Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ( Prayer for the Oppressed – Book of Common Prayer, p. 826)
O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. – Prayer for the Human Family (Book of Common Prayer, p. 815)
St. Titus‘ Episcopal Church
Pauli Murray Service
A service commemorating the life and witness of Blessed Pauli Murray, a saint on the Episcopal Church calendar. Murray was the first African American female priest ordained in the Episcopal Church. The service is held annually on or soon after July 1, Murray’s commemoration date on the Episcopal Church calendar.
Diocese of North Carolina
The Racial Justice and Reconciliation Committee (RJRC) is the body responsible for identifying the needs and potential solutions pertaining to racial inequities and white supremacy in the Diocese and in our churches. Some of their recommended programs are highlighted below.
BECOMING AN ANTI-RACIST CHURCH CURRICULUM
“Becoming an Anti-Racist Church” is a new mini-course designed to give participants a chance to review and unpack the concepts and vocabulary introduced in the two-day Racial Equity Institute (REI) Phase I anti-racism workshop. It has also been modified to allow participation from those who have not attended the REI training. The curriculum was developed and is offered by Episcopalians United Against Racism, a collaborative partnership that includes the diocesan Bishop’s Committee for Racial Justice and Reconciliation.
RACIAL EQUITY TRAINING
Racial Equity Institute (REI) Training provides an analysis of race and racism from a systems perspective. That is, it addresses racism not only from the standpoint of individual bias, but also by examining the historical roots of racism as it affects institutions—the church, education, health care, criminal justice, etc., and what effect that has on the opportunities that white people and people of color have. Although this is a secular training, people of faith are well-represented in each training, and conversations during the training address religious issues.
DIOCESAN ANTI-RACISM TRAINING
The RJRC recently updated, redesigned and renamed “Seeing the Face of God,” the previous diocesan anti-racism training program. A partnership among diocesan staff, the Racial Justice and Reconciliation Committee and notable consultants such as Dr. Catherine Meeks of the Absalom Jones Center in Atlanta, the new “Dismantling Racism: Reclaiming Our Baptismal Promise” is an interactive workshop designed to deepen spiritual commitment to dismantling racism as participants in the Jesus Movement. Through presentations, prayer, story sharing, videos and small group discussion, participants explore how the sin of racism impacts all lives.
The Racial Justice and Reconciliation Committee (RJRC) of the Diocese encourages each parish to have one or more members—clergy or lay—attend this training as a way to “seed” an understanding of racism from this perspective, and to have a common vocabulary and approach throughout the Diocese. To help defray the cost of the training, the Diocese, through the RJRC is offering subsidies to parishioners to attend.
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
The Episcopal Church has made a long-term commitment to racial healing, reconciliation and justice. The Church’s Becoming Beloved Community vision frames a path for Episcopalians to address racial injustice and grow as a community of reconcilers, justice-makers, and healers who share a passion for the dream of God. More information is available here: https://episcopalchurch.org/beloved-community
A comprehensive list of resources is available here: https://www.episcopalchurch.org/ministries/racial-reconciliation/
A Select List of Anti-Racism/Dismantling Racism Training Programs is available here: https://www.episcopalchurch.org/ministries/racial-reconciliation/resources/
Episcopalians United Against Racism (EUAR)
Episcopalians United Against Racism (EUAR) is an independent alliance of anti-racist Episcopalians from parishes primarily based in the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. We are part of a growing movement of community members and people of faith who have devoted ourselves to the long-term, transformative work of creating racially equitable systems and organizations. Learn more here: https://www.euarofnc.org/
Here’s a link to the Racial Justice and Reconciliation page on the Diocesan website: https://www.episdionc.org/racial-justice-reconciliation/
Websites
Color of Change colorofchange.org
Black Lives Matter. https://www.blacklivesmatter.com
ColorLines https://www.colorlines.com
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) https://www.naacp.org
Southern Poverty Law Center. https://www.splcenter.org
Equal Justice Initiative. https://www.eji.org
Voices for Racial Justice. https://www.voicesforracialjustice.org
Books
Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi
How to Be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin Diangelo
Song in a Weary Throat by Pauli Murray
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
My Vanishing Country by Bakari Sellers
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
Having Our Say by Sara L. and A. Elizabeth Delany
The Rage of a Privileged Class by Ellis Cose
Between the World and Me by Ta-Neshi Coates
The Tears We Cannot Stop by Michael Eric Dyson
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
Race Matters by Cornel West
The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. DuBois
Reflections of an Affirmative Action Baby by Stephen L. Carter
The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon
Black Power by Kwame Ture (Stokely Carmichael) & Charles Hamilton
Why We Can” t Wait by Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Autobiography of Malcom X: As Told to Alex Haley
Roots By Alex Haley
Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman
From Here to Equality: The Case for Reparations by Sandy Darity and Kirsten Mullen
Yet With a Steady Beat by Harold Lewis
Episcopalians & Race by Gardiner Shattuck
Race and Prayer by Malcolm Boyd and Chester Talton
America’s Original Sin by Jim Wallis
Our Time is Now by Stacey Abrams
Movies or Videos
Crash (2004)
Best of Enemies (2019)
Do the Right Thing (1989)
Selma (2014)
Amistad (1997)
Fruitvale Station (2013)
To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)
Just Mercy (2019)
A Time to Kill (1996)
The Hate U Give (2018)
If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)
12 Years A Slave (2013)
The Learning Tree (1969)
Dear White People (2014)
Moonlight (2016)
The Butler (2013)
A Raisin in the Sun (1961)
Imitation Of Life (1959)
In the Heat of the Night (1967)
The Birth of a Nation (2016)
One Night in Miami (2020)
Malcolm X (1992)
Documentaries
I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
13th (2016)
The Central Park Five (2012)
When They See Us (2019)
Scottsboro: An American Tragedy (2001)
Whose Streets? (2017)
The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross (2013), (6 part series)
Reconstruction: America After the Civil War (2019) (4 part series)
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution (2015)
Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise (2018)
All In: The Fight for Democracy (2020)