specifically, we join with the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights in calling for fundamental reform in the way policing is done in the United States. We call for fundamental law reform to strip away protections for those who bring violence and death to unarmed black people. We call for and commit to REAL change to bring REAL peace, the peace that comes when all have enough, when all are treated with respect.
We deplore all random acts of vandalism and other acts of violence and terror. These acts do not promote peace, justice, or respect.
Every person is a precious child of God. George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Tony Robinson, Trayvon Martin….precious children of God.
We call for a city-wide day of prayer, mourning and self-examination to be held on June 6, 2020 on racism and how we are called as individuals and a civic community to act now.
Signed, the elected leadership of the following religious congregations:
Dominican Sisters of Peace
Sisters of Charity of Nazareth
Sisters of Loretto/Loretto Community
Ursuline Sisters of Louisville
Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph
Sisters of St. Benedict of Ferdinand, IN
Comments
Bravo!
Amen!
I am spending this day in learning more about racism, militarism, poverty, etc.
If you want to join me in this, please look for information the Poor People’s Campaign, and, if you are white, look for information that shows what is meant by white privilege. We white people have taken these privileges, often unconsciously; we need to reflect on a long list of white privileges that we have. I will be reflecting on them for a long time. Please join.
I missed this session and hope, along with the Poor People’s Campaign, these ideas will continue and I may become a participant of servitude to God.